Washington State University Top Questions

Accreditation is important as well as offering the right classes for the desired degree/career.

I would recommend finding a college that is cost effective, looks enjoyable, and works with you. Changing your major is a common thing, so finding a college that has multiple choices that you would enjoy is a huge plus. To make the most of your college career keep a positive attitude, study hard, and look for opportunities to work together with other students. This will increase your chances of a very successful college experience. Be sure to get involved in intramural sports and clubs, making the more friends and learning to network pays off in the long run. These are all important things I would recommend to incoming parents and or students in finding the right college and having the best college experience.

Don't wait til the last minute to be involved in your school. Don't assume that a college in the city would be more fun.

The advice I would give to partents and/or students about choosing the right college is to do a lot of research before applying. Learn how the school does academically. Does it best fit your needs for a college? Visiting different campuses is also a good way to help you decide. The way you feel when you step out of that car and onto campus for the first time. When you see the community, students, the beauty of campus. You might just end up getting that special feeling inside that tells you that, "This is where I want to go to college!" Overall though, the advice I would give is just follow what your heart tells you, and also what you want to do with your education. Don't let a reputation of a school hold you back. I know that at my school, I was hesitant about attending after hearing about the school's reputatuion. Yet I was mistaken and have come to love my school more than anywhere else I could have ended up going. All schools have a reputation, but you dont have to follow that reputation. I believe I made the right choice attending Washington State.

College is something you'll carry with you for your whole life. There's the friends you make, the education you receive, the experiences that play out before you, and these are the sort of things that one such as yourself should never take lightly. When you're looking for a college, the college that's just right for you, go with the one that gives you the best feeling. You know the one-- the feeling that the place you're seeing is magical, enchanting. Everything in it may not be perfect, but it's certainly the sort of place you'd want to spend a large portion of your time learning and experiencing. If you look at a campus and it says to you, "If you give us money, we'll give you a degree," that's the sort of feeling to shy away from. If, however, the campus smiles back at you and says, "Oh, hey there. You must be new around here. Hope you enjoy your stay," that, my friend, is the spirit that makes a college a great one.

Visiting the school before deciding is a must. A student can feel and picture themselves immediately at the school if they are supposed to be there. Also, finalizing the financial aspects is important so that the student does not have to make decisions half way through their four years about how they will continue to pay. The price of tuition is continuily rising so make sure there is plenty of money for the required fees and some left over for the student to be comfortable and not strapped for cash. Overall, the most important for the student to do is to be involved with as many activities as possible because it will open more doors and allow for bigger and better opportunities after college. Remember to have fun because college is the first step to the rest of the students life.

The most important thing is to visit the colleges before deciding which one you will attend. That will give you a really good idea of how the campus feels, how friendly the people are, and if you like it or not. Preferably, try to go during the actual academic year because going during the summer is not a clear enough indication of what the school will be like normally. I also suggest sitting in a college class to witness an example of a professor's teaching skills. Most colleges allow this as long as you let them know in advance and are not disruptive. Another thing that really helped me was to make a checklist once visiting the campuses of the schools I got accepted to. Make columns for the positives and negatives. If the cons outweigh the pros, the school isn't for you. Make sure you do not go with that school solely based on the cost. Keep in mind too the area surrounding the school. If you are used to being able to go shopping or out every weekend, you will want to end up on a campus next to or in a city.

Finding the right school can be difficult, but very possible. To find the right college you need to find out what you are interested in and what type of environment you like to be in. From whether you like close nit communities or are open to large groups of people. If you are already sure of what you want to study you might try focusing on schools that are good in that field, and if you still have no idea what you want to study then try a school that has a wide variety of options.

First of all, choose a city/town that is a setting you know you like and could live with everyday. The setting of your university can play a big role in your overall attitude of your higher education. Secondly, join as many clubs/activities as you can manage because it will give you lifelong friendships, great networking resources and experiences you will never forget. On your first day of class every semester, go up and introduce yourself to your professor- this will create a relationship that will not only help you you in that certain class, but just might help you in the future as well. Remember to keep an open-mind, you'll always be able to find someone to relate to and go to sports events or other activities hosted by the campus. You will have a blast. Lastly, try new things, even if it's not related to your major or outside of your group of friends- college is where you truly discover who you really are and what kind of person you want to be. Embrace it (not in the negative aspect) and enjoy every minute of it because it goes fast.