Patrick
The first and most important thing, is make sure the school has the ability to teach what the student wants to learn. and then I would encourage both students and parents to find a college that would make the student feel as comfortable as possible. There will already be a guarunteed amount of stress that will come from trying to earn good grades and understanding what is being taught, so every little factor you can control you should. For example, I chose Arizona State University for me because I may continue to live near friends and family, lower tuition costs, and also I love the warmth. These three factors that I was able to control have led me to having a great first year and a half, and I love the school more because of them. There are many other factors that contribute to the amount of comfort a student has (like perhaps social atmosphere) and those are all student preferences. The more comfortable a student is, the better he or she can learn, and that is why colleges came about.
Allison
Find a college that you will feel comfortable at, that is involved in the same things you are interested in, and that follows your beliefs or morals. Do not go to a college to fit in with friends, instead, go to one that you know will pay off in the end. Good education and an awesome learning experience will be what is most important in your college years.
Emma
Go with your heart! If you don't like the town a college is in, reconsider. You might not be living there forever, and if you like the college itself, you'll be happy anywhere. Take classes that you like in high school. Make sure that the college of your choice offers these subjects as majors, and more. Don't take no for an answer; be polite, persistent, and persuasive in trying to change what you believe to be an unfair grade, or a biased university rule. Join a club that fights for something, anything, because in articulating what you believe you'll become more firm a believer. Talk to lots of people, especially upperclassmen and professors (or college kids and teachers in high school)--find out how they got where they are now. Don't be afraid to ask questions or jump headfirst into fun activities, but be safe and don't overindulge in anything (don't indulge AT ALL if it's illegal, it'll ruin your experience big time!). Be bold in making your class choices; take lots of courses in varied subjects. You never know what you'll excel in, or fall in love with.
Matt
Make sure you take into account the ranking of the school but most inportantly you need to be in a place you will enjoy. This is where you will spend at least 4 years of your life and need to enjoy yourself.
Jettie
Try to plan ahead. The more things you can prepare yourself for, the less stressed out you will be. If you have a plan for your finances (will you have a job? will your parents finance you? do you have scholarships?), schoolwork (what major will I go after? BA/BS degree, or Masters?), and other "nitty-gritty" stuff like that, you can concentrate on learning all the life lessons that college has to offer you. You are entering an amazing world where you will stretch your wings and learn to rely on yourself for the first time ever. It's exhilerating and a little scary at times. But know that there are always great resources on campous to help you out with finding a job, getting therapy, tutoring and study groups, etc. Just take a little time to research what your school has to offer.
Mike
The advice I would give to students about finding the right college is to look in your own home state first. It's good to have a few friends at school with you to ease the transition and your parents might not be as mad about a D in Chemistry when they're paying $10,000 a year instead of $30,000. Live on campus your first year because it's a clean slate to meet new people, but DO go to class. Take it easy your first semester with the course load, probably around 9 credit hours. You have no idea how much time doing everyday stuff like going to the grocery store will drain. If possible, never take a class before 10AM. Also, while taking Friday's off is practically a tradition, stacking all of your courses on to 2 or 3 days of the week is a sure way to stress yourself out. Save up money the Summer before school so you can focus on class instread of working. Most of all, remember that you can learn a lot of cool stuff if you just pay attention in class.
John
Make sure that when you visit a college that you find somebody that goes there to take you around for a day and a night to find out if it really is everything that you've heard about it. Arizona State's current president is a complete moron and has been driving the school in a direction that none of the students or alumni would like to see it go, yet he takes this route because of his biggest supporter's massive donations.
Amanda
Find a campus that you would love walking around-you'll be doing this a lot. Also, find a school that provides you with exceptional places to study as well as places to hang out off of campus. Moreover, it is very important to find a school that offesr a program that fits your future well.
Vanessa
Think about what you truly are looking for. For example, If you going to school and want the "whole experience" go to a university that no only offers emphasis on education, but also socialization and student involvement. The biggest thing though in choosing, choose a school with large school pride. Pride in ones school enhances everything else about it.
Daniel
There are hundreds of criteria for choosing a school and it becomes very hard to decide which things matter more. I think it is imperitive to visit a college a few times, trying out the cafeterias, sitting in on classes, finding out about clubs, seeing the real dorm rooms (not just the "display" dorm rooms), meeting faculty in your department (and your second choice department!), attending club/organization meetings, checking out the facilities beyond what the tours show, and asking a variety of students there how their experience has been. Once you have visited several schools, you will have a much more confident and comfortable paradigm of which aspects of a school are important to you. Furthermore, I would urge you to avoid racking up large loans. Go to a school that is affordable for you. Keep an eye out for new scholarships, and let yourself ease into the college life before trying to work a job while studying. Take several classes outside your field, get to know your professors (and not always by just asking for help). Get plugged into two or three clubs as soon as you can. Take care of yourself physically, emotionally, spiritually, socially, and academically.