Now that you have reviewed the key questions and discussed with your family, you are ready to consider the factors that are most important to you when selecting a university or post-secondary option. You will have your own unique set of standards for determining what you are looking for in terms of size, location, academic majors, clubs, population size, competitiveness, activity offerings, and cost. Your goal is to determine the factors that are most important to you so that you can begin the research process with a clear idea of what you are looking for built around the principle of ‘best fit’. Some questions to consider:
What size student body am I comfortable with?
Would I prefer a big city, a small town or the countryside?
In what type of academic environment do I learn best (ie: small class size, lectures, independent study, virtual, labs etc.)?
What level of academic challenge is best for me?
How does the total cost factor into my decision?
Is it important to attend an institution that values diversity?
What type of scholarships are available as a domestic or international student?
What sort of alumni community is present?
What type of student housing suits my needs?
Here at TASIS we have a ten application limit to help ensure that students have a balanced list that allows them to reach for aspirational institutions while also have a back-up plan. In addition, we want to ensure that universities take a TASIS applicant as serious and thus share our application limit with universities which increases our school profile with universities. There are several instances where students complete one application form that is used for several universities, in these instances the student applies to more than 10 institutions while still meeting the TASIS 10 Application Limit. Here are the instances of such application systems:
UCAS: You can apply for up to five programs in one application form, thus it counts as one application.
University of California: There are 9 undergraduate campuses but only one application form, thus it counts as one application.
California State University: There are 23 undergraduate campuses but only one application form, thus it counts as one application.
Even though we have a ten application limit, there are ways to apply to more universities should you feel this is the best choice for you and your family.
Your final list should contain 6 to 10 institutions of varying degrees of selectivity for your particular academic and personal profile. You should choose 2-3 institutions in each category: Reach | Target | Likely. To divide your list into these categories you will need to compare your academic profile (factors vary by university but include: GPA, grades, standardized test scores, extra-curricular involvement, predicted grades, etc.) to those of recently admitted students as well as admissions data on the university website.
At reach institutions, the average class rank, high school grades, standardized test scores and extra-curricular involvement of currently enrolled first year students are higher than yours or the admit rate is so low, over-qualified students are often denied. A reach institution typically admits a very small number of applicants, thereby limiting the chances of admission for everyone, no matter how qualified. The most selective institutions admit 5% to 15% of applicants. Obvious examples are Harvard, MIT, Oxford, Cambridge, Delft, Penn, Princeton, Cornell, Yale and Stanford. Each year these institutions deny thousands of students who have achieved all 7’s, have over a 4.0 unweighted GPA, and have near-perfect SAT/ACT scores. It is important to be realistic about your chances at reach institutions.
No one should ever apply exclusively to institutions that have a reputation for being highly selective. Unfortunately, highly selective institutions have far more qualified candidates applying than they can accept. Even if you are overqualified that does not guarantee you will be admitted.
At target institutions, your class rank, high school grades, standardized test scores and extra-curricular involvement closely matches that of currently enrolled first year students.
Likely institutions are where the average class rank, high school grades, standardized test scores and extra-curricular involvement will be lower than yours. The main question is, “Would I be happy to attend this institution if I am accepted”?
Regardless of the category, you should be excited to attend any institution on your final list.