In our new FAQ series, Gregg Cohen Founder/CEO of CampusBound and ApplyRightCollege talks about the best way to decide what is a good fit college.

I’m here with my friend and colleague, Gregg Cohen, founder and CEO of Campus Bound and Apply Right. And today we are asking Gregg a frequently asked question about the college admissions process. And today’s question is, “What is the best way to start to decide what kind of college is right for you?”

Gregg Cohen:

You know, I think that that’s a tricky question. I think that it’s something different for everybody. But we really like to think about it as self-exploration and self-analysis. You’ve gotta decide what you want in a college. There’s so much put around, “Where can I get in?” But I think what’s important to you and your family is really critical. And so, whether you’re considering things like location, size, or a particular major/career field, the cost of college and the budget, the culture of the college. There’s so many different aspects of choosing a college. So, what are those criteria that are important to you? And, you know, who then can offer those types of things and what are those things?

So, how do you figure that out? You know, a lot of it’s looking. We see students, when they come back from a visit or doing some research online, they start to…becomes clear for them about what’s the cool features or what are those important aspects of it? If it’s talking about your major and career. I think interviewing people, talking to anybody and everybody about what they do for a living, or friends that are older than you and what they experienced in college and the pros and cons of their college.

So, be an aggressive shopper here. Really think about what you want and how you would do your homework about that. And then, it’s a lot easier to find the colleges that might be good matches. We often recommend, junior year is a really great time to be working on this. If you can come out of your junior year with several colleges that you’re [inaudible 00:02:12] to apply to, you’ll be in good shape.

Takeaways

You have to decide what you want from a college and what’s important for you (location, size, major, cost, culture, etc.). Also it’s important to research colleges and visit them.

What was your biggest takeaway from this episode of FAQ series about what is the best way to start to decide what kind of college is right for you? Do you have any questions for Gregg Cohen and Alexis Avila?

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