As senior Connor McCarthy visits the University of Tennessee, Knoxville campus on a brisk fall morning, he looks around to see students throwing a frisbee and playing in the field while leaves fall to the ground. McCarthy decides that he loves the feel of a larger school.
“I’ve always wanted to go to a bigger school,” McCarthy said. “Visiting my siblings and going to football games with them really influenced me.”
Visiting colleges helps students get a feel for the campus culture and see if they are comfortable there. Students often check out colleges in person to see if they like the campus and the extracurricular activities. Getting involved in college allows students to create important connections and discover new interests, according to CollegeData.
“Extracurriculars are very important to me,” McCarthy said. “I want to go to a college where I’ll have fun.”
Price can be a major factor when considering a college; students looking for more cost effective options often choose in-state schools. However, there are ways to make out-of-state schools more affordable.
“I really want to go out of state but it’s very expensive,” McCarthy said. “I’m going to try for in-state tuition under the academic common market.”
Programs like the Academic Common Market can save students a lot of money. This program lets students pay in-state tuition rates in certain majors, which helps make college more affordable.
However, there are multiple other factors when deciding on a college. According to BigFutureCollegeBoard students should consider safety, graduation rate, internship opportunities, and academics among other things.
“Academics were probably the biggest factor on choosing where I wanted to go,” Senior Patrick O’Rourke said. “I want to go to a college with solid academics so I’m set up in the future.”
Many students look for schools that are known for strong programs in their intended majors, which can help them succeed. Schools with good academic programs help students gain knowledge and skills that they will use in their future careers, according to Collegevine. A good place to look at how strong different programs are at different schools are The National Research Council Rankings.
Another thing that can help with deciding where you want to go to college are visits in your high school. You can find what and when colleges are visiting on naviance. Some upcoming schools visits include The University of Maryland and Christopher Newport University.
“They are much easier to plan and attend than going to the actual college to visit,” College and Career Specialist Margarita Rodriguez said. “You can sign up through Naviance in Schoology.”
