University of Nevada-Las Vegas Top Questions

Choose a college where you can be more focused on your education rather than your social life. School first, Fun later. Participate in lots of school events and make lots of friends . But don't let your friends infuence you to do the wrong thing like not going to class or party instead of doing homework. And last but not least, STUDY, STUDY, STUDY.

Before you decide which college is best for you, make sure you take a college visit and talk to some of the students from each campus. You may discover that your first choice college isn't the best one for you. It is better to find that out before you attend than to make the switch after you have already started somewhere.

Be flexible.

I would suggest to parents and students looking for college that they make sure that they are ready for college and all that it brings. You can't do well in a college if you don't want to be in school. College comes with a lot of responsibility, you have to motivate yourself when you're a student because mommy and daddy aren't always there to check up on you. To parents I would suggest that you look around and make sure your college student will be happy and healthy at school. Look around and find things that your student will like to and see if there are any groups he or she will be interested in. For students, I'd say look around at what the program you're going into offers and look at all the campus facilities around to help you. Try to find a place that you'll like to be a part of and to get involved in. Its all about who you are and what you want in life, college is only part of that road to getting there. The 'right' college is the one that puts your feel on the path.

My advice to parents and/or students about finding the right college or university is to match the college to your career dreams. I have been ecstatic about film ever since I first laid my four year old eyes on the silver screen. I realized that filmkaing was my purpose in life. I longed to create these reactions in all kinds of people, unifying them through the experience of watching a movie. My career goal is to write an award winning movie and I could not achieve this with the minimal opportunities at UNLV. However, in order to achieve my dream, I will be attending Columbia Hollywood Film School in the fall. When I attended UNLV after high school I did not realize that the school did not offer the opportunities I was looking for, so I made a decision to attend another college that would help me to achieve my final goal. Also students should look at colleges not only for academics, but for opportunities of job placement after college.

As a junior in college, I am still not completely sure what makes a college "right" for any one person, but I can say this... every single school has its strengths and weaknesses. For me, UNLV was one of the least academically prestigous schools on my list of choses, but as far "right for me" it just seemed to fit. I am close to my family and have developed a wonderful group of friends. I am happy with my decision to attend the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The only advice I would like to give students and/or parents is to make sure to find an environment that is going to make you/your student happy. Find a place where you/your student will be able to succeed to the best of your/their potential. That place may not be Harvard or Columbia, it may be UNLV, but it will be "right" for you/your student.

The best advice to give a student and his/her parents for colleges is to look for a school that excels academically, meets the student's wants for population size, and has a great background in what ever the student wishes to major in (only if the major has been decided). The student should also decide on how diverse he/she wants the school to be. I personally picked a school where I would learn more about others than just ?Black and White.? There are a variety of schools that are culture-specific, such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, and many other minority institutions. For a student to make the best of his/her college experience, it is best to break one?s shell. Looking for social events (such as club and/or organization introductions) that are held on campus is an option. If the student is living on campus, roommates and suitemates are always useful when someone is trying to make the best of one?s college years. In any route the student takes, shyness is not the best choice when one is networking with classmates and others.

Make sure they offer a detailed program of exactly what career you want to have, not just a broad program in which you have to go to a different school to get more detailed education.

I believe the first step in to choosing the right college and making the most of the college experience is to dream. Students should dream about their deisred career goals, they should dream about the ideal place they would like to spend the next four years of their life. They should dream about the types of friends and professors they would like to engage with. This step is crucial because if students are allowed to dream about their ideal college and experience instead of making decisions based on financial, family, and peer influence they will be much happier with their college choice. Once students imagine their ideal college they should look at all schools that fit their profile. After this step, students will then need to get information about student life, academic curriculum , the city the school is located in, and financial aid options. I strongly recommend visiting the school and checking to see if the university offers a mentor program where incoming students can learn about the university and student life from a peer's perspective. College is more than academics it's about the shaping of one's identity so the right choice is important.

To make the most of your college experience, it is important to prioritize what it is you want to do with life. College can be a series of parties or a series of long nights studying, or perhaps a balance of both. College can be a time of rapid change in the student?s life, a time of meeting new people, having new classes and often, a time of having more freedom than the student has ever had before. With these and many other directions a life can take, a student must prioritize what he or she want from his or her college experience. College is what we make of it, and to borrow a phrase from Charles Dickens, ?It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness??