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How to Choose a College. Choosing a college is like picking an ice cream flavor. There
are too many choices, and you’re not sure what they’ll really taste like. Now imagine
ice cream costs tens of thousands of dollars, and some flavors won’t let you eat them.
That’s choosing a college. You will need A book or website with a list of colleges
and a guidance counselor or college advisor. Step 1. Have a talk with your guidance counselor.
She’s seen it all—and will be able to offer suggestions based on your grades and
interests. Step 2. If you have overbearing parents, ignore them. It’s time to start
making choices for yourself. If they refuse to give you some leeway, threaten to get your
face tattooed. Step 3. Think about where you’d like to live. If you like to spend your leisure
time playing craps, make a list of colleges near casinos. If you eventually want to freelance
as a pirate on the open seas, Southeast Asia is the place for you. State schools in your
home state will usually offer cheaper tuition, but you’ll have to live closer to home.
Step 4. Decide whether you prefer a small, medium, or large school. Step 5. Favor schools
that offer a variety of programs you like. Your interests will probably change. You don’t
want to make it to your junior year in astronaut school and realize you don’t enjoy spaceflight.
Step 6. Visit the schools you’re considering. Step 7. Now consider how your academic record
fits in with the schools you like. Look up the average academic statistics for entering
freshmen, and compare them to your own. Step 8. Divide your list into three groups of schools:
reach schools, good fits, and safety schools. Step 9. Now apply to six to ten schools, with
good fits, safeties, and reaches in a 2 to 1 to 1 ratio—that’s one reach and one
safety school for every two “good fits” you apply to. That’s it—once your applications
are out the door, drop out of high school and play craps until the schools come a-calling.
Did you know At Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University, students who get caught being
involved with witchcraft are fined $500.