The Insider's Guide to the Colleges, 2015: Students on Campus Tell You What You Really Want to Know, 41st Edition

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Contents

Title Page

Copyright Notice

Preface

Acknowledgments

How to Use This Book

Getting In

The College Spectrum

Introduction for International Students

Students with Disabilities

Terms You Should Know

Editors’ Choice

College Finder 2015

Insider’s Quiz

Insider’s Packing List

A Word About Statistics

The Colleges Listed by State

Alabama

Auburn University

Birmingham-Southern College

Tuskegee University

University of Alabama

University of South Alabama

Alaska

University of Alaska / Fairbanks

Arizona

Arizona State University

University of Arizona

Arkansas

Hendrix College

University of Arkansas

California

California Institute of Technology

California Institute of the Arts

California State University System

California Polytechnic State / San Luis Obispo

California State University / Chico

California State University / Fresno

The Claremont Colleges

Claremont McKenna College

Harvey Mudd College

Pitzer College

Pomona College

Scripps College

Deep Springs College

Mills College

Occidental College

Pepperdine University

St. Mary’s College of California

Stanford University

University of Caliornia System

University of California / Berkeley

University of California / Davis

University of California / Irvine

University of California / Los Angeles

University of California / Riverside

University of California / San Diego

University of California / Santa Barbara

University of California / Santa Cruz

University of Redlands

University of Southern California

Whittier College

Colorado

Colorado College

Colorado School of Mines

Colorado State University

United States Air Force Academy

The University of Colorado at Boulder

University of Denver

Connecticut

Connecticut College

Fairfield University

Quinnipiac University

Sacred Heart University

Trinity College

United States Coast Guard Academy

University of Connecticut

Wesleyan University

Yale University

Delaware

University of Delaware

District of Columbia

American University

Catholic University of America

George Washington University

Georgetown University

Howard University

Florida

Florida A&M University

Florida Institute of Technology

Florida Southern College

Florida State University

New College of Florida

Rollins College

Stetson University

University of Florida

University of Miami

University of South Florida

Georgia

Agnes Scott College

Emory University

Georgia Institute of Technology

Morehouse College

Spelman College

University of Georgia

Hawaii

University of Hawaii

Idaho

University of Idaho

Illinois

DePaul University

Illinois State University

Illinois Wesleyan University

Knox College

Lake Forest College

Loyola University, Chicago

Northwestern University

Principia College

Southern Illinois University at Carbondale

University of Chicago

University of Illinois / Chicago

University of Illinois / Urbana-Champaign

Wheaton College

Indiana

DePauw University

Earlham College

Indiana University / Bloomington

Purdue University

Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Saint Mary’s College

University of Notre Dame

Valparaiso University

Wabash College

Iowa

Cornell College

Grinnell College

Iowa State University

University of Iowa

Kansas

Kansas State University

University of Kansas

Kentucky

Centre College

University of Kentucky

Louisiana

Louisiana State University

Loyola University

Tulane University

Maine

Bates College

Bowdoin College

Colby College

College of the Atlantic

University of Maine / Orono

Maryland

Goucher College

Johns Hopkins University

St. John’s College

St. Mary’s College of Maryland

United States Naval Academy

University of Maryland / College Park

Massachusetts

Amherst College

Babson College

Boston College

Boston University

Brandeis University

Clark University

Emerson College

College of the Holy Cross

Hampshire College

Harvard University

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Mount Holyoke College

Northeastern University

Simmons College

Smith College

Tufts University

University of Massachusetts / Amherst

Wellesley College

Wheaton College

Williams College

Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Michigan

Albion College

Alma College

Hope College

Kalamazoo College

Michigan State University

Michigan Technological University

University of Michigan

Minnesota

Carleton College

Gustavus Adolphus College

Macalester College

St. John’s University / College of St. Benedict

St. Olaf College

University of Minnesota

Mississippi

Millsaps College

Mississippi State University

University of Mississippi

Missouri

University of Missouri / Columbia

University of Missouri / Kansas City

Washington University in St. Louis

Montana

University of Montana

Nebraska

Creighton University

University of Nebraska / Lincoln

Nevada

University of Nevada / Reno

New Hampshire

Dartmouth College

University of New Hampshire

New Jersey

College of New Jersey, The

Drew University

Princeton University

Rutgers / The State University of New Jersey

Seton Hall University

Stevens Institute of Technology

New Mexico

New Mexico State University

University of New Mexico

New York

Adelphi University

Alfred University

Bard College

Barnard College

City University of New York Systems

City University of New York / City College

City University of New York / Hunter College

City University of New York Queens College

Clarkson University

Colgate University

Columbia University

The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art

Cornell University

Eastman School of Music

Eugene Lang College of the New School University

Fordham University

Hamilton College

Hobart and William Smith Colleges

Hofstra University

Ithaca College

The Juilliard School

Manhattanville College

New York University

Parsons School of Design

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Rochester Institute of Technology

Sarah Lawrence College

Skidmore College

St. Lawrence University

State University of New York System

State University of New York / Albany

State University of New York / Binghamton

State University of New York / Buffalo

State University of New York / Stony Brook

Syracuse University

Union College

United States Military Academy

University of Rochester

Vassar College

Wells College

Yeshiva University

North Carolina

Davidson College

Duke University

Elon University

University of North Carolina School of the Arts (formerly known as North Carolina School of the Arts)

