Worklife   The CosmoGirl! Guide to Choosing, Getting Into, and Paying for College Oh the stress of getting into college: · "I'm scared of the SAT." · " Which college is the right one? · "How are my going to find the money?" · "How am I going to find the time to do my applications? · "What if only Airhead U accepts me!" "Help!" Okay. I'll help. Top 5 Mistakes Students Make When Choosing a College Before telling you what to do, I better warn you what not to do. You'd be surprised how many students make these mistakes: #5. Relying on the rankings. To compile their annual lists, the newsmagazines ask administrators, not students, at 1500 colleges to rate themselves and other schools in their region. Many times, these people have never even visited those other campuses! It's like trusting a movie rating written by a reviewer who hadn't seen the movie. #4 Relying mainly on the college's "name." Think you need to attend a brand-name college to impress a grad school or employer? Not. Fact is, a top student at a not-so-tough-to-get into college may be more impressive: they get better grades, top recommendations, and leads on top jobs. At a designer-label college, they may be lost in a sea of smarty pants. And honors classes and leadership opportunities provide plenty of challenge. To top it all, top students at less-selective colleges usually get hefty scholarships. So don't limit your search to the schools everyone oohs and ahs about. #3 Relying on one person's opinion. Your cousin Jennifer loves Par-Tay College, and she just knows you'd be ecstatic there too. If, after checking it out, you're not really convinced, politely tell Jennifer you're keeping all your options open. #2 Being too shy to ask questions. Fact 1: College may cost you a fortune, and you'll spend 4-6 years there. That entitles you to ask questions. Fact 2: Students love to answer questions. If someone were thinking of attending your high school and asked how you liked it, wouldn't you tell them? How to Pick the Best College for YOU Choosing a college is like choosing a vacation spot (kinda sorta). Do you want beach or mountains? Relaxation or hot nightlife? There are no right or wrong answers. But you've got to narrow down your options if you're ever going to make a decision. That's what these questions are for: 1. I want my college to be: o Within an hour's drive from home. o Under a half hour from home. o A few hours away. o As far away as possible. (Hawaii, anyone?) 2. My college should be: o. In a big city o In the country o In the suburbs. o It doesn't matter as long as there's a Gap nearby. 3. I want my college to be: o Small enough that they'll know if I cut class. o So big that that no one would notice if I never went to class. o It doesn't matter. 4. "My college should have plenty of students who are: o partiers. o artsy types. o jocks. o intellectuals. o activists who want to change the world. o It doesn't matter 5. My college should have students who, in high school, were mainly: o Convicted felons o A students o B students o C students o It doesn't matter 6. I want to major in ________________ [fill in the blank] If you don't know what you want to major in, it's okay to leave this blank. Your answers to questions 1-6 will help you narrow down your college search. Take these answers and go to www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/cosearch.htm; you'll be asked to enter more criteria and a free list of colleges that match your needs will pop up! Or, try using software called Expan ($29.95, www.collegeboard.com). It helps you pick a career, major, colleges that offer that major plus other things you want in a college. After you've got your list of ten or so schools, read more about them in the Fiske Guide to Colleges and The Best 331 Colleges.   TIP: To help figure out if you'd fit socially at a college, talk with its students. If a campus is far away, just call the college switchboard and ask to be transferred to a dorm's front desk-a student usually answers. How to start the conversation? "I'm thinking about attending your college and am trying to learn more about it. What kinds of students fit best and worst at your college?" Should You Take the SAT or ACT? Surprise! The vast majority of colleges DO allow you to take either the SAT or ACT. Go to the websites of the schools you're interested in to make sure have a choice, then check out this chart to see which test you should take. Take the SAT If You: Are good in math. (It's 50% math; the ACT is only 25% math.) Have a good vocabulary. (It's 50% verbal) Aren't good in science. (There's no science section.) Are bright but sort of lazy. (The SAT is more of an aptitude test than an achievement test.) Take the ACT If You: Are lousy in math. Have a lousy vocabulary. Are good in science. Get good-enough grades but you have to study hard for them. (The ACT tests achievement not just aptitude.) You say you don't really fall into any of the categories above? Then take whichever one you feel more comfortable with after taking a sample test of each. As long as the colleges you're looking at accept both tests, it won't matter to them which one you take. Test Taking Tips To get prepped, try some sample exams. (Go to amazon.com and search under "SAT preparation" or "ACT preparation" for a slew of great, books and software from the Princeton Review, Kaplan and others). Make sure you get to all or almost all of the questions in the time allowed. Take the SAT or ACT once in May of your junior year. Unless you reallyscrew it up--like you don't