How to Build a College List

College Counseling

May 3

As a college counselor, one of the most common questions I receive from high school students is how to pick colleges based on their intended major. With so many options, it can be overwhelming to decide which college and universities to apply to. Here are some tips for building a balanced college list that is a good fit for your student’s academic interests and future goals.

Research colleges that have strong programs in your Student’s intended major.

Look for colleges that have faculty members who are experts in the field and offer opportunities for hands-on experience, such as internships or research projects. Use college search tools and resources like Naviance, Scoir, College Kickstart, and our platform, College Planner Pro to get started on the initial list of colleges.

Consider the class size and location of the college.

Some students thrive in universities with a large student body and diverse range of academic and extracurricular options, while others prefer the close-knit community of a small liberal arts college. What does your student desire? Strong sports culture, theater, and a close knit community, or access to internships and research.

Location can also be a factor, as some students may prefer to attend college close to home, while others may want to explore a new part of the country. Remember, that school that is 6 states away could take 8 or more hours to drive to, beware of transportation access and incremental costs to get to these places.

Look for colleges that offer a well-rounded education.

It is important to choose a college that has a strong program in your student’s intended major, but also one with different academic profiles to help grow in many ways as a person. This can include opportunities to take classes outside of the intended major, such as language or humanities courses, as well as opportunities to participate in extracurricular activities, including clubs, that are not directly related to the intended major.

Consider the cost of attendance.

Look for colleges that offer financial aid and scholarships to help offset the cost of tuition and fees. It is also important to consider the cost of living in the area surrounding the college, as well as the cost of travel if you plan to attend a college far from home. Many schools will help students with merit scholarships from GPA or test scores. Some will reduce your expected financial contribution based on financial aid, but in this world, the early bird gets the financial worm.

It is essential to build a balanced list.

Students must consider cost, distance, program offerings, and the likelihood of admissibility (acceptance rate) when using college admissions data from the past two years of graduating classes. Building a balanced list means picking “target” schools as well as “likely” schools and “stretch” schools to ensure acceptance letters roll in.

This is where working with College Flight Path is invaluable in taking the insights your student has made about their skills, ideas surrounding an intended career path, programs of interest, campus communities they want to be a part of, and how to leverage data and inventories to provide us with the details we need to build a list of programs and schools tailored to their interests in goals that will set them up for success in their chosen flight path.

To learn more about building a college list or any other related topics, email hello@collegeflightpath.com or book a free 15-minute call.