The Housing & Roommate Decisions

It is April, and most of you have probably already gotten your acceptance letters and have decided on where you will be next year. Congratulations! You will be the incoming class of 2013!

One of the first issues you will address will be sending in your housing requests soon and hopefully signing up for orientation if you haven’t done so already. Sometimes schools give you the option of choosing a single, a double, or a triple, and some schools even have suite options (several students share a common living space with their own private rooms or doubles). I would definitely recommend choosing a roommate. Living alone in a single can be lonely, and it separates you automatically from the first college experience. Choose someone you are not that good of friends with, or is from a different school in your area. In Indiana for example, a Carmel student might choose to room with a Brebeuf student, or a Ben Davis student with a Cathedral student, etc. Rooming with your best friend is not something I recommend. I know several people that have ruined their friendships and their freshman year with that choice.

So my advice regarding housing and roommates: step outside your comfort zone! Go pot-lock or ask someone whom you don’t know very well! College is all about getting to know different people and trying new experiences! Make housing your first step!

PICKING THE SCHOOL FOR YOU

As of today, most of you will have submitted applications to several schools. Hopefully acceptance letters are overflowing your mailbox with schools offering you a spot in their new freshman class of 2013. Making the choice between several acceptances will be one of the hardest decisions (and one of the most important) you will have to make. So my advice is to choose wisely. As you know from my article or from my initial posts, I chose the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana by the end of January 2006. It was the wrong choice, and I did not way my other acceptances heavily enough against it. I ended up transferring second semester of my freshman year to DePauw University, a small liberal arts school, in Greencastle, Indiana. DePauw was one of my initial choices, but I did not look at it closely enough. I blinded myself to all of the seemingly perfect things about the University of Illinois. All I could see was that it wasn't in Indiana, it wasn't where any of my friends were going, it was a school no one thought I would be accepted to, it was still a Big Ten, and it only took a little over two and a half hours in travel time. But these were the wrong things to base my decision off of. Travel time is indeed something important to consider, but not crucial. But accepting this school because of my pride, using it as a way to escape the people I went to school with for over ten years, making sure it was in a familiar athletic conference, and trying to escape Indiana, were not intelligent or rational reasons to base my acceptance upon. I wish I would have considered the following, and hope that you will take some of these suggestions to heart, so that you are much more confident in your college choice than I was.

1) Academics. I should have looked into classes, how they were run, who taught them (TA's versus Professors), the type of classroom atmosphere, and the students I wanted to surround myself with.

2) Campus Life. I should have stayed the night or weekend with someone in the dorms or in other University housing. I chose a privatized dorm at first and was isolated from the majority of students right off the bat when I first attended the U of I. Do not look at just the party scene. Although having fun is definitely the typical college cliché, in retrospect, it is of very little importance. Go and check out how the students interact. What they do during the week: volunteering, Union Board, student government, sorority/fraternity life, work-study, study places, and just going out to eat with friends.

3) In-state. I wish I would have appreciated where I went to high school and where I came from. Even attending a school across the Indiana-Illinois border, I ran into prejudices against Hoosiers. Remind yourself that home can be comforting, and knowing a few people at your school of choice is not the end of the world. You can choose who and who not to hang around with. Remember that being from Indiana and attending an Indiana school can be comforting as you surround yourself with people who know where you are coming from. Having common friends is a fun and uniting experience. Don't rule out staying in-state. I wish I would have swallowed my pride before stubbornly declaring I wanted to be an Illini.

What is so great about Indiana schools?

How a few Indiana Colleges were ranked by The Princeton Review:
**Not all of the schools in Indiana were a part of The Princeton Review’s 2009 rankings.

1) Indiana University—Bloomington
- Indiana Daily Student newspaper is ranked #18
- Intercollegiate sport spirit is ranked #20
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

2) Purdue University—West Lafayette
- Ranked #10 on “Jock Schools” list
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

3) Ball State University
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

4) DePauw University
- College radio station, WGRE, is ranked #3
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

5) University of Notre Dame
- The campus is ranked #7 on the “Most Beautiful Campus” list
- Intercollegiate sport spirit is ranked #3
- Ranked #11 on “Best Career/Job Placement Services” list
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

6) Wabash College
- Ranked #3 on “Best Career/Job Placement Services” list
- Intercollegiate sport spirit is ranked #14
- Ranked #3 on “Most Accessible Professors” list
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

7) Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
- Ranked #7 on “Best Career/Job Placement Services” list
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

8) Valparaiso University
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

9) Butler University
- One of the “Best Midwestern Colleges”

6) INDIANA COLLEGE SPOTLIGHT: BALL STATE
Ball State University’s Entrepreneurship Center is ranked #11 on the Princeton Review’s Top Undergraduate Entrepreneurial Schools’ List

MYTHS ABOUT THE SAT

According to the Princeton Review, there are four predominate myths regarding to the SAT. Here they are, along with my comments in the (**)!

MYTH #1: The SAT is a test of intelligence and my scores are a good indication of how I will do in college.

FACT: Your SAT scores reflect how good you are at taking the SAT (as well as how much time you spent preparing)–and that’s about it. Nevertheless, admissions officers continue to place great weight on this test. So it’s important to do well.

