When They Want You, Do You Want Them?
How to decide once you’ve been accepted
By Amanda Hudson, News Editor
October 15, 2020
As you apply and prepare for college, the first main concern will be: Will I get in anywhere?
Should you be blessed to receive offers of admission from a number of colleges, then how do you choose? Your considerations might include:
1) Best financial offer
Which school makes the most financial sense? What do financial aid and scholarships look like at the schools? Consider the cost of tuition and what would be covered. Consider also basic living costs, which will be impacted by the college location and area cost of living.
2) Campus flexibility
This may well include if a school has more than one location — downtown, on the outskirts of town, online options and so on. If you want city life with some breaks, having a flexible campus might be what attracts you.
3) Extra things that are nice to have
These might include an easy commute, an option to live at home, a large program in your field, a good repu-tation, and a location that attracts and excites you. Be sure to have a “Nice-to-Have” checklist to help you decide.
4) Guidance from God
Bring your list of colleges before God and ask Him to help you recognize what matters most in looking at your options. He knows each of us better than we know ourselves, and He’ll know where you will be happy.
Make a list of the good and bad points of each school and see what is most important.
Talk (and talk and talk) to God about your hopes and dreams and look at the list again.
If you are really stuck, unable to move and starting to panic, you may get unstuck by saying a prayer to God for His help, then flipping a coin — heads this college; tails the other.
You just might realize that you want the coin to land in a particular way. That will give you an opportunity to prayerfully ponder what attracts you to that school.
Ultimately, there’s no clear-cut formula for deciding where to enroll in college. The simplest and best approach is to focus on what matters most to you, pray for guidance and then choose accordingly — even when that is easier said than done.
Shop Religious items at HOLYART.COM |