Things to Make Sure of Before Choosing Your College

1. If you're a high school senior and you're reading this, cool. I'm glad you decided to stop by. I don't know how far along you are in your application process, but I definitely recommend Manhattan College.

2. Manhattan College is actually the top 6th engineering school in the country. I'm an English major, so one of my concerns was getting stuck with a mediocre English program due to the fact that the school is best known for engineering. So far, though, it's been quite the contrary. I hear we have a really good english department here.

Moral of this story: The best way to find out how good any program is at a college is to ask around. Visit the campus, take a tour, and find some time to go up to different students and ask them about the college. What is their major? Are the professors that teach classes that go with that major good? Another important thing to ask is how they like the college in general.

3. Make sure you tour colleges BEFORE you apply to them--especially your top choices. I toured 6 colleges before starting the application process, and I ended up applying to 3. I remember when I toured CUNY Baruch that my mom and I toured with another girl and her mom. That girl had already chosen to go to Baruch, but hadn't toured it before that. During the tour, she looked unhappy.

4. Pick a college that goes with your personality. During a tour, pay attention to the people you see on campus and how they interact with each other. Don't just pay attention to the tour guide--they're getting paid to be enthusiastic about the school. Are there lots of people socializing on campus? Is it mostly made up of athletes? Mostly made up of people who walk around wearing suits and holding briefcases? Is it a liberal or conservative school? When you approach people to ask where to find something--like an entrance, or a bathroom--do the people seem hostile or are they friendly and helpful? The day I toured Manhattan College, it was a rainy and cold day in March--a stark contrast to the day I toured Fordham University, which was a sunny, mild, gorgeous fall day. However, I was very impressed with the people at Manhattan College. That is the main reason I made it my number one choice--aside from the fact that they are better about giving scholarship money than Fordham.

5. Pick a college you genuinely want to go to. If you are in love with Princeton, but got a full ride to Hunter, carefully think about what you want to do. Which college offers the better program for what you are interested in? Which college location do you like better? Obviously, if you have absolutely no money for Princeton, then make the frugal decision. However, if there are means for you to get into Princeton, and you won't be breaking your back with debt, go for it.

Ok. That's my take on this.