Hollins University Top Questions

Make sure you compare the financial aid offices, research the school and its professors, off-campus activites, public transportation, and the food. It's said that when students go to college, they gain the "Freshman 15" but sometimes they are actually losing weight!!!!!

Do your best to get where you really want to be, even if the financial situation is tough. Make sure you choose an environment that you will be comfortable getting involved in and you'll be able to succeed in both sociallay and academically. Find a place you can call your home.

To parents I would say let your child live their own life when it comes time to pick a college. It's hard, I know, but in the end, they will appreciate their success more if it's their own success. And your kids probably won't call every day. Or every other day. But that doesn't mean they don't love you. They're still your baby, but they are just trying to start their own lives now, just like you did not to long ago. To students, be careful. Don't get sucked into picking a college because all your friends are going there. Think about what you like and then look for a college that fits you. Take this time to be selfish and look for something that's going to make you happy. And college is hard. Very hard. It's so much easier to play on facebook and fill our surveys than doing that paper, but that paper is going to help you get to where you need to be in life, so do it. And don't complain. A lot of kids don't get the choice of college.

Choose an enviroment where you will be able to be yourself creatively and mentally fullfilling. Most people only have one chance to attend a university. Make it count.

Look at as many schools as you can, including places you never thought you'd be interested. When I started my college search there were no women's colleges on the list- in the end, I had to choose between two! And I love it! Don't discount schools that seem out of the ordinary or "not your type". You might be surprised by just what your "type" actually is.

VISIT! This is the number one important thing to do. I can't count on my hand how many people who have transfered because they did not like the location of the school. Make sure that you visit, get to know the area, and get a good feel for what it's going to be like when you move in. If you're in the right place, you'll know. It'll feel right.

Don't be afraid to let your children take our private loans. Do the reasearch, but it's their education. If they really want to go somewhere let them pay for it while you pay the interest or even some of the loan! I know too many people who left Hollins because of the fear of taking our private loans, but don't let money keep you away from your dreams!

To find the right college, one shouldn't think to forget an application because the college seems too expensive or too far away. There is only one chance to have a great college experience and it is totally dependent on the attitude the student enters with. If she starts school thinking that she wishes she had applied somewhere else, she will be less likely to succeed. Also, that disregarded application could be to the college that becomes the one that changes her life. She should go to the one that makes her feel like she's always meant to be there. However, difficult first years are common and if she starts having a hard first year, don't give up and decide it was a bad match. If she chooses the right school, it might take some time for it to choose her back. But it will.

Visit multiple times, talk to different types of students, and investigate finanicial aid options.

Have lots of options, do your research, make the best of your environment, be confident in who you are and don't look for others to validate you on or off campus.