finish even half of the questions--don't re-take the test. Even if you take a $800 test prep course, very few people's score increases enough that they land in a college at which they'll be happier or more successful, let alone get into a significantly more prestigious college. Retaking can even be disadvantageous: the colleges see that you've made a hobby of retaking the SAT. Besides, you could have spent the time studying-which matters more-or, God forbid, having fun. On the part of the SAT that asks you to list colleges you're planning to apply to, only list three. Your choices get sent to all the colleges. If you list more, the colleges are likely to think, "Why should we give her a slot, she probably won't come anyway, and that would make our admissions ratio look bad and our spot on the US News rankings will go down." 5 Ways to Give Your Application The Extra Edge Nervous you'll get nothing but thin envelopes? These hints will help fatten them. 1. Take a tough schedule of five or six solid subjects per semester (No, basket weaving isn't solid; Physics is). The hardest-to-get-into colleges love to see Honors or Advanced Placement classes, too. Are we having fun yet? 2. Do an extracurricular that shows you'll add spice to the college. Some ideas: Starting a business, spearheading a protest, or trying to invent something (yes, even trying shows you're smart and eager). 3. Focus on activities you really care about, so that your passion for them comes through. Don't do an extracurricular just to put it on your application. 4. Use the Common Application. With one application, you can apply to more than 200 prominent private (and a few public) colleges. All of them promise that using it will not hurt a student's chances of admission.   5. Apply to 4-7 colleges if you're they're hard-to-get-into or expensive; otherwise, apply to 2-4 schools. (Any more is a waste of time and money). Include one safe school (whose students' average SAT score is 100-points lower and GPA is about .3 lower than yours) and one financial safety school (one you can afford even without financial aid--like a community college, your own state's schools, or a Canadian college. Four Ways to a Winning Essay You're dreading writing your college essay, but it doesn't have to be complete torture. Write about something cool about you that isn't apparent from the rest of your application. Avoid tired topics such as: How my visit to another country helped me appreciate another culture, how athletics taught me the importance of hard work, what I learned from being in student government, and how important my family has been to me. The key is to show how you as a student would contribute to that college. You might explain specific interesting things you've done to improve your high school, like how you started a study group, changed a bad school rule, etc. Conclude your essay with something like, ?I hope to take a lot from my experience at Moo U, but in my small way, also to contribute to it.? That strikes the proper balance between saying you can contribute while not sounding bombastic. (Look it up. It's an SAT word.) Visitation Rights Would you buy a car based only on a brochure and a smiling salesperson? Well, choosing your college based on the brochure, website, and tour guide is like doing that. You've got to ask buyers --a.k.a. students-how they like their college before you sign on the dotted line. It may be tempting to just take the campus tour (basically, a sales presentation by someone who walks backward), and go home. But don't do that. DO visit when school is in session. DO peek into classes: Are the students awake? Is the professor interesting? DO go up to students in the cafeteria, out on the lawn, whereever the common area is. Say,. "Hi, my name is (insert your name.) I'm thinking of coming to this college. Can I ask you a few questions?" What do people like best and least about the college? Is there anything I should know about the college that might not appear in the official brochure? Were you surprised about anything once you started here? I'm kind of ______ (Artsy, shy, studious, whatever). Will I fit in at this college? What do most students do on weeknights? On weekends? Do you think the college is worth the money? DO look at the students and listen in on their conversations. Are they too serious, too preppy, too something, or can you picture yourself fitting in? As you leave campus, jot down notes about what you liked and didn't like about the school, so you don't get confused as you continue your search! Interview FEARLESSLY It is possible. Here's how: Before The Interview: Step 1. If interviews are optional at the schools you're looking at, only interview if adults generally like you. Step 2: Call the admissions office to find out if the interview is informational or evaluative. If it's only informational, it's used to sell you, not evaluate you. You can chill. Step 3: If you want to use the interview to increase your chances of admission, request an interview with an admissions officer rather than with an alum. Step 4: You want the college to want the real you, but leave home the side of you with the spiked hair and pierced tongue who wears cleavage-revealing tank tops. Wear what makes you feel confident, but lean toward the conservative side.   