The challenge...
Finding the right college for you is a difficult process. You have to know a
lot about yourself... and you are changing every day! Once you figure out who
you are and what you want, how do you figure out which colleges are a match?
There are some mistakes that you should try to avoid...
- Choosing a college for it's prestigious name, without finding out if it's a
fit for you.
- Choosing a college because someone else goes there and they like it.
- Choosing a college because your friends are going to apply there.
If you look over those things to avoid again, you'll see that they all have
something in common... choosing a college for any of these reasons is ignoring
YOU. Your true, authentic, wonderful self.
So... how can you find colleges that are a great fit for YOU? (Notice, I said
colleges... plural. There will be more than one college that is a great fit
for you.)
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IMPORTANT NOTE:
Some of you will decide that you really want to apply to colleges in Mexico,
some will apply outside of Mexico, and some will do both. I am here to
support you in any of these choices. It may seem like most of the resources I
am providing are for students who have chosen to apply outside of Mexico, and
that is true. I need you to know... I am not trying to push anyone into
applying outside of Mexico unless it is what they truly want to do. The
reality is that applying to colleges in Mexico is a simpler process, and will
require somewhat less support that applying to schools in the US or other
countries. If you decide that the TEC, UDEM, or another school in Mexico is
the right school for you, I support you 100%... but you probably won't be
needing as much help with the application process as the students who apply
outside of Mexico. I just wanted to put that out there so that no one feels
neglected. I support you in you decision to study wherever you choose!!!
:) Ms. Loring
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Here are a few resources I can suggest that I think can help you in the
process, if you've decided to apply to schools outside of Mexico. I'll keep
adding more resources as I find them.
Please come in and see me if you need clarification or help anytime... that's
why I'm here!
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Resources
COLLEGE MATCH - a book by Stephen R. Antonoff and Marie A. Friedemann
This book is a terrific resource for getting to know yourself and guiding you
through the process of finding great colleges for you. I recommend this book
SO HIGHLY. It is fantastic. There are copies in the school library, or you
can buy your own.
Amazon.com link to buy your own copy of this book ($11.00 USD)
MyRoad - from the College Board
This website is a great tool for getting to know yourself, choosing a career
or major, and finding schools that are a good fit for you. Any student who
takes the PSAT/NMSQT has free access to the site. A subscription costs
$19.95, if you do this on your own.
MyRoad
College Search - from the College Board
This webpage offers a "College Matchmaker" which asks you some questions, and
then gives you a list of colleges that might be a good match for you. Free!
College Board - College Search and Matchmaker
Counselor-O-Matic - from the Princeton Review
This website asks you some questions about your college preferences, and then
gives you a list of colleges that might be a good match for you based on that
data. They offer very interesting data about each college, both from the
school and from the students. If you find a school that you really like,
click on "other schools to consider," and you'll find more.
Counselor-O-Matic
Federal Student Aid College Finder - from a division of the US Department of
Education
This is another college finding service that asks you questions and then gives
you a list of possible college matches. This site also has good information
for international students, and also about financial aid.
FSA College Finder
The Fiske Guide to Colleges, by Edward Fiske
This book gives great "portraits" of about 300 schools. In 2-3 pages, you'll
learn about what it's like at any one of these colleges... not just the facts,
but a real description of the quality of life and the "feel" of the campus.
This is a great resource for narrowing down a lengthy list of colleges (if you
get a list of 150 colleges from College Board's matchmaker, or a similar site,
this can help you narrow it down). The overlap section is great too. We have
copies available in the library and in the counseling office.
Amazon.com link to buy your own copy of this book ($14.92 USD)
The U
This website offers MTV-style video tours of about 50 different colleges. You
can see a free preview of any video online (not the complete video - about 20%
of it), or order the DVD's online. The whole box set (that's ALL 50 colleges)
is only $40 dollars US. We have the whole set in the library as well. They
are independently produced and have done from the students' perspective, not
the school's. Quite good.
The U
Collegiate Choice
This is another service that offers videos about different schools. These are
much longer, and there
are more schools available, but they must be ordered by individual school. (If
you order one and you would like to generously donate it to the school's
college counseling office when you're finished, that would be lovely!) They
are a little bit more expensive, but if you've narrowed down to a few schools
and don't have the time/money to visit the campuses yet, this is a great
alternative. These videos are produced by the school, so they may not be as
likely as 'The U' to point out the down side of a particular school, but you
will get a more comprehensive view of the campus and the programs they have to
offer.
Collegiate Choice
College Data
This website offers a college matchmaker, and a number of interesting features
that appear to be unique. You can calculate your chances of getting in to a
particular college; you can also use the admission tracker to see sample
students and whether they got in. There are also financial aid resources.
College Data
Xap
This website is quite comprehensive - it has tools for career planning,
finding a college, finding financial aid... just about everything you could
need. Interesting!
Xap
A great source for finding universities all around the world. Direct links to
university websites.
Education Atlas
Don't forget to visit!
Once you've done some research and found a few schools that seem like a good
match, a visit is a great way to confirm that it's a good fit. Or sometimes,
a visit might just show you that it isn't a good fit after all! (Wouldn't you
rather know that now, instead of after you've started attending there?)
If you contact the admissions office of any college, they can arrange for a
campus tour, and you could even stay overnight in the dormitories, just to get
a better idea of what life is like at that school.
Try to make a point of visiting any college to which you are planning to
apply. It expresses to the college that you really ARE interested, and it
helps make your decision easier.