North Carolina State University

University of North Carolina / Chapel Hill

Wake Forest University

North Dakota

University of North Dakota

Ohio

Antioch College

Bowling Green State University

Case Western Reserve University

College of Wooster

Denison University

Kent State University

Kenyon College

Miami University

Oberlin College

Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio

Ohio University

Ohio Wesleyan University

University of Cincinnati

Wittenberg University

Oklahoma

Oklahoma State University

Oral Roberts University

University of Oklahoma

University of Tulsa

Oregon

Lewis and Clark College

Oregon State University

Reed College

University of Oregon

Willamette University

Pennsylvania

Allegheny College

Bryn Mawr College

Bucknell University

Carnegie Mellon University

Dickinson College

Drexel University

Franklin and Marshall College

Gettysburg College

Haverford College

Lafayette College

Lehigh University

Muhlenberg College

Penn State University

Susquehanna University

Swarthmore College

Temple University

University of Pennsylvania

University of Pittsburgh

Ursinus College

Villanova University

Rhode Island

Brown University

Rhode Island School of Design

Salve Regina University

University of Rhode Island

South Carolina

Clemson University

Furman University

University of South Carolina

Wofford College

South Dakota

University of South Dakota

Tennessee

Rhodes College

University of Tennessee / Knoxville

University of the South (Sewanee)

Vanderbilt University

Texas

Baylor University

Rice University

Southern Methodist University

Texas A&M University

Texas Christian University

Texas Tech University

Trinity University

University of Dallas

University of Houston

University of Texas / Austin

Utah

Brigham Young University

University of Utah

Vermont

Bennington College

Marlboro College

Middlebury College

University of Vermont

Virginia

College of William and Mary

George Mason University

Hampden-Sydney College

Hollins University

James Madison University

Randolph College

Sweet Briar College

University of Richmond

University of Virginia

Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University

Washington & Lee University

Washington

Evergreen State College

University of Puget Sound

University of Washington

Washington State University

Whitman College

West Virginia

Marshall University

West Virginia University

Wisconsin

Beloit College

Lawrence University

Marquette University

University of Wisconsin / Madison

Wyoming

University of Wyoming

Canada

Introduction

Carleton University

McGill University

McMaster University

Queen’s University

University of British Columbia

University of Toronto

University of Waterloo

University of Western Ontario

Index

About the Author

Copyright

Preface

Welcome to the 2015 edition of The Insider’s Guide to the Colleges! Choosing the right school and navigating through the application process may seem overwhelming, but you are beginning your search on the right foot simply by picking up this book. In the 41st edition of the Insider’s Guide, we provide you with an accurate picture of day-to-day college life. For each school profile, we rely on hours of personal interviews with actual students to give you a true sense of the college and its student body.

We tell you what we wanted to know when we were in your shoes. College is going to be one of the most exciting and rewarding experiences of your life. It is about opening yourself up to new experiences, haphazardly putting together something edible in the dining hall when the lines are long and the food is bad, and making the kinds of friends who will skip class to give you a hand when you need it. It is about pulling all-nighters on papers due the next morning or talking to your roommates until the sun comes up. It is about driving halfway across the country to see your football team win, getting blasted for an opinion piece you wrote for the college newspaper, or volunteering at the local elementary school when you still have to do 300 pages of reading. College is gallons of coffee, stress, and laughter.

But first, you need to choose a school. Among the thousands of colleges that span the continent, you can apply to no more than a handful. Maybe you have a vague idea of what you want, but how do you begin to narrow your choices?

That is where the Insider’s Guide comes in. For this 41st edition, we have revamped our entire book to ensure that it provides an accurate portrayal of college experience at each of the more than 300 institutions we feature. We give you the inside scoop directly from the students who attend these schools. We research each college by interviewing friends, friends of friends, and a selection of student leaders. These unique perspectives offer insights that you won’t find on the glossy pages of admissions brochures or by browsing schools’ Web sites. It also means that we are only as accurate as the opinions of our sources. After all, the college experience is unique for every individual. Indeed, one student’s closet-sized dorm room may be another student’s palace.

In addition to college profiles, the Insider’s Guide includes a number of special features to help you in your search. The College Finder gives you a rundown on various schools according to key attributes, such as student body size and graduation rate. Getting In takes you step-by-step through the intricacies of the admissions process. In The College Spectrum, we discuss some of the most important factors to consider when choosing between schools, as well as giving you a look at current trends in college life. Introduction for International Students provides tips on applying to American schools for those living outside of the United States, while Students with Disabilities informs those with learning or physical disabilities about issues they should consider when applying. Study Abroad gives you a peek at the overseas adventures that students undertake during their college years. We have revised our Insider’s Packing List and our Insider’s Quiz. Our editors have also added new items to the ever-popular Editors’ Choice feature, a ranking of colleges in categories spanning from ugliest school colors to biggest rivalries. These lists are based on student interviews as well as our own research and assessment. We hope that this feature will offer you a new perspective or introduce you to a school you may not have otherwise considered.

We know how stressful the college selection process is for you. After all the hard work of preparing and applying, acceptances often appear to be offered randomly, with little regard to merit. You may not be able to attend your top college choice. Nevertheless, you should try not to worry, however difficult it may sound. Ultimately, the majority of students love their college experiences. In part, this is because they applied to schools that were right for them. But most importantly, every single college will provide you with new people to meet, new paths to explore, and new experiences to enjoy. Wherever you end up, just remember one thing: those four years fly by, so make the most of them!

