Think about what you may want to study. Do a few career assessment surveys, but know that if you are undecided, that's ok too! All colleges have Exploratory Studies programs where you experience the variety of academic offerings.
Calculate or estimate your GPA and test scores
Use search platforms to find colleges where you’ll land in the top 1/3 of the incoming class.
College Board Big Future has both a career assessment tool and a search program to help you narrow down your choices
Naviance, School Links and other in-school platforms have search program to help you match up your interests and abilities with college (in Naviance, it's called SuperMatch).
Definitely go for your dream! But be realistic.
The big merit scholarship money is at the Target and Safety levels (see below)
College Scorecard (US Dept of Education)
College websites
President’s page
Strategic Plan
Net Price Calculators
Alumni Factor (latest edition 2013-2014)
Common Data Sets…search for an individual college's CDS (e.g., "Colorado College Common Data Set"). Sections B and C will tell you all about who they are accepting and what they are looking for in their applications.
Niche - use with caution as responses can be anecdotal and self-selected; "acceptable" reviews should skew toward average and above; look at the "one word or phrase" areas as well as positive and negative themes that emerge
Peterson's - may be fees
Chegg - may be fees
A REACH college is one to which you are fall below the median incoming GPA and test scores. But you can still apply - you may be the person they're looking for!
A TARGET or MATCH college is one at which the median incoming GPA and test scores are close to what you have.
A SAFETY college is one at which your GPA and test scores are well above its median incoming GPA/test scores.
If your dream school is also a safety school for you, you may only need to apply to one college!
Most students apply to 1-3 Reach, 1-3 Target, and 1-3 Safety colleges, to give themselves some options in the spring.
Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) is a leadership training and development program that prepares full-time, college-enrolled students for service opportunities in the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and Space Force (the Coast Guard offers a similar program called the College Student Pre-Commissioning Initiative [CSPI]). Joining ROTC opens a door to professional skills development, scholarship opportunities and tuition assistance, and, upon completion, attaining the rank of officer. Today, ROTC is offered at more than 1,700 colleges and universities.
The Military offers unique educational opportunities for students who plan to pursue a college degree. These options — service academies, senior military colleges and maritime academies — offer world-class education and a deeper understanding of military culture. In addition, these schools grant full tuition in exchange for a period of service commitment.
U.S. Military Academy (West Point) - Army
U.S. Naval Academy - Navy and Marine Corps
U.S. Air Force Academy - Air Force and Space Force
U.S. Coast Guard Academy - Coast Guard
U.S. Merchant Marine Academy - Merchant Marines
University of Amsterdam
United Kingdom - UCAS application platform
Australia/New Zealand – be aware of different time frames because of their location in the Southern Hemisphere
American University of Rome
Franklin University Switzerland
Temple University Japan
University of California Berkeley – SciencesPo de Paris
Columbia University – Trinity College Dublin
Statistically challenging for everyone (there are 23,000+ valedictorians in this country)
Legacy students currently have an advantage
For your application, you'll need:
Rigorous course work with excellent grades
Excellent test scores
Resumé with unique and in-depth activities and achievements
Demonstration of initiative (passion project, business, etc.)
Leadership, leadership, leadership
Service and kindness (e.g., Dartmouth College)
Stand out essays
Interviews
Useful Podcasts (Yale Admissions Podcast, Dartmouth Admissions Beat, etc.)
Cautionary Tale: Operation Varsity Blues (documentary recreation on Netflix)
Most states have a Bridge to Bachelor’s-type program to guarantee transfer of credits and admission from community colleges to 4-year public institutions. This can be a great way to get into a college system in another state you want to live in (e.g., California).
Pros:
Makes the most financial sense
Get to try out college level coursework for relatively low cost
Satisfy some/all general education requirements
Close to home – family support
Can work a job at the same time
There are some community colleges with dormitories
Cons:
MAY miss out on typical college social and living experiences (but some CCs do have dorms)
Quality of instruction may be variable
Coursework may not be accepted by college you ultimately choose, particularly if that college is out of state