Asking Questions to Best Identify Ideal College

Asking questions is the key to getting information in so many areas of life – including the choice of college.  The key to truly finding out what your college experience would be like at any given school is to carefully research the answers that are readily available, and then seek out the answers that may not be so obvious.

Every college hosts a website offering statistics in a wide range of categories including its number of students, the percent of students that live on campus, the most popular majors, and the sticker price to attend. The website bigfuture.collegeboard.org offers a gamut of additional information on almost every college in the country regarding average SAT scores and selectivity, diversity of the student body, sports and activities, learning support programs, and much more.

If financial suitableness is the question, hard data is provided on the website collegescorecard.ed.gov. Here students can gather information on the average cost of attending any institution and the average salary its students are earning – for each specific major – one year after graduation.  

Once this information is gathered, college-bound students should be able to create a list of colleges that seem ideal –- on paper.  The next step is to gather answers to the more elusive questions.  A college tour is typically the easiest and most productive way for potential students to get answers to the questions that will greatly impact the happiness and success of their college experience.  

While walking around a college campus, high school students should ask their tour guide, and other students who they meet, about both the academic and social environment.  Enlightening academic questions might include: What departments have the best reputation? How accessible are your professors?  Are most classes lecture-based or discussion-based? How competitive is the academic environment? How up-to-date are the facilities (science and computer labs, libraries, etc.)? How satisfied are you with academic advising?  How helpful is Career Services?  Do potential employers recruit on campus?

Effective questions to identify the social environment might include: What is the social scene like? How’s the food? What’s the dorm life like? Are fraternities and sororities very popular? Is there a lot of school spirit? What clubs and activities are most popular? Do most students stay on campus on the weekend? Where do students head off-campus?

Asking the right questions can be crucial to making an educated decision on the next step of one’s academic life.

Susan Alaimo is the founder of Collegebound Review. For the past 25 years, Collegebound Review's Ivy League educated tutors have prepared students for the PSAT®, SAT®, ACT®, Subject Tests®, AP courses, and all high school subjects. Visit www.CollegeboundReview.com or call 908-369-5362