Editors-in-chief

Connor Moseley

Matthew Tran

Managing Editor

Chris Dee

Executive Editor

Anh Ha

Staff Writers

Lillian Childress

Isabelle Taft

Phoebe Kimmelman

Dana Schneider

Adrian Rodrigues

Caroline Wray

Josh Mandell

Jennifer Gersten

Sarah Bruley

Abigail Bessler

Andrew Koenig

Della Fok

Stephanie Rogers

Larry Milstein

Amanda Buckingham

Alexandra Bicks

Zunaira Arshad

Eleanor Runde

Greg Cameron

Hailey Winston

Acknowledgments

We would like to particular give thanks to Matt Martz, our editor at St. Martin’s Press. His leadership and understanding have been essential, and without his organizational and creative vision, the 2015 Guide could never have been published. To Emad Haerizadeh and Jeff Marsh at the Yale Daily News, we give considerable thanks for their time and patience. We would also like to thank all the interviewees who were gracious enough to give us a peek into their lives and their colleges: Without you, this book would not have been possible. Finally, we are especially thankful to those Yalies who, over 40 years ago, decided to devote their time and energy toward creating a helpful guide for high schoolers about to go to college. We hope you enjoy the book!

How to Use This Book

How We Select the Colleges

One of the most difficult questions we wrestle with here at The Insider’s Guide is which schools to include in the upcoming edition. From more than 2,000 four-year institutions nationwide, we only cover slightly over 300 colleges. We examine a number of criteria in deciding which colleges to select, but our first priority is always the quality of academics offered by the institution. Another key factor in our decision is the desire to offer a diversity of options in The Insider’s Guide. Thus, we have included schools from all 50 states as well as several top institutions in Canada. In our school choices, we have also taken into account the range of extracurricular options available to students, including publications, teams, and ethnic organizations. Each year we review our list of schools, research potential additions, and try to include new colleges that have not been featured in the past. Our goal is to provide you with the latest and the most comprehensive insider information.

We have made a point to review the largest state-affiliated institutions because of the significant number of students who apply to and matriculate at their states’ schools. These universities tend to offer a particularly wide range of opportunities. We have also made every effort to include a broad cross section of smaller colleges because of the unique education they offer. Many of these schools are liberal arts colleges, generally clustered in the Northeast, offering a broad but personalized education. To add to the diversity of schools reviewed by The Insider’s Guide, we have also included selections from the most prominent technical schools and creative and performing arts schools. These institutions provide specialized education, combining general knowledge with a concentration in a particular field. The sampling of schools in this category is by no means comprehensive, and we encourage students interested in specialized institutions to explore their options more deeply through additional research.

In sum, this book covers the colleges we believe to be among the most noteworthy in both the United States and Canada. This selection does not imply in any way that you cannot get a good education at a school not listed in the Guide. We strongly encourage students to use strategies discussed within this book to explore the wide variety of schools that we did not have space to include here, including community colleges, state schools, international schools, and professional schools. In addition, it’s not guaranteed that you will have a blissful four years if you attend one of the schools we feature! Rather, we believe that every school in the Guide offers students the raw materials for constructing an excellent education.

It’s All Up to You

Now that you have picked up a copy of The Insider’s Guide, it’s up to you how to use it. A few dedicated readers scrutinize the book from start to finish, determined to gain the most complete understanding of the college process and the schools that are out there. Others flip through the Guide for only a few minutes to look at FYIs from schools that interest them or to read funny quotes taken from nearby colleges. Another good strategy is to use the College Finder, Editors’ Choice lists, and statistics that begin each article to learn more about colleges that you may not have heard of before. It might be worthwhile to read up on colleges that you wouldn’t initially consider—you just may find yourself intrigued by the student perspectives. Take advantage of the opening features of the book—they are designed to help you zero in on schools that meet your search criteria. You can also explore these beginning sections to learn what is unique and important about schools you are already considering. We encourage all these approaches. Above all, we hope that the Guide is fun to read, educational, and a useful aid in helping to make the college selection process less stressful.

While our Editors’ Choice lists use a mix of statistics and subjectivity to provide an alternative perspective on the schools we include, we have avoided the temptation to pigeonhole the colleges with some kind of catchall rating system, or worse, to numerically rank them from first to last. Our reason is that the best college for one person may come near the bottom of the list for another. Each student has his or her own particular set of wants and needs, so it would be impossible for us to objectively rank the schools from best to worst. Whereas most rankings focus solely on academic factors, the college experience is a balance of academics, social life, extracurricular activities, and much more.

Even so, some may wonder why we don’t rate the colleges solely on the basis of academic quality. We think that attempting to come up with such a ranking is both impossible and undesirable. There are too many variables—from the many factors that contribute to the quality of a department and school as a whole to the articulateness and accessibility of the professor who happens to be your academic advisor. Furthermore, it’s useless to try to compare a college of 2,000 students with a university of 10,000 (or a university of 10,000 with a state school of 40,000 for that matter) on any basis other than individual preference. Despite these reasons not to, some reportedly reputable sources such as national magazines often insist on publishing numerical rankings of colleges. We advise you not to take these lists too seriously. Oftentimes the determining factor in the rankings is a statistic such as percent of alumni who donate money, something that means very little to most college applicants.

For over 40 years, The Insider’s Guide has been dedicated to the belief that the best rankers of schools are students themselves, not magazine writers. Our goal, therefore, is to help you train your eye so you can select the college that is best for you. Remember, we may describe, explain, interpret, and report—but in the end, the choice is always yours.

