Four-year schools offer bachelor's degrees in a selected major. 

Click here for College Board's brief description of the types of 4-year colleges, including public and private colleges, liberal arts colleges, minority serving institutions, for-profit schools and more. 

Check out the US Department of Education's Office of Postsecondary Education programs page for information on their mission of increasing access to postsecondary education.

• Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) 

  • • Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)

    • Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs)

    • Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs)

    • Asian American and Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AAPISIs)

While you are able to apply to college as an undecided major, it is often an advantage to choose a major when you first apply. It is not uncommon for students to change their major during college as their interests change.

To find college majors that may appeal to you:

1. Spend a little time on self reflection… What courses do you like? What are your academic strengths? Are any of your favorite extracurricular activities related to a possible major?

2. Find college majors related to your career pathway by looking at the D214 Programs and Pathways Guidebook.

3. Use Naviance (login instructions here) to review the results of your career assessments.

4. Log into your College Board account for many great resources:

   • Explore Careers

   • Explore College Majors

5. Check out websites like College Majors 101.

6. Stop by the College and Career Center to view some great books such as The Book of Majors.

6. Look at the Academic tab on college websites and find information about the majors you are considering. By viewing a 4-year plan of the courses required for a particular major, you will get an idea of whether that majors appeals to you.

7. Get an internship or job in a field of interest. See Mrs. Thompson in the PHS Postsecondary Success Center for more information. 

8. Register for a senior year or summer school course to explore a potential area of interest.

9. Join a club or activity related to your interest.

ACT & SAT

• All colleges that require test scores accept either the SAT or ACT equally. 

• Some students choose to take both an SAT and ACT to see whether they score better on one. The SAT/ACT Concordance can be used to compare scores on these two tests.  

• All juniors will take the state SAT, a graduation requirement, in school in the spring.

• Juniors may want to sign up for an additional national ACT or SAT test on their own.

• ACT and SAT Test Dates for 2024-25

Test Optional

A test optional college lets students decide whether they want to submit ACT or SAT test scores with their application. Most test optional schools will consider scores if they are submitted, but focus on other factors they believe are stronger predictors of a student's potential to succeed in college. CLICK HERE for the list of over 2000 four-year test optional schools. Please note, some may require ACT/SAT scores in the future. 

Superscoring

Some colleges will superscore when the student submits multiple ACT or SAT scores. Superscoring uses the highest section scores from each test to obtain a new composite score that may be higher than any individual composite score.

AP Tests

Your AP test scores could earn you college credit. Use the College Board's AP Credit Policy Search to look up credit by school or by test.

PHS and D214 Assessment Center Websites

Check these websites for the most up-to-date information about testing within D214:

• PHS Assessment Center

• D214 Assessment Center

Create a list of “right fit” colleges that you plan to apply to factoring in academic fit, location fit, personal/social fit and financial fit.

CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO: Choosing a College That Fits.

• College admissions representatives review seven criteria students should consider and rank when trying to find their “right fit” colleges.

Use the following resources to do a college search:

• SchooLinks (use Google login option and school email) 

• Big Future College Search (use your College Board login)

Visit college campuses to narrow down the following:

• Determine how far from home you’d be willing to attend college, which parts of the country interest you, etc.

• Determine the size of the college that most appeals to you.

• Determine the location of the college that most appeals to you (e.g. in a city or in more of a rural setting or college town).

Schedule a campus visit by visiting the admissions webpage of the college at least a few weeks in advance.

• School days off, spring break and even Saturdays can be great days to schedule campus visits.

• Many colleges offer virtual visits.

Go to college fairs.

• NACAC National College Fairs around the country - in Chicago (Navy Pier) and Milwaukee in September

• D214 College Fair in April

Plan to join college admission rep visits in the PHS Postsecondary Success Center (PSC).

• Many college admission representatives visit the PSC in the fall and spring. These are a great way for students to find out more about a college, get questions answered and get to know the college rep assigned to Prospect.

• Add colleges to your favorites in SchooLinks and you will automatically get an email notification if that college schedules a visit to Prospect High School.

• Check the QuickLinks section of the PHS Postsecondary Success Center webpage for the complete list of rep visits (College Rep Visits - FALL or College Rep Visits - SPRING)