Which College Characteristics Mean the Most to You?
College/University: __________________
| College Characteristic | Your Preference | Notes | Your Score |
| Score each parameter, tally the total and compare each college’s score to get an objective perspective | |||
| 5: Extremely Important
4: Very Important 3: Important 2: Less Important 1: Not Important |
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| Size (low student population) | *Under 3000 students
*3000-10,000 students *Above 10,000 students |
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| Size (low faculty:student ratio) | Faculty:student ratio | ||
| Size (small campus) | *Columbia is 36 acres
*Stanford is 8,180 acres |
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| Size (small class, small lectures) | |||
| Private over Public | |||
| Liberal Arts over Pre-Professional | Learning for the love of learning vs prepare me for that job | ||
| Curriculum | |||
| College over University | Intimate vs less personal | ||
| Special Focus (i.e. Art, Single-Sex, Religious) | i.e. Julliard vs Columbia
Music focus over 200 different departments |
||
| Research University | *Intellectual curiosity
*High impact research |
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| Academic offerings | Particular Major, Plentiful, double-major, study abroad | ||
| Faculty | Premier, accessible | ||
| Geography | *Northeast
*South *Mid-Atlantic *Mid-West *West Coast |
||
| Distance Close to Home | *Live at Home
*Short Drive *Long Drive *Train or Bus *Plane (Stanford, Oxford) |
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| Campus Culture | Intellectual, party, honor code, casual, intense, school spirit | ||
| Climate | Warm
Humid Cold, frigid Snow, rain |
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| Academic Environment | *Intellectual over
Pre-Professional *Moderately Easy *Rigorous & fast-paced over Easy
|
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| Study Abroad | Global Scholars, Foreign Language | ||
| Resources | Endowment | ||
| Facilities | Libraries, laboratories, museums, cafeteria/cafes | ||
| Alumni Network | After graduation connections for jobs and relationships | ||
| Quintessential Campus | Beautiful Campus over Amorphous | Amherst/Stanford vs NYU/BU | |
| Admissions Selectivity | Tough to get in vs easy to get in | ||
| Prestige over Best Fit | Ivy League, Stanford, UCs | ||
| Entrepreneurial | Stanford (Silicon Valley) | ||
| Urban over Suburban vs Rural | Columbia (NYC), Princeton (NJ), Williams | ||
| Campus Neighborhood Environment | Safe & Clean | ||
| Special Needs | Ramps/Easy access to buildings, Hearing Impaired, Blind | ||
| Premier Advising | *Academic Advising
*Career Advising *Pre-Professional Advising *Peer Advising |
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| Liberal over conservative | |||
| Net Cost (cheaper) | Tuition + Room & Board minus (scholarships + grants) | ||
| Spiritual Freedom – Religious Affiliation | Religious Life is important in choosing a college | ||
| Diversity | Multi-ethnic, multi—cultural, every state & most countries represented | ||
| Ethnicity | Attending a college where a high percentage of students are of your ethnicity | ||
| Student Body Characteristics | (i.e. Artsy, pre-professional, school spirit, conservative, liberal, laid back, moral, scholarly, outdoorsy, entrepreneurial, collaborative, competitive, | ||
| Sports | *Intercollegiate
(Dl, Dll, Dlll) *Club *Intramural |
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| Safety | |||
| School Spirit | Football, Basketball | ||
| Housing | Residential Colleges, dormitories over commuter college | ||
| Social Life
|
*Greek Life
*Plenty of Activities & Opportunities *Clubs, bars, theatres, parks, museums, bicycle paths *GLBTQ Support |
Michael J. Richardson, MD