Loyola University Maryland Top Questions

I would tell parents to visit a few different kinds of schools. Schools of different sizes, religions and see what fits best with the student. Then once they've chosen a school, the student should get involved. It's really the only way to make friends and make friends with similar interests. If you stay in your room and only go to class, you'll never meet anyone and wind up hating the school. Schools are not that much different and you should try to make the most out of the one you've chosen because it's probably the best fit for you .

Parents and students should realize that students will find college an experience of self-discovery and personal growth, along with academic growth. Students should choose colleges that will help facilitate them in this growth by recognizing the factors they deem most important in their self-development. Examples of these factors are availability of religious programs, quality of sports teams, community service opportunities, networking possibilities, opportunity for social growth, and degree of academic challenge. Ask yourself: What kind of person do I want to be when I graduate, and what areas of myself do I want to focus on developing most during my college years? The answer to this question will vary significantly for each student, so determining your individual values and priorties will help you decide which aspects of college are most important to you. Remember, college can be an amazing experience, but it is ultimately an investment in your future. Therefore, look to the person you wish to see yourself as post-graduation in order to determine the direction you need to go in to get there.

The most important thing is feel. Unless the school has a notoriously bad program for the major you're interested in (or if it doesn't have one at all), you'll dofine wherever you go.

You have to go somewhere where you can be yourself and be happy to be there, always!

Honestly, really check to see if they have a strong program for what you what you want to study. If you have any idea about what you may want to major in in college, research whether the college youre looking at has it and how successful it is. I new i wanted to be Pre-Med and that was the number one factor when deciding between schools for me and my family. Second, a lot of prospective college students want to "go far from home". I was one of them. I ended up going to school a little over an hour away from home (driving) which isn't too far. I go home in the same state as I live. However, I never go home. It's close to home, but not too close. I thought my parents would be visiting me unexpectedly on the weekends. But they don't! My point: don't go looking for schools so far from home that you have to fly/take a pricy train trip. You can still get away by going to a school fairly close!

Make a lot of friends. Academics are important, but your social life is what you are going to carry with you for the rest of your life.

Find a place where you can be yourself, and easily identify with people who go there.

Fully research all programs taht are offered. Class size, campus aragangement, and other activities are all important to notice when looking.

People say that choosing the right college is the biggest decision of your life and that where you go will set your life's path. I agree that picking a college is a momentous undertaken, almost certainly up to that point in your life. But what will set your life's path will be the little decisions you make everyday, the decisions that will determine what you do with your time. College is where you learn the things that you need to succeed in your life, whether they are simply knowledge and methodology, or good friends and values. That is why its the little decisions everyday that matter the most, because over time our actions become habits and our habits become our character. The college we choose is important only if we make those everyday decisions to utilize all the good things colleges offer since a slacker at one college is little different then a slacker at another.

I did not follow the usual steps in completing my college search. My junior year of high school was the hardest time in my life, and my school work and social life were put on hold for health related reasons. That said, I was not focused on my college search. Which is kind of unbelievable to think now because it is such a huge decison to make. When i first chose to go to Loyola I was not thrilled with my decision. I thought the school was totally wrong for me. After being here for over a year I can truely say I could not have been more wrong. This school has taught me so much and changed my life path in so many ways. The college search was a bumpy path that everyone should take more seriously than I was able to. But, once at a school you can find a way to make it your own. It may not be clear as soon as you get there, but if you look you can find so many things that you never would have thought you would have enjoyed. Become involved! It really makes all the difference!