Getting In

Applying to college can seem as intimidating as reading through this thick book, but neither should be a chore. In the spring of your sophomore year of high school, your Aunt Doris, whom you have not seen in seven years, pinches your cheek and asks you where you are going to college. How the heck should I know, you think to yourself. That fall, your mom tells you that the girl down the street with the 4.0 grade point average is taking the SAT prep course for the fifth time to see if she can get a perfect score and win thousands in scholarship money. You reply that you are late for school. You keep ducking the subject, but the hints come with increasing regularity. Not only has dinnertime become your family’s let’s talk about Lauren’s college options hour, but friends at school are already beginning to leaf through college catalogs. Soon you find the guidance counselor’s office crowded with your wide-eyed peers, and it’s clear they aren’t asking for love advice. Panicking, you decide to make an appointment with the counselor yourself.

When you first talk to your counselor, preferably in the early part of your junior year, you may not yet feel completely comfortable in high school, let alone prepared to think about college. The entire prospect seems far away, but choosing the right school for you takes a good amount of thought and organization—and a visit to your counselor is a solid start. You may even be wondering if college is the path you want to take after high school. And you’re not alone. A good number of people choose to take a year or two off to work or travel before pursuing a college education.

One important resource in making a decision about any post-graduation plans is your counselor. College counselors have a wealth of information and experience from which to draw, and they can help you lay out a plan for whatever direction you wish to take. If you decide that college is your next step, you will have a lot of options. Although many schools are surveyed in this book, we have not included professional schools or community colleges, all of which also offer a wide variety of opportunities. With research of your own and the aid of your counselor, you should be able to find a school that will give you what you’re looking for.

In your hunt for the best college, it is wise to do a little exploring of your own before sitting down with your counselor. Counselors can be invaluable advisors and confidants throughout the college admissions process, but sometimes counselors inadvertently limit your search by only recommending noncompetitive schools, or, conversely, by assuring you that you’ll get into whichever school you want. A few may even try to dissuade you from applying to colleges that you are seriously considering. These cases aren’t common, but they do happen. Regardless of your counselor’s perspective, it is best if you already have an idea of what you are looking for, as it will help both you and your advisor sort out all the options. You can refer back to these initial goals as you learn more. In the end, always follow your instincts.

As you begin to wade through the piles of brochures, ask yourself questions. What factors about a school make a difference to you? What do you want in a college? A strong science department? A Californian landscape? A small student body? A great social life? Although each college is a mix of different features, it is wise to place your academic needs first. Check out the general academic quality of the school, as well as what kind of programs they offer. Please note: since many students change their majors repeatedly before finally settling down, it’s a good idea to look for schools with programs in a number of areas that interest you.

Of course, it’s impossible to think of all the angles from which you should approach your college search. You can’t predict what your interests will be three or four years from now, or what things will prove most important to you at the college you attend. After all, those realizations are a big part of what the college experience is all about. But by taking a hard look at yourself now, and proceeding thoughtfully, you can be confident that you are investigating the right colleges for the right reasons.

As you begin the search, schools will start to seek you out as well. In the early winter of your junior year, you’ll receive your PSAT scores, and unless you request otherwise, your mailbox will soon become inundated with letters from colleges around the country. The College Search Service of the College Board provides these schools with the names and addresses of students who show promise, and the schools crank out thousands of form letters to send, and often to students with backgrounds that they feel are underrepresented in their student population.

While sorting through these masses of glossy brochures, you’ll probably notice that most of them contain lofty quotes and pictures of a diverse, frolicking student body. One of the best ways to find out if these ideals are actually truths is to visit the college. But before that, you can verify some of what you read by comparing it to nationally published articles and statistics. You will probably find the colleges that most interest you through your own research, and many of these schools wait for you to contact them before they send information. In that case, create a form letter that briefly expresses your interest in the college and requests materials. You’ll get your name on their mailing lists, and they’ll appreciate the fact that you took the initiative.

Throughout this process, make sure to listen to those who know you well and often have sound advice to share—namely, your parents and elder siblings. Besides having some ideas of schools you might enjoy attending, your parents also have great insight into how your education can and will be financed. If you come to an early understanding with your family about prospective colleges and financial concerns, things will move much more smoothly down the road. But be warned—the college search can be one of the most trying times in any parent-child relationship, and some parents become more or less involved in the process than students want. The best advice we can give is to remember that calm, patient discussions are a better tactic than yelling matches.

When consulting others about your college search, it is helpful to keep a few things in mind. Every piece of advice you receive will be a reflection of someone’s own life experiences, and it is likely to be highly subjective. Most adults will suggest schools located in regions they know or colleges they have visited or attended themselves. Also, opinions are often based on stereotypes that can be false, outdated, or just misleading. Still, the more people you talk to, the better perspective you will gain on the colleges you are considering. Once you have a few outside ideas, this book can give you some inside information. If you like what you have heard about a particular school, follow up with some research and find out if it’s still a place that calls to you.

As you approach the time when your final college list must be made, you will probably have visited college fairs and attended various college nights. Real-life representatives from the schools are always good to meet. Talking to current college students is an even more important step, as is visiting the schools that make it to your last list. During these encounters, ask the questions that are on your mind. Be critical and observant. When it’s time for the final leg of the college selection process, you’ll be calm and satisfied if you know you’ve really looked hard into yourself and all your options.

Visit

Whether your list of schools has been set for months or fluctuates on a daily basis, college visits are a great way to narrow down your choices and prioritize your list of options. Try to plan campus visits so you’ll be finished by the fall of your senior year, especially if you are considering early application programs. Additionally, aim to see as many schools that interest you as possible—there’s no better way to get a feel for where you’d like to spend the next four years of your life.

