Think about the reasons why you want to go to a particular college. Do you want to go to University of Tech-Knowledge-y because of its name and prestige? Is it because of where it's located? Is it because all your friends are applying there? Is it because your parents went there and they want you to have the same great college experience as they did?

Here are some things to consider when you choose colleges:

Academics

• Academic program: are you interested in any of the majors the school has to offer? Some colleges and universities have special programs for specific fields of studies. You should go onto the school's website and look for what kind of programs they might have because they might require special applications. Be sure that you meet all the application requirements and meet their deadlines!
• Faculty: Professors are great people to get to know in college. I know, it sounds weird right? If you think about it, they actually have a lot wisdom from years of experience in their field. Also, don't forget that once, long long ago, they were students just like you! You'll want to consider whether the professors make themselves available to undergraduates. What's the ratio of student to faculty? Are you going to always be packed into an enormous lecture hall for all your classes? Sometimes at research universities, professors are too busy writing books and traveling to spend time with their students.
  
• Co-ops/Internships: Some schools encourage students to take a semester off to work in companies to gain industry experience. Some schools even off academic credit for a term spent at a company. These schools tend to have close connections with nearby companies and offer programs that help you prepare to apply and acquire positions where you can learn what it's really like to be in a particular field.

Basics about your College/University

• Location: urban, suburban, rural? How do you feel about each type of place?
  
• School population: Is it too big (20,000+ undergrads)? Too small (1,000 students)?
• Cost: Higher education can be very expensive. How much is tuition? Usually, if you apply to a public school within your state, you can pay in-state tuition, which is substantially lower than if you came from out-of-state.

Student Life

• Activities: The typical college student spends on four years in school. This means, that you'll probably want to get acquainted with what Does the school have clubs or sports teams you're interested in participating in? What do the existing activities tell you about the campus culture, and is it something you like?
• Campus culture: does the place foster lots of close community culture? What do people do on campus? What do people do for fun?
• Surrounding resources: Can you cross-register at other schools for credit? Are there nearby interesting places you'd visit (i.e. museums, ocean, mountains, etc) for fun?
• Transportation: are you going to need a car to get around the city/town? Are you going to be able to get to and from the airport or bus terminals? Do people use bikes and maybe do you see yourself getting one?
• Other students: an important factor to consider because your peers are who you're going to be with them most during your four years! This is when having a college visit is nice because you get a real sense of what it's like to be students at the school.

Site highlights:

College Search Engine: http://collegesearch.collegeboard.com/search/index.jsp
This search engine helps you find schools based on preferences such as: "type of school," "location," "campus life," "majors and academics," "admissions," "cost and financial aid." It's useful if you know for example, that you want to go to school in an urban and study drama.

College Options: http://www.collegeoptions.org/
Cikkege Options helps students of all ages and their families make informed choices about post-high school education.