Step 5: Prepare two topics you'd like to tell them about: a hobby, a powerful experience that shaped who you are, a project you're working on, or something you read recentl: no, not the CG! article on how to get sexy, shiny hair! Step 6: Prepare three questions you want to ask about the college that weren't answered in the brochure. Step 7: Have an answer ready for the questions "Why do you want to go to this college?" and "What's your favorite book?" At The Interview Step 1: Be a star in the first five seconds by looking the interviewer in the eye, wearing a pleasant smile (pleasant, not psychotic), and saying "Hi, I'm [insert first AND last name]".Give a firm, but not crushing, handshake. Step 2: Give longer answers to easy questions, short answers to hard ones. If you hear a question and your immediate thought is, "I have no idea what to say," take a deep breath and say something, but keep it short so you can spend more time on the stuff that shows your smarts/strengths. Step 3: End by smiling, looking the interviewer in the eye, and saying, "Thank you so much for your time." If it went well, you can add, "I really enjoyed our talk and I think I'd really love being a student here." Yes, it may feel dorky but it works. How to Turn A Rejection into an Acceptance You'll probably be just as happy at another college but if you REALLY want to go to a certain school, here's how to turn a no or maybe into a yes. Give the college new information that will convince them to re-evaluate your application-for example, that new-and-improved math grade. Now you see why they tell you to keep your grades up in the senior year? Let them know your needs are flexible: If you'd put on your application that you wanted to major in business, ask them if they've got any slots open in a different major; tell them you don't need to live on-campus during the first semester; offer to start in the spring semester. Check out www.nacac.com/survey/results.cfm. It's a list of hundreds of colleges that still need students for September, and it's updated throughout the spring and summer. Getting the Moolah 95% of student aid dollars comes from the government and from the colleges themselves. (The other 5% is from rich people and non-profit organizations). You can score your share of billions of dollars just by having your parents fill out one or two of these three forms: the FAFSA, the Profile, or the college's own form. Other things to keep in mind: 1. Make sure your parents fill out the right form(s) for each college. To find out which ones, visit the college's website. They usually can be filed online. Easy! (Well, easier.) 2. Be sure you meet each college's filing deadline. They usually fall somewhere between late fall and winter, but since they may vary, put them on your calendar now. 3. Here's the hardest part. A lot of money is given out, in part, based on how good your grades are. So study hard. It could pay off--literally. (No pressure!) 4. Take advantage of a sexy new opportunity with a very unsexy title: 529 Plan. It allows parents to sock away virtually as much as they want for your college education-and the investment earnings, starting in January, will be federal and possibly state tax-free. To find out about your state's 529 plan, visit savingforc 5. Here's another government giveaway: the Hope Scholarship. Most families with incomes of $100,000 or less can get up to $1,500 more in their tax returns for each of your first two years of college and $1,000 for the next two years. Find out more at www.ed.gov/inits/HOPE 6. Don't agree to go to a college until you've gotten financial aid offers from all the ones that have accepted you. One college could give you a great deal while a similar college could give you squat. Some colleges will negotiate a better deal if it means they can get you to go there. So don't be shy about asking! For more on financial aid, check out collegeispossible.com TIP: Apply for financial aid even if your parents have money because many colleges won't consider you for merit-based scholarships unless you apply for financial aid. So You Don't Want to Go to College Yet Sick of school? Consider an interim semester or year between high school and college. No, that's not a year of sleeping late, watching soaps, working part-time at Burger World, and hearty partying. What you do is get into college and then ask if you can defer admission for a semester or year. Many of them will allow this if you've got the opportunity to: volunteer full-time for a cause you really believe in. Consider Americorps (americorps.org), which awards you with college cash after you complete a year of service. be mentored by a master. Let's say you dream of creating the next Lara Croft game. Visit gamemaker websites and see if someone would you take you on as an apprentice. complete a structured interim program. Find a list of thousands of them at http://members.tripod.com/malbarelli/interim_programs.htm If you do take a year off before going to college, remember: you're not dropping out, you're stopping out. It's probably wise to head back to college. © 2007, Marty Nemko *    *    * Marty Nemko holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and subsequently taught in Berkeley’s Graduate School of Education. He is the worklife columnist in the Sunday San Francisco Chronicle and is the producer and host of Work With Marty Nemko, heard Sundays at 11 on 91.7 FM in (NPR, San Francisco), and worldwide on www.martynemko.com . 400+ of his published writings are available free on that website and is a co-editor of Cool Careers for Dummies. and author of The All-in-One College Guide. E-Mail. Contact Us | Disclaimer | Privacy Statement Menstuff® Directory Menstuff® is a registered trademark of Gordon Clay ©1996-2023, Gordon Clay