Where will you go to college? Will it be a school 10 miles from home or 1000 miles from home? Will you go to the school your brother or sister attended, to the school your parent attended, to the school where all of your friends are planning to attend or are you planning to blaze your own trail? You are the one in charge of deciding where you will go to college. It is, obviously, a very important decision and perhaps one of the first big decisions you have ever had to make in your life. For this reason, this decision deserves to be given serious thought. It is not something that you should decide overnight. Your counselor can help you understand the characteristics of a particular college, but first it is helpful to think about what you want from the college experience.
When selecting a college, you should consider your career and personal goals, your needs and your abilities. Print the Ideal College Exercise and fill in your personal information. This will help your clarify your thinking about what you expect from your college experience.
Now that you have completed this exercise, it's time to find a college/university that meets your personal needs, has the major that you want and that can provide the type of collegiate experience you are looking for.
In order to complete this exercise, you will need information about the colleges you are considering attending. You can get this information by visiting Career Services where you will find information provided by a variety of colleges. You can also go back to the college information page to find listings of the websites of colleges both in the state of Michigan as well as elsewhere in the United States and Canada. These sites will guide you to the information you will need about the specific colleges.
This guide, when complete, will help you analyze individual colleges to determine if they will provide the type of collegiate experience you are looking for as well as meet your needs and your educational goals.
THE CAMPUS VISIT
The campus visit allows you to view the campus first hand. It gives you an opportunity to talk with faculty members and current students. If you are considering residence halls, the visit may also include an overnight stay with a current-student host.
When you visit a campus, try to make your appointment for a weekday when classes are in session rather than on the weekend. During the week, you will be able to view a typical day on campus, see what the parking arrangements are, eat in the dining hall, and generally observe what your life will be like if you choose to attend.
Be prepared when making a campus visit. Call ahead to arrange an appointment with an admission representative, but be sure to also request the following activities.
- A campus tour
- A meeting with a financial aid representative
- An opportunity to sit in on a class in session, (preferably in your major)
- An opportunity to talk to faculty and to current students
Also, make a list of questions that you have about the school and take them with you. Don't hesitate to write the answers down as you proceed through your visit. Ask any question that comes to mind. Remember, you may be spending the majority of your time on this campus.
After you visit all of the colleges in which you have identified an interest, compare your answers. You will find that one school will usually stand out.
Once you have narrowed your choice to just a few colleges, you should arrange a campus visit. Only by visiting the college can you really know if that college is right for you.
When you have narrowed your choices, you may want to visit with a counselor to discuss your choice, clarify your goals, and determine what Macomb classes will help you reach your goal.