7 Steps to Choosing the Right College and Major
Are you or someone you know in the midst of trying to choose which college to go to and what field to study? It’s the age old question that students and professionals face… “What should I be when I grow up?”
College Selections are made based on many different reasons. Have you ever heard these?
- All my friends are going there
- It’s a fun school
- They have great sports teams
- It’s close to home
- It’s far away from home
These reasons have led to many happy and very successful college experiences, but they have also led to quite the opposite. It’s amazing how many people we meet that look back on their college years as a wasted golden opportunity. They will tell us that had everything right at their fingertips to prepare for the rest of their life but they did not realize it.
Wouldn’t it make sense to take a real look at where to go to college and why that choice is being made? With college tuition prices increasing, parents often pay over $100,000 in tuition over the student’s years in college. They spend more when students change their majors and delay graduation. In addition, students are not as happy when they are in majors that they do not enjoy and could not see using the rest of their lives.
We believe college should be a fun time, but also should be one that prepares a student for success beyond college. Our full programs offer in-depth training to help students make their decision, apply to and succeed in college. Of course, we highly suggest these, but here’s the cliff notes version of the steps to take…
1. Focus
Take time to focus on yourself. At first, rather than looking at all the colleges out there, take the time to look inward and discover your purpose, passion, interests and what drives you in life. Let these discoveries guide you toward your ideal future.
2. Assess
Personality, Career and College Assessments help to point out your underlying motivators and interests and match them to potential schools, majors and professions. Take those you have access to or see our career personality test page for suggestions.
3. Target
Once you have completed focusing and assessing, you will have a clear understanding of yourself and be better able to target the schools that are best for you. Creating a matrix with the criteria in a school that are most important to you will help you target the school that is right for you.
4. Apply
The application process is quite important. Be sure to check the deadlines for your target schools and leave plenty of time. When essays are required, develop a clear answer to the questions and be sure to have others proofread the essay or you may want to consider working with a consultant.
5. Interview
If you are going to an interview at your prospective school, be sure to prepare. Know information about the college and be ready to ask questions. Also, be mindful of your body language. You may even want to practice with a friend or in front of a mirror.
6. Decide & Budget
You can refer back to the matrix you created in step three to finalize your decision making process. Also, it’s important to cover the budgeting of both the tuition and the living expenses while in college.
7. Go for Success
As mentioned above. College is an incredible opportunity. Take advantage of it. By knowing your interests, you can get involved and create contacts that will help you succeed in life.
Best of luck in the journey!
Path Insight offers in-depth assessment feedback, college admissions consulting, and the free College Survival Guide to help in the college search and major selection process.
This is fantastic information…wish we had known about it when my children were going through the college selection process!
Over 10 years ago I was an intelligent high school senior making great grades and taking AP classes- 100% college bound. The college selection process was anything but organized or logical, however. I was blindly applying to schools all over the country not even looking closely at their academic programs or costs. I urge high school juniors and seniors (and their supportive parents) to take a closer look at what these free programs offer. It will certainly shed light on a process that can be successful and rewarding to any college-bound individual.
Very true. We feel the programs are helpful too. Thank you for your comments.
I stumbled onto an iPhone app that helped alot. It is called “collge Plan” it lays out the info in a logical way and then has links to help you figure out what is improtant. Just thought I’d pass it on