Making the Final Decision

This month, high school seniors who submitted strong applications to the right colleges are reaping their rewards. These students now have the enviable problem of needing to decide which college they want to attend.

From now until the May 1 notification deadline, the tables are turned as admissions officers pursue newly-admitted students. There will be invitations to fun-filled programs designed to get prospective freshmen excited about choosing their school.

These programs can backfire. One student wrote an article in the Washington Post about her experience at Stanford's admitted student weekend. She was unimpressed with the summer camp atmosphere and decided to attend another university.

My student who was admitted early to Stanford decided he'd rather experience a typical day on campus. He attended several classes, met up with alumni from his high school and talked to students about life at Stanford. He came back with clear thoughts and feelings about the school, which will help immensely as he makes his final decision. It is quite possible that he will be admitted to several Ivy League schools, and if he needs to visit them, he won't also have to rush up to Palo Alto in April.

Another student has been admitted to USC and UCLA. Both are great schools, but if the student wants to study business as an undergraduate, USC may be worth the higher cost. If the opportunity to live in another part of the country is a priority, this student may choose University of Michigan, which offers outstanding academics, athletics, school spirit and a wonderful college town.

But the school is huge-more than 35,000 undergraduate students-the winters are harsh, and it's far from home. If he wants a smaller college community, Lehigh University offers some unique programs for students interested in business.

Some students know from the start they want a small liberal arts college. I recently sat down with my student who applied to four small colleges and was accepted to all of them. She will get an excellent education at any of these schools, so we discussed some of the lifestyle differences.

Two of the schools have easy access to cities with loads of cultural activities and internship opportunities, while the others are more isolated. Two schools are on the East coast, and she needs to consider whether the romance of a beautiful, snow-covered campus will outweigh some grey, cold winter days. She also has scholarship offers at two schools that would bring the cost down by about $10,000 a year.

While she did visit all of the schools last year, I suggested she attend the admitted student programs, where she'll have a chance to meet other prospective freshmen and see if she feels at home on campus. Meeting some of her classmates now and being able to e-mail them over the summer will make the transition easier when she goes to college in August.

Not everyone will be spending the next month debating pros and cons of different schools. For my student who visited Santa Clara University months ago and loved it, a scholarship offer from another college is not complicating his decision since cost is not a factor for his family. Once he was admitted to Santa Clara, he could relax and enjoy the rest of his senior year.

In a time of intense competition, how did these students have such successful college admission experiences? Of course, they prepared by doing well in high school. But the key is to apply to colleges that are good matches. In each case, we developed a college list that was right for that individual student. If students choose wisely, they will be admitted to many schools that are great matches, and emerge from the college admissions process with self-esteem intact.

Audrey Kahane, MS, is an independent college admissions counselor in West Hills. She can be reached at (818) 704-7545 or at audreykahane@earthlink.net.