While the Covid pandemic may prevent students from touring colleges of interest, there’s absolutely no reason why they can’t engage in an even more productive activity – research. A college investment is one of the largest expenses most families will face in their lifetime. Yet many students and parents find themselves choosing an institute of higher learning without doing any serious homework that could help identify best-fit colleges where students could prepare for the career of their dreams, at an affordable cost, with the likelihood of earning an impressive salary over the course of their career.
A good place for families to start their research is at CollegeBoard.org. There they will find a College Search database that contains information on more than 2,000 four-year colleges in the United States. By selecting specific criteria regarding school size, location, availability of on-campus housing, choice of major, and other aspects of college life, students can easily identify colleges that might be a great match.
The 2021 edition of U.S. News and World Report’s “Best Colleges” includes a listing of A+ Schools for B Students. It includes many national universities popular with New Jersey students, such as Adelphi, Hofstra, Pace, Seton Hall, St. John’s, and Temple. It also highlights popular regional universities, including Fairfield, Fairleigh Dickinson, Monmouth, St. Joseph’s and Stockton, and popular regional colleges, such as Ithaca, Manhattan, Marist, and Providence.
Students seeking information on colleges with the highest paid graduates can access the 2020-21 College Salary Report by PayScale. Schools in New Jersey and neighboring Pennsylvania that top the listing of Early Career Pay are Princeton University ($77,300), Stevens Institute of Technology ($75,800), Carnegie Mellon University ($78,600), University of Pennsylvania ($73,700) and Lehigh University ($70,300).
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, average (eight year) graduation rate, and the average salary its students are earning – for each specific major – one year after graduation.
With a substantial investment of time and money at stake, students and parents should be sure to get all the facts before making their college decisions.
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
No comments:
Post a Comment