For many of us, choosing where we are going to spend the two or four years after high school is the most important choice that we make before we hit adulthood. By the time you are a senior, you will have undoubtedly been “encouraged” by your friends, family and relatives to apply to a certain school. Perhaps, your parents remind you of their friends’ kids who recently got a full academic scholarship from Duke while still mulling over the early admissions decision from Stanford. Increasingly, the popular lunch topic with your high school buddies has a similar theme as your dinner conversation. “So, have you thought about which school you are going to apply to?” might be the first words to break the awkward silence. You may think that this must be a terrible way to spend your glorious teenage years. Believe us, that ain’t so bad. As our 27 year-old CEO reminds us, ten years later, you will have similar conversations between friends and family. Only the sentence will begin, “So, why haven’t you found a girlfriend?” followed by “Are you gay?” from close friends or “Don’t you want to start a family?” by parents. In that context, the college application process is relatively painless.
By the time you finally get used to being in high school (meaning that you are not beaten up every day by upperclassmen), you should start talking with your teachers and counselors about colleges. While many of you may harbor dreams of going to Harvard or Princeton, the truth is that only 10 to 15 percent of the top students receive admissions from these schools. But the better news is that there are plenty of schools that provide a great and affordable education. By either aiming too high or too low, you may not be allowing yourself to choose a college that is right for you. After all, college should be the best seven years of your life.
The earlier you begin the college search process, the better it is for you. And this college search shouldn’t be about picking the 8 Ivy League schools and expecting to get into two of them because you figured that approximately 1 out of 4 applicants get in. To get a dose of reality, visit your guidance counselor. Now, bear in mind that guidance counselors are paid to help you (or at least, we think they are). However, some of them may not know you well; if this is the case, you need to make sure that you create a dialogue to use that person as a resource. Also, examine your test scores, high school transcript and rankings, and your extracurricular activities to see what your odds are at some of the more selective colleges.
