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Making “The Right” College Decision

My eyes lost focus on my four page list of German vocabulary words as my brain bounced back and forth trying to make a decision. I later explained to my friends that I was sorry I was so tense, but I was experiencing anxiety attacks every ten minutes making it difficult to remember besezt meant busy. What could make me so disastrously prepared for the upcoming German quiz: the college decision.

After taking my final campus visit, I found myself torn between NYU and Emerson College. Both have non-traditional urban campuses, are a bit artsy, and offer my degree. I thought, mistakenly, that once I saw them I’d “just know”: get a feeling deep in my gut where’d I was meant to be, like in all those novels and success stories. I thought I was meant to be at Emerson, but after seeing NYU I wasn’t sure of anything.

Not only does my ailing indecision demonstrate the commonplace of teen anxiety, but call for a method to decide and move toward the future. Hopefully, these tips will help me reach a decision too.

The best way to compare is to get the facts down on paper. Make two columns and list all the pluses about each college. If one side turns out to be much longer, maybe that’s where you’ve been subconsciously leaning. A downside of a list is that it doesn’t always prioritize. Star or bold what’s most important to you, because those few factors might outweigh a bunch details.

Don’t keep all the bouncing inside your head: talk it out. Talk to your parents, your friends, your teachers…anyone whose opinion you sincerely value. Even if they’re just listening they might help you gage what you seem more enthusiastic about or help remind you what’s most important in your personal college decision.

Get rid of the road blocks. Sometimes what keeps students from picking the school they really want can be someone’s contrary opinion – usually parents (sorry Mom and Dad). The best way to win the folks over is with a compilation of hard facts showing why you want to attend the school, and then even if they don’t listen “to what your heart tells you” they can listen to hard logic.

If all the facts, the talking, and the bouncing brain seem like too much: just stop. Go somewhere quiet or turn some music on and just dig deep and listen to what you want. It can be hard to block out all the clutter, but listening to only yourself might be the best way to make the decision.

In fact, “just stopping” is how I made mine.

Clueless where to start with your college decision? Check out College Board’s college search tools to kick start the process.