College selection

Choosing a college can be a very difficult task for students. The links below help you navigate the process.

• College selection: how it relates to the college application process (pending page). Upshot: College selection matters in terms of choosing what colleges to apply to in the first place (particularly if application fees are a cost hurdle), choosing how to tailor one's application materials to appeal to the specific college admissions officers, and choosing what college to select after getting admissions decisions. It becomes even more important for people using the Early Application.
• College selection: getting reliable information about colleges: Upshot: it's hard, because of distortions. The best source of information appears to be College Confidential.
• College selection: factors to consider: Upshot: prestige, flexibility for students, department-specific strengths, and cost are major factors to consider.
• Intracollege versus intercollege variation: Upshot: variation within colleges is often more significant than variation between colleges (among the colleges you have a realistic chance of getting into). This factor mitigates against worrying too much about getting into one speciifc college.