How do you know when you and a college are a good fit? What factors do you need to consider? What questions do you need to ask? What do you really need to know? Which college(s) should you apply to?

Compatibility, or fit, goes far beyond determining whether you meet the college’s basic admission criteria (GPA, admission test scores, essay requirements, educational/work/volunteer history, and timelines). Fit involves making a match between your personal characteristics and the colleges admissions needs, priorities and goals.

What factors do you need to consider—other than GPA, ACT/SAT test scores, recommendations, essays, etc.—if you’ve found a college or several colleges that offer the setting, class-size, degree plan/major, and educational opportunities you’re interested in? The list is really endless and is going to vary depending on the location of the college, the type of college you want to attend, the college’s classification, and many other variables. Some basic factors you need to look at—and this list is not conclusive by any means--are:

• the basic student profile (what is the mix of students by age, gender, race/ethnicity, religion, political affiliation);
  
• geographic breakdown of students (where/what geographic areas, do students typically come from);
  
• number of available slots (how many freshmen and transfer students has the college committed to admitting this year, how many are actually open admission slots versus targeted slots—those set aside for students in specific categories/majors)
  
• the college’s stated (explicit) and understood (implicit) mission is (who do they serve, what sort of population do they target, what is their community service/participation objective); and
  
• how the admission process really works (applications, evaluations, additional testing requirements, interviews, waiting lists, possible options for delayed spring admissions versus standard fall admissions, possible options for attending a sister/system institution first and then transferring in, outright rejections, appeals processes if denied, reconsideration of applicants).

What questions do you need to ask? Again, this list is not conclusive. Just remember that the student or the student’s advocate (parent, guardian, other guiding individual) needs to focus on asking questions that will help determine the student’s potential for success in admissions at that particular college. You need to know:

• how many students typically apply each year/are expected to apply this year and what percentage of applicants are typically accepted, offered provisional/delayed admissions, actually rejected, or offered admissions after appeal);
  
• whether the college gives admissions priority (meaning they’ll bump your student up the line) if the student is interested in a specific program/major, has a relative that attended the college (is a legacy admission), is the child/dependent of business partners or donors, will be participating in organized athletics/drama/music/dance/or other competitive programs on campus, is or will be participating in an honors/research oriented program, or meets any other “priority” admission category established by the college;
  
• whether the college has an affirmative action or diversity management plan in place (these plans typically give students extra points in the admissions process for either race/ethnicity or other socio-demographic characteristics such as income) or whether the admissions process is race/gender neutral and need-blind (meaning race/gender and income are not considered at all in terms of eligibility for admissions); and
  
• whether the college gives preference in admissions to students who graduate from specific schools (typically called “feeder” schools) or specific geographic areas/regions.

What do you really need to know? You need to determine how you or your student measures up against the explicit and implicit admissions criteria, priorities and objectives set by the college. Make a list of all of the criteria (academic, non-academic, personal, etc.) the college considers and then note whether or not you or your student actually fit those criteria.

Once you’ve gone through this process, which college’s should you or your student actually apply to? The rule of thumb I support is that the student should apply to at least 3 colleges, but preferably 5. On the list of colleges the student applies to, the student should include one college that is a reach (one where the student didn’t really match many of the criteria, other than the strictly academic, but the student really aspires to attend that college), on that is a good match (one where the student matched up to at least 50 percent of the explicit and implicit criteria), and one or two that appear to be “sure things” (the student matched 80+ percent of the criteria).

Keep in mind, nothing in this life is absolutely a “sure thing.” There are no guarantees that you will be granted admissions to any college. However, using methods such as these to select the college(s) you apply for ups your chance for a good match; and, I sincerely believe—based on more than 12 years of working with teens and young adults in workforce development and educational preparation--increases your outlook for admissions.

Want more information on selecting colleges that fit? Check out:

• Peter Buskirk’s Winning the College Admissions Game
  
• Jay Matthews’ Harvard Schmarvard: Getting Beyond the Ivy League to the College that is Best for You or
  
• Donald Asher’s Cool Colleges for the Hyper-Intelligent, Self-Directed, Late-Blooming and Just Plain Different.

Until next time!

Lynn Byrne

Preparing for college admissions? Trying to find direction? Need a little help with the planning? Check out my college planning series:

• College Planning Made Easy--the planning and preparation workbook for the take charge, college-bound student,
  
• Paying for College Made Easy--a college financing guide designed to assist students and families in preparing and planning for higher education expenses; and
  
• The Great Scholarship Search--my guide for students and parents researching and applying for scholarship funding.