This is a guest post with some awesome information for you…

Choosing a college ranks up there as one of the most stressful decisions one ever has to make. It can sometimes seem like you’re planning the rest of your life when you choose which college to attend. This doesn’t have to be a make or break decision. With the right amount of planning, the process of choosing a college can even be sort of fun.

When you’re trying to figure out how to choose a college, the first thing you want to do is ask yourself what field you’re interested in pursuing as a career. This doesn’t lock you into a career that you will spend the rest of your life in, but it does give you a good sense of direction to start the selection. In fact, according to a study of college students in the United States, 55-60 percent of college students change their major at least once. I chose my school because they had a great business program, but halfway through I decided to change to a major offered by the school of education. Taking this step simply gives your college search some direction.

Once you know which programs you’re interested in and which schools excel in that area, look at each school’s acceptance standards. You should choose a few schools whose admissions standards include your test scores at the bottom of their threshold and a few whose standards are a bit more below your test scores. This ensures that you apply to a mix of prestigious schools that will challenge you academically and “safety” schools that are more likely to accept you.

You should also pay attention to class size. One mistake a lot of students make is to equate large class sizes with quality education. In many cases, the opposite is true. You want a low student-to-teacher ratio. If you know that you’re a student who requires a lot of one-on-one time with their teachers, this will be an especially important factor to consider.

Finally, take a visit to the campus. There is nothing that can replace the experience of visiting a college campus. This will allow you to get a good feel for the campus culture. Each campus is different and has different offerings that will appeal to different students. Sit in on a class and get a feel for how things work at the school. Most universities offer days throughout each semester when tour guides are available to walk prospective students and their families through campus. Aim for one of these dates.

Carolyn is a guest writer who specializes in education issues, classroom technology and registered nursing schools.

Your Success is My Success,

Keith Lipke

I’m a careers and college recruiter, coach, public speaker and leader at The Career Closet. His passion is to educate, inspire, and give hope to young people who need it upon their search for the right career and college

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