When we first meet with students, they usually feel overwhelmed by the process of creating their first college list. But it’s actually pretty easy! Just follow these steps to create your college list:
Use a “college compatibility quiz” on reputable sites like Naviance or Scoir to narrow down your search. Often, these are provided through your school, so see which one your school college counselor would like you to use. Even if you’re not sure how to answer some of the questions, these quizzes will teach you what questions to ask while looking at schools and always produce a list that you can use to start researching.
From this list, go through each school and evaluate it. Useful questions to ask of each school include:
Do I like the town, suburb or city where the school is located?
Does this school have academic programs that I’m excited about?
Are there lots of extracurricular and student life activities I’m interested in?
Does the school have study abroad, internship, or job placement opportunities that appeal to me?
If I’m an athlete or artist, does this school have the resources I need to continue playing or creating?
If I need special accommodations or disability support, does this school provide them?
Can I afford to go to this school? What scholarships, work study, and financial aid offerings do they have?
Using the data you find about the school, honestly evaluate whether this school is a reach school, target school, or safety school. Aim to add at least five from each category to your list. For our blog post on this topic, click here.
That’s it, you’ve got your list! Once you’ve identified the schools you’d most like to attend, start looking for opportunities to engage with them like attending college fairs or info sessions and visiting the school. Start demonstrating interest early, and make sure you officially sign up for and attend these events so that each school can track that interest. Remember, you can always add or subtract schools from this list!
If you'd like expert support during the college admissions process, email us at info@kingfisherprep.com and let us know how we can help!
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