Three Factors for School Selection

One of the most important and often intimidating decisions a family must make as it relates to college is what school the student ultimately attends. This decision will determine several factors for a student academically and financially. While there are countless items that go into this decision, at A+ College Planning, we believe this narrows down to three factors: The head, the hand, and the heart.

The Head

This is where the family determines whether the school offers a well-renowned program for their desired major. However, the choice of major is not that simple. By this time, the student should have a developed career cluster. This does not mean the student must be narrowed down to a specific job. However, their goals should be narrow enough to choose a broad major that will help the student discover this desired career cluster. Many families get the order of decisions completely backwards! The order of decisions should be desired career cluster first, then choosing a major to help get them to that desired career, and last, what school will best help them achieve that major. Not the other way around. Making this decision in the correct order increases the value of their degree and decreases the risk of transferring, which will cost a family more money.

The Hand

The hand is where a family decides if they can afford this school. However, like the head factor, it is not that straightforward. A family must base their decision on the net price a school is offering. The net price is what a family will actually pay for the school after need and merit-based aid. The most common mistake a family can make is failing to look at a net price, which is often vastly different from the posted cost of attendance at the school. They will look at the school’s sticker price and decide it is too expensive and cross that school of their list before looking into need or merit based aid. A family must determine the net price of each school, review their college financial plan, and then determine if the school’s cost is attainable.

The Heart

The heart is equally as important as the head and hand. This is where a student and family decide what feels right. Do they like a big city or college town? Do they like a large, medium, or small campus? Do they want to be in or out of state? Do they like the feel of the campus? These and countless other questions need to be reflected on and taken seriously. A major mistake many families make is looking at the heart too heavily or not heavily enough. All three factors need to be equally weighted to make this decision. Overweighting the heart can cause a family to forget about whether the school is what is best for the student academically or financially. Underweighting the heart can cause a student’s grades to drop, which increases the likelihood of transferring, or dropping out altogether. Both scenarios will cost a family more money.

Wrapping Up

Remember, the head, the hand, and the heart are all equally important. No one factor should outweigh the others. If a family puts thought into all three of these as described above, the likelihood of choosing the right school for a student greatly increases. This will lead to a higher likelihood of graduation in less time, which has the potential to save a family money in the long run.