How to find the college with the best fit?

[Anonymous]

For my kids it was visiting. Even if it’s after applying, or after acceptance. The one that my oldest ended up attending was one he hadn’t seen before applying, and we visited in their accepted students day.

That actually ended up being one of the best visits we had, of all the schools we went to.

[Anonymous]

Sometimes I wonder if what the kids think they want is actually what they want. They don't have the benefit of life experience and are just making judgment from an outsider's perspective, basically saying to themselves, that looks cool.

It would be nice if AI could psychologically profile a kid and match him with a school where other kids with similar profiles had a great experience. Crap, I just gave away a billion dollar idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes I wonder if what the kids think they want is actually what they want. They don't have the benefit of life experience and are just making judgment from an outsider's perspective, basically saying to themselves, that looks cool.

It would be nice if AI could psychologically profile a kid and match him with a school where other kids with similar profiles had a great experience. Crap, I just gave away a billion dollar idea.

Same could be said for choosing a major.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For my kids it was visiting. Even if it’s after applying, or after acceptance. The one that my oldest ended up attending was one he hadn’t seen before applying, and we visited in their accepted students day.

That actually ended up being one of the best visits we had, of all the schools we went to.

+1 to visits being very influential. It helps, especially later if you can do a longer visit that includes more time with students and meeting with faculty.

For DD early visits and a lot of self reflection helped build a list with good options. When it came down to the final choice day-long visits +interviews ended up being the most influential in the choice. One just felt like the right place (in addition to meeting most of the specific factors on her list of wants)

[Anonymous]

Have your student think about what they like, don't like, visit a variety of schools. And then be surprised when the school they select as their "good fit" was not an early contender and also didn't all into any of the buckets you thought it would. Also remember this is a marathon, not a sprint. It takes time, it takes patience, it takes research, it takes your student be vested in the work and outcomes. Also realize even if your student thinks its a "good fit" the school may not agree - be ready for disappointment. There is a lot of emotional energy invested in the entire process.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes I wonder if what the kids think they want is actually what they want. They don't have the benefit of life experience and are just making judgment from an outsider's perspective, basically saying to themselves, that looks cool.

It would be nice if AI could psychologically profile a kid and match him with a school where other kids with similar profiles had a great experience. Crap, I just gave away a billion dollar idea.

Well my DS looked at a map asking where are there ice rinks and good coastal fishing? Long Island! What colleges are there?

One way of narrowing down. I am not fully on board with that method.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Serious question. What is a good resource where we can look at various factors beyond admissions rates, GPA, and test scores? Size of classes, dorm life, social activities, rural/urban setting, safety, etc? Would prefer a written guide so we can flip through and look at all the options, but the USNWR and Princeton guides seem a bit spare on the variables we are interested in.

Niche.com.

[Anonymous]

Niche
Nothing beats individual visits
Don’t listen to DCUM, there are too many damaged trolls (eg Ivy mom)

[Anonymous]

Keep in mind that even once your kid makes a decision on big/small, urban/rural, greek/no greek, these decisions—like many decisions a 17 year old makes—might be based on the flimsiest of evidence. They might decide they just HAVE to go urban because they saw a movie in which kids at an urban school looked like they were having fun. Or they might decide big universities are odious because a teacher made a stray comment about “you’re just a number there.”

You have to start narrowing the field, so you need criteria, but just be aware that they are not written in stone. Some day you might come across a college that seems great except it’s too big, or it’s too cold, or whatever. When you dig deeper on that issue, you might find out the kid is passionate about it, or you might find they formed that preference for a trivial reason they don’t even care about any more.

[Anonymous]

Lots of good advice above. Once some schools are narrowed down, I think it helps to look at the school's student newspaper to give you a feel for what is going on there. I also recommend tours, but not so much for what they say (because I feel like a lot of them say the same things) but to get a feel for the campus and the surrounding area.

[Anonymous]

Go through the guides and make a list. Then watch the admission videos or official tours of the school. That will definitely give you a vibe of the school. Nothing though beats going in person to the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Agree that The Fiske guide To Colleges is good. However, it is important to understand that the Fiske Guide doesn't criticize. In order to review colleges with a critical eye, one needs to consider a variety of sources.

I preferred the Princeton Review Guide to Fisk for this reason.

Some of the Princeton data is based on surveys, so it allows you to compare schools.

Also look at sites like UNIGO & NICHE.

I liked reading student answers to questions like “What type of kid should go here?” “What is the worst thing about your school” “ What do you brag to your friends to about your school .”

Also, they have surveys about things like how manageable the workload is and how much pressure there is to drink.

Those sources and overnight visits really helped my kid assess fit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes I wonder if what the kids think they want is actually what they want. They don't have the benefit of life experience and are just making judgment from an outsider's perspective, basically saying to themselves, that looks cool.

It would be nice if AI could psychologically profile a kid and match him with a school where other kids with similar profiles had a great experience. Crap, I just gave away a billion dollar idea.

Good point. My kid just went to a football game at his school on Saturday and really enjoyed it and plans to go to the next home game. He would never had gone if his new friends hadn't invited him and it certainly wasn't something anyone who knows him would have expected he would enjoy.

[Anonymous]

Op, what was your college experience? Your husband's? Public U or private? Fit is not quite as important if you're taking about state flagships, except for geography. The larger the school, the more likely to find someplace, on campus, to fit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes I wonder if what the kids think they want is actually what they want. They don't have the benefit of life experience and are just making judgment from an outsider's perspective, basically saying to themselves, that looks cool.

It would be nice if AI could psychologically profile a kid and match him with a school where other kids with similar profiles had a great experience. Crap, I just gave away a billion dollar idea.

Well my DS looked at a map asking where are there ice rinks and good coastal fishing? Long Island! What colleges are there?

One way of narrowing down. I am not fully on board with that method.

Connecticut College, across the Long Island Sound. Bam.