Choosing a college can seem like a daunting task. You have many options available to you. Are you looking to attend college full-time, or part-time? Do you want a community college or a 4-year college?
Big Future and Common App are two websites that may be helpful to you in researching colleges and narrowing the field of where you might like to apply. Use their exploration tools to help find colleges that meet criteria that are important to you, such as:
Location/distance from home
Environment (urban vs. rural, community features, access to public transportation, etc.)
Available sports and activities
Both sites have additional tools to help you explore college options and get organized for the college application process.
We encourage you to tour the colleges you are interested in attending! Reading about a college online or talking to friends about what college they go to are great ideas for gathering initial information on whether the college may be a good fit for you, but neither of those things replace seeing the college in person and getting a feeling for the campus and town where you would be living and attending school.
If possible, meet with instructors or students in your program of interest. Meet with coaches and athletes if you are interested in playing sports for the school. If you truly don't have time to visit a particular college in person, consider doing a virtual tour of the campus instead.