When you visit a campus, try to keep in mind why you are there. You have probably already seen the college viewbook with glossy pictures of green lawns and diverse groups of students in seminar-size classes. Now is the time to find out what the campus is really like. Is the student population truly that diverse? Do people really gather and play Frisbee on plush green lawns? What do the dorms actually look like? And most importantly, do you feel comfortable there?

If you are visiting a campus for an interview, make sure you schedule one in advance. Making the decision not to interview on campus may be a good one, however. While some schools require an on-campus interview, some insiders recommend that you request an alumni interview instead. Alumni interviews tend to be more convenient and less grueling than on-campus interviews. In any case, make sure you check a school’s policy regarding interviews before you arrive, and schedule your visit accordingly.

While some prefer to visit colleges over summer vacation, we think the best time to visit is during the academic year, when regular classes are in session. During the summer months very few students are on campus, so it will be much more difficult to get a feel for the student culture and vibrancy (or lack thereof). Times of unusually high stress also will not give you a good idea of what ordinary life is like. For this reason, you’ll also want to avoid exam periods and vacations. During the academic year, your questions about the campus are much more likely to be answered. You’ll get a feel for the type of people at the school, and you’ll get an idea of what it is like to be a student living on campus. It’s important to get a good sense of what your daily life will be like if you end up attending the school.

Before you look at any college, take a little time to prepare. Perhaps you will want to come up with some kind of system to evaluate the schools you will visit. Putting together a list of characteristics that are important to you will make it easier to compare one school to the next, whether they be academics, the size of the campus, or the surrounding area’s vibrancy and atmosphere. Make sure you jot down some notes on the schools during and after your trips. Although colleges may seem easy to differentiate at the time, your impressions of each may blur together when you are back at home, sitting in front of 10 seemingly identical applications.

An overnight stay with undergraduates can provide you with a more inside look at campus life. Most admissions offices have students on call who are happy to show you around campus, take you to some classes and parties, and let you crash in their dorms. If you have friends there, they are good resources as well. Either way, staying with students will help you see what an undergraduate’s academic and social life is really like. One student said, I found that it didn’t matter much if I stayed over or not, as long as I got to talk to students. But if you do stay over, Thursday or Friday night is the best time. Sometimes it is hard to connect with students during a single day when everybody is rushing around to classes. Try to spend a night late in the week when students will have more time for you and the nightlife will be more vibrant. It is always possible that you will end up with hosts that are difficult to relate to or socially withdrawn. Don’t let a bad hosting experience completely dictate your feelings about the college—just do everything you can to get out into the student body and explore what the school has to offer.

Keep in mind that college life doesn’t consist entirely of classes. Sample the food, which is, after all, a necessity of life. Check out the dorms. Take the campus tour. Although you are sure to be inundated with obscure facts about the college that may not interest you, it can be useful to have a knowledgeable guide to show you the buildings themselves and the campus as a whole. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask. Tour guides are often students and are a great resource for any information you want about the school.

Should you bring your parents along? Maybe. Some students prefer to leave them at home. Although parents don’t mean any harm, they can sometimes get in the way. Your discomfort at having them around when you’re trying to get along with new students may cloud your opinion of a school. However, most students do bring along at least one family member. If you go this route, don’t completely discount the advice or opinions they may have about the school. Parents can be great resources to bounce ideas off of, particularly regarding the pros and cons of the various colleges you have seen. You might want to take the campus tour with them, and then break away to explore the campus on your own and talk with students one-on-one. When you enter college your parents will not be there with you, so it’s a good idea to get a feel for what that will actually be like.

Most importantly, keep in mind your sense of the campus atmosphere. How does it feel to walk across the main quad? Does the mood seem intellectual or laid-back? Do T-shirts read Earth Day Every Day or Coed Naked Beer Games? Look for postings of events; some campuses are alive and vibrant while others seem pretty dead. Check your comfort level. Imagine yourself on the campus for the next four years and see how that makes you feel. Focus on these characteristics while you are on campus—you can read about the academic requirements when you get back home. Most of all, enjoy yourself! The campus visit is an exciting peek into a world that will soon be your own.

The Interview

Just about every college applicant dreads the interview. It can be the most nerve-racking part of the college application process. But relax—despite the horror stories you might have heard, the interview will rarely make or break your application. If you are a strong candidate, don’t be overly self-assured; if your application makes you look like a hermit, be lively and personable. Usually the interview can only help you, and at some schools it is nothing more than informational. I was constantly surprised at how many questions they let me ask, one applicant reported.

Consider the interview your chance to highlight the best parts of your application and explain the weaker parts without being whiny or making excuses. Are your SAT scores on the low side? Does your extracurricular section seem a little thin? An interview gives you the opportunity to call attention to your successes in classes despite your scores, or explain that of the three clubs you listed, you founded two and were president of the third.

There are a few keys to a successful interview.

  1.  The first and most important is to stand out from the crowd. Keep in mind that the interviewer probably sees half a dozen or more students every day, month after month. If you can make your interviewer laugh, interest him or her in something unusual you have done, or somehow spice up the same old questions and answers, you have had a great interview. Don’t just say that you were the president of something; be able to back up your titles with interesting and genuine stories. On the other hand, don’t go overboard and shock your interviewer with spring break stories, for example. That will most likely work against you.

  2.  Do not try to be something you are not. Tell the truth and give the interviewer a feel for who you really are—your passions, your strengths, and your challenges. By doing so, you will be more relaxed and confident. Even if you feel that the real you isn’t that interesting or amazing, take time to reflect on your high school experience—the stories that surface in your mind may just surprise you.

