Back to College Counseling page
Once you
have figured out some college characteristics youÕre interested in, itÕs time
to utilize the Internet as a resource. See the other side of this handout for
some suggested websites. I encourage you to try several different sites as you
search for colleges—like any worthwhile research project, itÕs good to
refer to many different sources!
At Family
Connection, the College Search feature can help you match your interests and
abilities to appropriate schools.
Open www.judgememorial.com/college
ˆ
Under
ÒJudge News,Ó click on ÒFamily Connection.Ó Set up a ÒNew UserÓ account using
the code you received.
ˆ
Once
youÕve logged on, see ÒCollege SearchÓ under ÒAbout CollegeÓ on the left-side
scroll menu to complete a questionnaire that will match schools with your
preferred characteristics. (TIP: Focus on general characteristics for now and
avoid selecting ÒadmissionÓ or ÒcostsÓ characteristics, to ensure your search
doesnÕt get too narrow.)
ˆ
When
you click on ÒShow Matches,Ó you will get a list of the schools that match your
criteria.
At this
same website, you can also:
ˆ
Use
ÒCollege LookupÓ to look up information on application deadlines, admissions
info (testing requirements), etc.
ˆ
Click
on ÒCollege Compare,Ó then pick colleges from ÒCollege PickerÓ and it will show
the average GPAs and test scores of students from Judge that have been accepted
into those colleges.
ˆ
For
more tools, try checking out Òscattergrams,Ó Òmaps,Ó and Òacceptance history.Ó
You can
also do a similar search and comparison on www.collegeboard.com
using College Matchmaker.
Once you have completed an online college search, choose the
top 10 schools that most match your interests. List them below:
1.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
2.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
3.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
4.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
5.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
6.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
7.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
8.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
9.
_________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
10. _________________________________
State _______ Website ________________
The next
step in examining schools on your list involves RESEARCH. You can find out more
about your choices on their websites, from objective guidebooks, subjective
guidebooks, and from other people. Helpful people resources are: Ms. Alamilla,
Ms. Voss, recent alumni of Judge who are now at those schools, teachers,
parents, college alumni, and college admissions representatives.
USING THE INTERNET IN THE COLLEGE
SEARCH PROCESS
Once you have a preliminary list of colleges, research them
online through the individual college web sites. To find a collegeÕs web site:
most comprehensive sites like those below also provide links to college home
pages; or just type a collegeÕs name into www.google.com or www.yahoo.com.
Official information can be learned from the admissions
office, guidebooks, and the college catalogue. Unofficial information is
available in the student newspaper, from contacting current students, and
browsing student-made Web pages. College web sites are the easiest way to
gather unofficial information short of visiting the college in person.
To make the most of a collegeÕs web site, try these
strategies:
á Look
up answers to the questions youÕve decided are important to you in your search.
á Seek
home pages of faculty members in majors that interest you for syllabi &
research interests.
á Read
pages for ÒProspective StudentsÓ for basic information, mission &
priorities of the college.
á Visit
home pages of student organizations—for example, the Outdoor Club or the
Student Senate.
á Look
for current student home pages. Send short email messages to a few asking
questions.
á Find
the alumni association pages—what are alumni of the college doing now?
What is the college doing for its alumni?
á Take
a virtual tour of the campus, if the collegeÕs home page offers one.
MULTIPLE USE SITES
SITE WHAT
YOU CAN DO HERE
www.collegeboard.com Register
for SAT and Subject tests, College search, apply online (500 undergraduate
online apps), CSS PROFILE online, scholarship search, test preparation
information
www.act.org Register
for ACT, test preparation information, college search
www.review.com College/career
search, apply for financial aid, apply online (500 online applications), links
to scholarship search, test prep information
www.petersons.com College
search, summer study opportunities
www.xap.com College
search, apply online (500+ undergraduate apps)
www.usnews.com/usnews/ College
search, information on US News College rankings, financial
edu/eduhome.htm aid
search, scholarship search, compare colleges
(up
to 4 side-by-side)
www.library.uiuc.edu/edx/ Explore
well-known and not so well-known rankings and college
rankings.htm lists,
a helpful Òcautions and controversiesÓ section
SCHOLARSHIP SEARCH DATABASES
ONLINE
www.fastweb.com National
database, widely used, updated quarterly, very reputable
www.wiredscholar.com National
database, endorsed by Sallie Mae Financial Services, very reputable
www.blackexcel.org Minority
scholarship gateway
FINANCIAL AID INFORMATION
www.finaid.org National
Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators page, has calculators for
EFC (Estimated Family Contribution)
www.studentaid.ed.gov FAFSA
Instructions, student guide, looking for student aid,
descriptions
of types of federal aid
www.fafsa.ed.gov FAFSA
online
ONLINE APPLICATION WEBSITES
www.commonapp.org Common
application and individual college supplements to download or submit online
www.collegeboard.com All
offer hundreds of online applications
www.collegenet.com, www.xap.com
OTHER WEBSITES THAT MAY BE USEFUL
www.wiche.edu Western
Undergraduate Exchange Program
nsse.ibu.edu National
Student Survey of Engagement measures student experiences at various
colleges/universities in general; helps suggest questions to ask
www.ncaa.org Information
on athletic eligibility requirements, recruiting policies, Clearinghouse
information, and which colleges offer specific sports