You don't need to be a math whiz to solve this problem: Who has better odds of gaining acceptance at the college that's the best match: the high school senior who applies to 25 schools indiscriminately or the one who applies to a carefully whittled-down list of seven?
Safety in numbers doesn't apply to getting into college. Getting that fat envelope from the school of your dreams requires figuring out exactly which school that is, and that takes introspection and research, not extra supplemental essays.
Just to keep a sense of perspective (in case you're friends with that first senior), according to the Higher Education Research Institute's most recent survey of freshmen, only 3.7 percent of students applied to 11 or more schools.
It starts with you: Maybe you're feeling in pretty good shape right now because you're interested in only two colleges, that nearby state school and the one your older brother attends. Nice try. "Always start with you, not with the colleges," advises John Boshoven, counselor for continuing education at Community High School in Ann Arbor, Mich. Before you pore over information about class sizes, majors, and male-to-female ratios, consider a few questions. What are your values? What's your learning style? Which classes do you enjoy? What makes you happy? What are your goals?
[Learn more about finding the right school for you.]
Keith Berman, president of Options for College, a counseling and consulting firm in New York, calls this the "collection phase." He recommends making an activity list, journaling to put words to feelings you've never expressed, and talking—to your guidance counselor, favorite teacher, or parents—about your interests and skills. You should also write a résumé.
Survey the landscape: Now that you know who you are, it's time to figure out what's up with all of these colleges.
Marty O'Connell, executive director of the nonprofit group Colleges That Change Lives, wants you to schedule an extra hour of homework a week, starting in your junior year, to look over websites and take virtual tours to get a sense of different kinds of schools. "Every student agrees on this part of the college search process—they don't have enough time to do it on top of everything else," she explains.
Set up these sessions, and you'll have enough time for detours—away from the Ivy League, out of your state, and certainly to at least a few places you'd never heard of before you got going. (You can start with the colleges U.S. News has visited on our road trips.)
What you're looking for will depend on your interests, of course, but your quest should start with academics (that is, after all, the point of attending college). You can browse course catalogs, peek at faculty Web pages to find out what they're researching, and look into study abroad.
Then there are the quality-of-life issues. O'Connell calls this the "ultimate Frisbee search." The idea is that certain passions are enough to drive your decisions. It may be that you desperately want to join a Bhangra dance troupe or can't imagine attending a school more than a three-hour trip from home. Another popular parameter: temperature! "If you know you don't like cold weather, don't go to Rochester," notes Jayne Fonash, guidance director at the Academy of Science in Sterling, Va.
Sizing up schools: You've probably also heard people talk about whether you want a "big" or "small" school. There's truth in the stereotypes of each. Big schools tend to have more resources and opportunities but often have more red tape and classes taught by graduate students, while small schools tend to be closer knit, with more of an undergrad focus, but may have limited academic and social opportunities.
[College admissions officials offer advice about school size.]
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David Gaskin of FL 4:09AM September 14, 2011