  3.  A few days before the actual interview, think about some of the questions you might be asked. Some admissions officers begin every interview by asking, Why do you want to go to this school, and why should we let you? You should not have memorized speeches for every answer, but try not to get caught off guard. Make sure you really know why you want to attend this college. Even if you are not sure, think of a few plausible reasons and be prepared to give them. Students often make the mistake of giving a canned answer, which is okay since most answers are similar, but admissions officers look to admit students who want to take advantage of all that is available at their school. Your answer must include the three essential elements of a good reply: your interests, whether academic or extracurricular; what you believe the school will provide; and how and why you are excited about the opportunity to take advantage of them. Other common questions include those about your most important activities, what you did with your summers, and what vision you may have for your future.

  4.  A note of caution: If your interview takes place after you have submitted your application, the interviewer might ask you questions about some of the things you included. One student wrote on his application that he read Newsweek religiously. During his interview, the admissions officer asked the student about a story in a recent issue of the magazine. The student had no idea what the interviewer was talking about. He was not accepted. While this was only one of many factors that the admissions officer had to consider, it is still important. So be ready to back up your claims. It is always an excellent idea to indicate that you have a special interest in something, but make sure the interest is genuine—you may wind up in an hour-long conversation on the topic. Do not start talking about how you love learning about philosophy if you have only dabbled in it once. An open, thoughtful manner can do as much as anything else to impress your interviewer, although an overly negative attitude will make just as much of an impression.

  5.  Being spontaneous in a contrived situation usually amounts to having a successful interview. If you are nervous, that’s okay. Said one applicant, I felt sick, and I didn’t eat for a day before the interview. The most common misconception is that admissions officers are looking for totally confident individuals who know everything and have their entire future planned out. Almost the opposite is true. An admissions officer at a selective private college said, We do not expect imitation adults to walk through the door. We expect to see people in their last year or two of high school with the customary apprehensions, habits, and characteristics of that time of life. Admissions officers know students get nervous. They understand. If everything in your life is not perfect, do not be afraid to say so when appropriate. For example, if the conversation comes around to your high school, there is no need to cover up if problems do exist. It is okay to say you did not think your chemistry lab was well equipped. An honest, realistic critique of your school or just about anything else will make a better impression than false praise ever could.

  6.  If something you say does not come out quite right, try to react as you would with a friend. If the interviewer asks about your career plans, it is alright to say that you are undecided. As a high school student, no one expects you to have all the answers—that is why you are going to college. Above all, remember that the admissions officer is a person interested in getting to know you as an individual. A person who may be a parent to someone, a friend of someone’s, a sibling of someone’s. They empathize. As one interviewer explained, I’m not there to judge the applicants as scholars. I’m just there to get a sense of them as people.

  7.  Do not get so worried about saying all the right things that you forget to listen carefully to the interviewer. The purpose of the interview is not to grill you, but to match you with the school in the best interest of both. Sometimes the interviewer will tell you, either during the interview or in a follow-up letter, that you have little chance of getting in. If she says so or implies it, know that such remarks are not made lightly. On the other hand, if she is sincerely encouraging, listen to that, too. If an interviewer suggests other schools for you to look into, remember that she is a professional and take note. Besides, many interviewers appreciate a student’s ability to listen as well as to talk.

  8.  Your interviewer might ask you whether you have a first choice, particularly if her college is often seen as a backup. If the school is really not your first choice, feel free to sidestep that question as gracefully as possible. Not only is it more than likely that you haven’t made up your mind, but your first choice is your business, not theirs. If the school really is your first choice, though, feel free to say so, and give a good reason why. A genuine interest can be a real plug on your behalf.

  9.  Also know that you can direct the conversation. Do not worry about occasional lapses as some interviewers wait to see how you will react to a potentially awkward situation. Take advantage of the pause to ask a question or bring up a relevant topic that really interests you. It is your job to present the parts of you and your background that you want noted.

10.  Selective colleges need reasons to accept you. Being qualified on paper is not always enough. Think of the interviewer’s position: Why should we accept you instead of thousands of other qualified applicants? The answer to that question should be evident in every response you give. Use the interview to play up and accentuate your most memorable qualities. Show flashes of the playful sense of humor that your English teacher cites in his recommendation; impress the interviewer with the astute eye for politics about which your history teacher raves.

11.  Too many applicants are afraid to talk confidently about their accomplishments. If the interviewer is impressed by something, do not insist that it was not much, or he might believe you. If he is not impressed by something you think is important, tactfully let him know that he should be. But do not, under any circumstances, act like you are too good for the college. One well-qualified applicant to a leading college was turned down when the interviewer wrote, It obviously isn’t going to be the end of his world if he doesn’t get in. And it won’t be the end of our world, either. If there is any quality you want to convey, it is a sincere interest in the school.

12.  Almost all interviewers will eventually ask, Do you have any questions about our school? Come to the interview armed with a couple of good questions, and not ones whose answers are easily found in the college’s viewbook or on the school Web site. Do not ask if they have an economics department, for example, or ask the average class size in introductory economics courses. It may help to do some extra preparation ahead of time. Are you interested in studying abroad? If so, know what kind of programs the school offers and ask a few questions about them. If you are excited to learn more about the school and have already done some homework, it goes a long way in the eyes of the interviewer. Also, if the interviewer is an alumnus, a good question is to ask what they would have done differently during their time at the college. You can be sure that they will need a moment of reflection, and you’ll have time to relax!

