Dartmouth College Top Questions

Think about how you destress and find a college that has the right resources for you. Think about how you learn and go to a school that has a learning model that fits your needs.

Don't worry too much. Dive right in.

I deliberately avoided looking at my current school at first because it was my father's alma mater. College Board helped me identify half a dozen places I might have been happy, but none of the other colleges I visited inspired me the way my college did, nor did any of the other student bodies seem as passionate, excited, interesting, and engaged as the ones I met here. My advice to anyone looking at colleges is to take advantage of any opportunity you have to stay with a student, because it's the only way you get to meet the students there, and the people with whom you'll share your years in school will influence everything you do - your learning experience in classes, the sports you play, the extracurriculars in which you participate. A strongly engaged student body can take limited resources and use them to create an environment in which every student can pursue their passions, and finding a student body with whom you share ideas and passions can enable the most enriching, stimulating, entertaining, interesting, varied, and valuable college experience you could possibly attain, regardless of the resources of the college or university you attend.

When trying to find the right college, try to keep in mind what you want out of a college, and make sure the college you attend is strong in that area (whether it is sports, academics, a sense of community, activities, etc.). When you visit the college, make sure you feel comfortable there, and could see yourself happy for the next few years there. To get the best sense of what the college is like stay overnight with a student; sample the classes, the night life, and the weekend activities. To make the most of your college experience make sure everything you do is something you love, or at least helps you get to something you love (ex: a class that you hate but you need for a major that you love). Meet new people, but stay close with the friends that you have both from home and the ones you've already made in college. Talk to professors and other studnets if you need help. Be open to trying everything at least once.

It is absolutely necessary to visit a college to determine if its the right college for you. You need to talk with students (especially upperclassmen), go to classes, eat in the dining halls, and try to experience the school as much as possible. It is impossibly difficult to understand what a given college is like To make the most of the college experience, it is important to maintain a healthy balance in your life. While academics should without a doubt be your number one priority in college, you also need to have fun. And it is this person's definition of fun which ultimately determines the perfect college fit. Some people enjoy Greek life, others enjoy guest lectures and orchestra concerts, and still others might enjoy intramural and varsity sports.

Visit the schools and see where you are most comfortable. Stops students on the visits and ask them for their opinions on the school. They are the best resources for your decision making process. They will honestly tell you what are the best and worst parts about the school. To make the best out of your college experience join one or two groups that are filled with like-minded students whether it is a religious group, political group, academic group, or social group. The students in these groups will make the best friends because they are interested in the same activities and they will be supportive of you.

When picking a college, it's important to consider a multifaceted picture of what you're looking for in your college experience; think about the type of peer you want to be surrounded by the sort of social life you are expecting, the level of academic rigor in your classes, and the sort of community your college will foster. Every school has its advantages and disadvantages. An inner-city school will have more resources and local opportunities but its campus community will suffer because of proximity to an outside social scene. A large research-based university will have great academic resources but not as much student-faculty interaction, as well as large classes and less attention. But keep in mind, when considering all these academic options: college is also a time to savor your youth! Go for a school that will nurture your passions and help you grow as well. If you plan on living in a city the rest of your life, try living in a more rural campus for your undergrad years. Once at school, take risks! Every class you take doesn't need to be relevant to your course of study; meet new people, and have fun!

Advice and college-help books can only do so much- when it comes to picking your college, visit the campus and get your own feel. Wherever you end up you'll be happy if it feels like home. Embrace your college completely, for its quirks, its pluses, its downsides, its unique and special qualities, and I promise by your sophomore year, you're home.

Whether you go to the Ivy League or Community College, college is what you make of it--you get out what you put in. Though I attend Dartmouth, where resources abound, if I was not personally invested in my own education, it wouldn't matter, and I would be wasting my time here. A big key to happiness on any campus is finding your own personal family, be it an athletic team, a Greek house, the Outing Club--whatever. Students, consider whether you know what you want to do (if you don't, that's FINE--most don't). If decided, consider specific programs of schools; if not, consider colleges where you can explore a variety of disciplines. Consider how many different types of "families", i.e. extracurricular activities there are on campus. If everyone goes home for the weekends, that's bad--the campus should stand on its own. Parents, make college visits a reality, and let your kids choose. Talk to tour guides, admissions people--have long conversations and get their emails, they'll help you. Finally, know it's not the end all--you can always transfer, and you're very young for a very long time.

visit many campuses, sit in on classes, talk with students.