5 Questions to Ask 
When Choosing a College

By Tim McNellie

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1  What Do You Want to Study?

College students change their majors quite often these days, but when looking at schools, it definitely helps to narrow your interests down to at least a general area of interest, Hotrum says. By the end of your high school career, you should have an idea whether you’re interested in math and science, or if you’re more of a liberal arts person.

If science is your thing, look for schools with up-to-date labs and technology. If you’re interested in the arts, check out the quality of those programs. For many fields of study, you don’t have to declare a major right away. If you’re considering something like pharmacy or physical therapy, however, where the schooling consists of a very strict, well-defined five or six year curriculum, you’ll be doing yourself a favor by starting during your first semester.

Some people aren’t sure what they want to do, though. These students might benefit from the aptitude and interest assessments that college planners like Hotrum use to help kids identify what they might like to do with their lives.

2  Where is the School and How Big is it?

Almost as important as what you study is where you study. As great a school as it is, the University of Pennsylvania might not be a good fit for someone who just isn’t comfortable living in a very urban environment (forget the 33 armed robberies in a single month that UPenn saw a decade ago; this summer the school reportedly had a problem with roving gangs of young children, ranging from 9 - 13, attacking school students and staff). Similarly, someone accustomed to the excitement of big city life might not know what to do with themselves at a small rural school like West Virginia’s Bethany College, where the library closes at 4 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

Size matters, too. Do you want a school where you’re one face in a sea of 40,000, or would you prefer a smaller campus where you might end up knowing everybody? Visit schools of different sizes to get a feeling for the type of campus where you would be most comfortable.

3  What Will Daily Life Be Like?

Though some parents may complain that their kids should focus on academics, not social life, when selecting a college, you’re choosing a home for the next four years, so daily life is a consideration.

One of the assessments that Hotrum puts her clients through gauges a student’s academic and social priorities. If a lively social life is important to a student, he or she may not be happy at a school where 90 percent of the kids are spending their free time in the library. 

Similarly, someone who goes to college 500 miles from Peters probably won’t enjoy a commuter school where the other students drive home on the weekends.

So find out what a school has to offer you socially. If religion is an important part of your life, check out the related clubs and programs at the school, as well as the nearby places of worship. If you like sports, find out what kinds of extra-curricular activities they have. The same with Greek life.

Make the most of your campus tour (see sidebar) and find out what the accommodations are like, from the cafeteria and rec room to the dorm rooms and bathrooms in student housing.

4  What Will the Classroom Be Like?

One of the most important factors in determining your success as a student could be the amount of faculty-student interaction you’ll get at a school. Some students do well with minimal interaction, while many perform best with hands-on help from their professors.

Find out what kind of access students in your program typically have to faculty members. Are classes held in a large lecture hall or in a more intimate environment? Will your classes consist of you listening to a professor lecture, or is it more of a give-and-take discussion between students and staff? Ask around and find out if the students in classes tend to work collaboratively or if it's more of a competitive environment. 

If you’re planning to go to grad school, you’ll want to be able to develop a relationship with the faculty members in your program.

But don’t automatically write off bigger schools because of the sheer number of students. In some programs at Pitt, for example, the student-teacher ratios aren’t unlike those at smaller colleges. Visit the department you’re interested in and start asking questions.

5  How Much Will It Cost?

Though this might not seem like a major issue to teenagers dreaming of college, it certainly is to parents. And it will be to those same students in a few years when they start paying back loans.

For many families, paying for college is no easy task, especially with tuitions increasing at such an absurd rate.

Between 2001 and 2007, the cost of tuition at Carnegie Mellon University has increased by 43 percent, from $25,670 to $36,950. Inflation during that same period has been around 16 percent. And CMU is hardly alone in that same time, tuition at Pitt rose from $6,900 to $12,100. 

But colleges can pretty much charge whatever they like. In today’s world, a bachelor’s degree is a must-have for even entry level work in many fields. That leaves parents and students to figure out how to pay for it.

The good news is that financial aid is available at most schools, and can do much to alleviate the burden of tuition. So don’t immediately write-off a school simply because it’s expensive. Instead, find out what category of financial aid you’re in, so that when financial aid packages are offered, you’ll know where you fit in.

Making the Most of Your Campus Visit

When helping high school students figure out which colleges are best for them, Bridget Hotrum can’t overemphasize the importance of actually visiting the campus. 

"The visit is essential,” she says. “It’s the number one responsibility a parent has during the college selection process.” It takes a lot of time and planning, she admits, but there’s nothing that can replace the experience of being on campus, checking out the facilities and interacting with students and faculty. Arranging a visit may cost a bit of money, depending on how far away the school is, but the further away it is the more important it is to spend a lot of time there.

So when planning a visit, be sure to:

Make appointments.

While you’re on campus, you’ll want to meet with an admissions counselor and with department faculty. Find out how the requirements of the curriculum work. Do students start classes in their majors right away, or do they take care of other requirements first? How much time do students spend on homework each week? Advance planning will pay off.

Talk to students.

This is the best way to get a realistic picture of campus life and academic expectations. Are they happy with the instruction they’re getting? Do they feel safe on campus? What do they like and dislike about the school? If possible, it’s also helpful to talk to alumni to find out if they’re happy with their college experience now that they’re on to their careers.

Look around. Sit in on classes to see what they’re really like. 

Talk to a professor afterward. Have lunch or dinner in one of the cafeterias with the rest of the students. Visit a dormitory and see what the accommodations are like. Check out the recreation room and fitness facilities, if that’s something that interests you. Stop in at the library and look around. The more you explore, the more complete a picture you’ll have of what the college is really like.

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