13.  You will probably wonder what to wear. This is no life or death decision, but remember that your appearance is one of the first things the interviewer will notice about you. Wear something you will be comfortable in—a jacket and a tie or a nice dress is fine. Do not, however, be too casual. Faded jeans and a T-shirt will give the impression that you are taking the interview too lightly. But, if your interview is at Starbucks as opposed to someone’s office building, take their choice in location as a cue for dress.

14.  One crucial point: Keep your parents a thousand feet and preferably a thousand miles away from the interview session. It will be harder to relax and be genuine with an additional set of eyes on you, and you might hold back some interesting information. When parents sit in, interviews tend to be short, boring, and, worst of all, useless. If the interviewer feels you cannot handle an hour without your parents, she might be concerned about your ability to survive the pressures of college life. Take the risk of hurting your parents’ feelings and ask them to wait outside.

Once the interview is over, it is perfectly alright for your parents to ask any questions they may have if the interviewer walks with you back to the waiting room. Even if this makes you uncomfortable, do not let it show. Admissions officers can learn as much about you by the way you treat your parents as they do in the interview. The interviewer is not judging your parents. As long as you conduct yourself calmly and maturely, you have nothing to worry about.

15.  It is a good idea to send a thank-you note after the interview. It doesn’t need to be extensive, just let the interviewer know that you appreciate the time she or he spent with you and that you enjoyed learning more about the school. While it doesn’t seem like much, a simple note can leave a lasting impression. Be sure to say something specific to your interviewer. If you shared a laugh or if the interviewer mentioned something about his or her job, try to slip something personal into the note. All of this advice applies for interviews given by alumni as well as those conducted by admissions staff. Alumni interviewers sometimes carry slightly less weight with the admissions office, but they are valuable contacts with the schools and should not be taken lightly. Expect on-campus interviews to be a bit more formal than alumni interviews.

What if you do not have an interview at all? Perhaps you live too far away, and you cannot get to the school itself. Or, perhaps you feel that your lack of poise is serious enough that it would work against you in any interview you had. Talk it over with your guidance counselor. In general, geographic isolation is a valid excuse for not having an interview, and most colleges will not hold it against you. Ask if they will allow a phone interview instead. Yet, if the college is fairly close and makes it clear that applicants should have an on-campus interview if at all possible, make the effort to go. Otherwise, the college will assume that for some reason you were afraid to interview, or worse, that you simply did not care enough to have one. If the prospect is genuinely terrifying, schedule your first interview for a safety school, or ask your guidance counselor to grant you a practice interview. You might discover that the process is not as horrible as you originally thought.

The Tests

Whether you are an Olympic hopeful, a musical prodigy, or a third-generation legacy, it doesn’t matter. You cannot avoid taking standardized tests if you want to go to college. Ninety percent of all four-year institutions now require some type of admissions test. Certainly, tests do not tell the whole story—grades, recommendations, extracurricular activities, the application essays, and personal interviews round out the picture. However, standardized test scores are often the only uniform criteria available to admissions committees. They are meant to indicate the level of education you have had in the past, as well as your potential to succeed in the future. Unfortunately, while they aren’t perfect, they are a necessary evil.

Virtually all of the nation’s colleges require applicants to submit SAT Reasoning Test or ACT scores. In addition, many colleges will ask their applicants for SAT Subject Test scores. If you are an international student with a native language other than English (or recently moved from an education system using a foreign language), you may be required to take the TOEFL as well. If you take AP tests or are in an IB program, your scores could help you earn college credit if they fulfill the score requirements of the college to which you are applying. Does all this seem overwhelming to you? Read this section and hopefully we can help you understand each test a little better.

The SAT Reasoning Test, formerly known as the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), is the most widely chosen admissions test by college applicants. Administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and created by the College Board, the SAT Reasoning Test currently has a math section, a critical reading section, and a writing section. A nearly four-hour test, there are a total of 10 sections; three are writing, three are verbal, three are math, and there is an unscored variable section (math or critical reading) thrown in somewhere to try out new question formats. The math section includes material up through Geometry and Algebra II, and, to your benefit, you are allowed to use calculators. It has five-choice multiple-choice questions and questions where you produce the answer yourself. In the critical reading section, you will find sentence completions and short and long passages with reading comprehension questions. The writing section involves an essay in response to a prompt and multiple choice questions that require you to identify grammar and usage errors and improve sentence and paragraph structure.

The SAT scores the math, critical reading, and writing sections separately on a 200 to 800 scale. Therefore, your combined score can be a minimum of 600 and a maximum of 2400. One disadvantage with the SAT is that you are penalized for wrong answers, so avoid guessing haphazardly. However, if you can eliminate a few answer choices, it is often better to guess than to leave the question blank. The average score for each section is a 500 based on the recentered scale that the ETS implemented starting in 1995. When the SAT was originally calibrated, it was done so that the average score for the math and verbal sections would each be 500. Over several decades, the average dropped—some say as a result of the declining American education system. However, others argue that the perceived decrease is not surprising considering that today’s over two million SAT-takers are much more representative of American education as a whole than the 10,000 primarily affluent prep-school students who took the test when it was implemented in 1941. As a result, the scoring was recentered in 1995 in order to redistribute scores more evenly along the 200 to 800 scale. All colleges and scholarship institutions are aware of this new scoring calibration, so even though it may be easier to get that rare 800 section score, your percentile rank among other students who took the exam will not change.

There are five ways to register for the SAT. The two most common methods are to complete an online registration at www.collegeboard.com or mail in a registration form, which you can get from your high school counselor’s office. If you’ve registered for an SAT Program test before, you can complete the registration over the phone. For those students living outside of the United States, U.S. territories, and Puerto Rico, there is an option to fax in your registration. International students have the option of registering through a representative found in the International Edition of the SAT Registration Bulletin. The SAT is administered seven times a year domestically, and six times a year overseas.

