The College Decision - Choosing A College

     OK, I am sure everyone knows the process of deciding which college you want to attend can be a stressful one. Not only do you want to pick one that fulfills what your looking for, but also one that you will be happy and satisfied with. After all it has to be a good learning environment in which you feel comfortable so you can get the best experience possible. Choosing a college to attend is a important decision, and it is not one that should be done last minute; I can't stress this enough. When choosing a college there are a few things you should take in consideration, such as, whether or not you can afford to attend, location, whether or not it offers the major you are interested in or any classes you are interested in taking. You can even look at such aspects such as, it's social scene, many feel that college should be an experience where you expand your horizons, meet students of different backgrounds, and be in a city that's new to you.

     Now college is not for everyone, some may feel they do not need a college degree to pursue their career, which is true, although a degree would be beneficial one is not always needed. Some on the other hand may be on the fence about the whole: "Should I attend college?" dilemma. Well the suggestion I can give for those of you facing that problem is, to ask yourself "Who am I?" and "Is college right for me?". Everyone is different, we have our own opinions, we think differently, we learn differently etc., and with this being college may not be right for you. Some people say, "well you can only be successful if you go to college", I personally don't find that to be true. One person can go to college and graduate feeling like they learned many things and grew as an individual, whereas another can graduate feeling as if it was a total waste of time; and this is something that happens allot. Many feel the need to go to college right after high school because they believe it is what is socially expected, so they attend with a sense of it being the right thing to do, even if they feel they are not ready.

     Choosing a perfect college really calls for you to know your self and the limits you are willing to take to attend one. Some you may not be able to afford so you would have to work extra jobs or even take out a loan, some may require you to leave your home even if you don't want to leave, some may require you to change you whole lifestyle; it's up to you to know how much your willing to sacrifice. Now lets look at a few things to ask yourself to make the decision an easier one.

• Is Prestige important to me?
• What type of lifestyle do I envision for myself?
• Would a perform better in a smaller or larger classroom setting?
• Will I enjoy being here?

     Ultimately the decision is up to you to decide which college you want to attend. The way I see it is, if your smart enough to consider college you will most likely make the right decision. After all no matter how high or low a colleges rating are they all have one goal which is to educate the student.