Before you take the test, be sure to take advantage of two services offered by the College Board upon registration. The first is called the Student Search Service. It allows universities, colleges, and scholarship programs to get general information about you, as well as what range your score falls into. You will receive a flood of information about different schools and scholarship programs in the mail in addition to information regarding financial aid opportunities. While you’ll begin to see most of these letters as junk mail, some of them will help you come up with the list of colleges to which you intend to apply. As a second service, the College Board will mail your test scores to a maximum of four specified schools or scholarship programs for free. You can send additional score reports for a fee. Be aware that if you have taken the SAT more than once, all of your previous scores will be sent when reporting to schools and scholarship programs. If you have second thoughts and want to cancel your scores, you must do so by the Wednesday following your exam via e-mail, fax, or mail.

The American College Test (ACT) was required mostly by colleges in the southern and western regions of the country but is now accepted by most colleges across the nation. The exam covers English, reading, mathematics, and science reasoning in the format of 215 multiple-choice questions. It also offers an optional writing component. One distinguishing feature of the ACT is that it measures what you have learned in the high school curriculum rather than your aptitude.

The ACT, unlike the SAT, does not deduct any points for incorrect answers, so be sure to fill in a bubble for every question. You will receive a score on a scale of 1 to 36 for each of the four subject areas; your Composite score is just an average of the four scores rounded to the nearest whole number. Based on the over 1.3 million students who choose to take the test, the average Composite score is around 21. Registration is much like the SAT, with a mail-in option, online registration at www.act.org, or telephone preregistration. There is a stand-by registration option for those who forget to register. As far as score reporting goes, you can choose up to six schools or scholarship programs on your registration to have the scores sent to for free. The great thing about the ACT is that you can choose to send just one testing date’s scores instead of having your whole history of scores sent, as is done with the SAT.

Many of the more selective colleges also require up to three SAT Subject Tests, formerly called SAT IIs. Available subjects include English, a variety of foreign languages, math, history, and several of the sciences. Due to the recent addition of the writing section to the SAT Reasoning Test, there is no longer a writing Subject Test available. One thing about the SAT Subject Tests is that you don’t have to choose which tests you want to take until you’re at the test center on the test date. The scores are reported on a 200 to 800 scale, with Score Choice as an option that allows students to not submit all of their scores. Score Choice has been controversial because students can choose to submit only their best scores, without revealing the total number of tests they have taken or the number of times they took each test.

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is an English proficiency test provided for international students who want to study in the United States, Canada, or other English-speaking countries. It is administered by paper and pencil, on a test-center computer, or over the internet. The score scale for the test varies depending on which form of the test you choose to take. Furthermore, the essay is scored separately and has a separate scoring scale. The TOEFL will test your listening, structured writing, and reading skills—giving a better picture of your English to the schools you apply to.

Advanced Placement (AP) exams are another animal altogether since their purpose is not only to get you into college, but also to earn you credits once you get there. Administered in May, each test covers a specific subject area and scores your performance from 1 to 5. Different schools require different scores for granting college credit. Some will offer credit but still require you to take classes in a subject that you aced on the AP exams. Since the tests require in-depth knowledge of specific subjects, do not put off studying for them. The general practice is to take the exam in a particular subject the May right after you have finished (or are in the midst of finishing) a course in that area. Not only can you get college credit with a high score, but you can also help your college applications with AP exams taken before your senior year.

If you attend an International Baccalaureate (IB) school, you might be able to receive college credit for your coursework depending on your score. A score of 4 or 5 is the required minimum by a college for credit and/or placement, but many institutions require a score of 6 or 7. Although not as popularly embraced by colleges and universities across the nation for giving college credit, they will definitely recognize you for the rigorous work you have completed in the program and can enable you to take higher-level courses in certain subject areas.

You may have already taken the PSAT/ NMSQT, which is usually administered to sophomores or juniors through their high school. This is a great practice exam for the SAT Reasoning Test because it has a lot of the same type of questions. It is also a good way to qualify for merit scholarships if you get a high score. The PSAT changed its format to incorporate writing skills in the fall of 2004 to complement the new SAT in 2005.

The most reliable way to keep up-to-date on test dates, testing sites, and registration deadlines is through your high school guidance office. After the PSAT, you will be on your own about when and where you take the tests. Find out way ahead of time which ones are required by the colleges you are interested in; deadlines have a way of sneaking up on you. It is a good idea to begin taking the tests by the spring of your junior year. If you take the SAT Reasoning Test in March or May of your junior year and do not do as well as you think you should, you will have a couple of other opportunities to improve your score. The required SAT Subject Tests should be taken by June of your junior year so that if you decide to apply to an early-action or early-decision program, you will have completed the required testing.

Avoid postponing required testing until November, December, or January of your senior year. One new college student, who put off his exams until the last minute, recalled his college freshman faculty advisor saying to him, I just don’t understand it … you went to one of the best high schools in Chicago and did very well. How could your SAT scores have been so low? He told her how lucky he felt just getting into college; he had contracted a nasty flu and thrown up before, during, and after the test! On the other hand, do not repeat tests over and over. The ETS reports that students gain an average of 25 points on both the math and reading sections of the SAT Reasoning Test upon taking the test a second time. Two or three shots at the SATs should be sufficient. If you’ve got the time and money, you may want to consider taking a prep course given