**The SAT is NOT a true test of intelligence, as there is no test that is a valid test of human intelligence. The very definition of intelligence is still debated among scholars and psychologists today! The SAT is a very important test that, in most cases, will have a large influence in your acceptance into a college or university. The time preparing is also reflected in your score, but test prep courses do cost money, and are sometimes not an option for many students.

MYTH #2: The SAT tests complex math concepts.

FACT: SAT math can seem challenging because of the way the concepts are tested, not because of the concepts themselves. The math sections include concepts you learned in the seventh or eighth grade, like arithmetic, basic geometry, basic algebra and algebra II. You won't see any calculus or trigonometry on the SAT.

**The math concepts on the SAT will not be difficult if you remember all the way back to 7^th, 8^th, 9^th, or 10^th grade where algebra, algebra II, and geometry are taught. I am the kind of person that forgets the concepts right after I was tested on them, so the math portion was extremely difficult for me. If you are in any way like me, look online for practice math problems, or borrow a younger sibling’s math book to practice problems.

MYTH #3: You can't really improve your Critical Reading score.

FACT: You can improve your Critical Reading score by expanding your vocabulary. Reading comprehension and sentence completions all rely upon your understanding of the words in the questions and answer choices. So read books, newspapers and anything else you can get your hands on, and check out our SAT prep for additional vocabulary-building tools.

**Critical Reading is a difficult portion for many students because of the time crunch. If left alone with the story, it would probably be much easier to leisurely read and answer questions from it. I suggest taking an Etymology class, a course offered to sophomores and older at some high schools. I also recommend signing up for “Word of the Day.” Here are some links for different “Word of the Day” subscriptions!

1)    http://www.askoxford.com/contactus/wotd/

2)    http://www.yourdictionary.com/word-of-the-day.php

**The New York Times offers a “Word of the Day” AND a Test Prep “Question of the Day.” SIGN UP for EXTRA PRACTICE!

1)    http://www.nytimes.com/learning/students/satofday/index.html

2)    http://www.nytimes.com/learning/students/wordofday/index.html

MYTH #4: It's better to leave a question blank than to guess.

FACT: Not necessarily. You receive one point for every correct answer, zero points for every question you leave unanswered and minus one-quarter of a point for every incorrect answer If you can eliminate even one of the answer choices, guess! From a purely statistical standpoint, this approach will gain you more points over the whole test than you'll get by playing it safe and leaving the questions blank.

**Since you do get deducted for every wrong answer, do not guess on a large quantity of questions even if you can eliminate one answer. I was always taught that if you can get it down to two answers, then you are safer to guess. But if you have absolutely no clue, and eliminating even one option still leaves you clueless, it is better to leave it blank. You can always come back if you have some time left.

WHAT YOU SHOULD BE DOING IN THE MONTH OF DECEMBER

SENIORS: This will be one of the most crucial months in all of your application process. If you haven’t already started your application process, START NOW! Most early admissions deadlines have probably already passed, and the official deadline will be right after the New Year. You should be asking your teachers for letters of recommendations and provide them with the deadlines that those must be turned in. Write your admissions essays, get the proofread over and over by different people. You should also make sure you have enough schools to apply to. Make sure you have “reach” schools that are a little bit out of your academic range, “safety” schools that will guarantee your admission, and a set of schools that you are on the brink of being accepted. These schools are what some people call “match” schools, and they are good fits for you academically as your grades and test scores fall safely within theirs. “Safety” schools on the other hand are schools your GPA and test scores exceed. You should also be scheduling interviews with admissions offices if you haven’t already done so. You should also have requests in for your transcript and make sure you are keeping up on the scholarship deadlines as well.

JUNIORS: Keep researching colleges and universities! Visit your counselor or college career counselor (if you are confident in them) and ask about the SAT, ACT, and PSAT. Register for “Word of the Day” to help you get prepared for the SAT as well.

TOP TEN COLLEGE MAJORS

**According to the Princeton Review, the Top 10 Majors among undergraduate students are:

1.     Business Administration & Management Commerce

2.     Psychology

3.     Nursing

4.     Biology/Biological Sciences

5.     Education

6.     English Language & Literature

7.     Economics

8.     Communications Studies/Speech Communication & Rhetoric

9.     Political Science & Government

10.  Computer & Information Sciences

**Visit the following link to read about these in detail!

http://www.princetonreview.com/college/top-ten-majors.aspx?uidbadge=%07

THE BACK-UP PLAN

What does it mean to choose a “safety” school?

You should always keep a “Plan-B” or “safety” school in mind when applying to college. These schools are schools you are almost positive will accept you based on your academic performance. These schools are good to consider just in case you do not get your first choice, or your second or third. They may not be the school of your dreams, but the application process requires that you think rationally and realistically as well as reaching for the stars.

These schools can also be “financially” safe schools. You know that no matter what, you personally can cover the expenses and tuition, or your family can help with the finances. Not everyone can afford out of state or private tuition, and applying to financially safe schools will prevent you from taking out student loans. 

College Visits

One of the best ways to get a feel for a college campus is to visit it overnight. Many campuses have a "Prospective Student" program that sets you up with a current freshman student for a day or two. This is a crucial step in selecting the school of your choice. Going and visiting for a day can be misleading, when you only get the one tour guide's point of view. They won't be able to show or give you the experience of what it would be like to attend that school. My advice is to look at a school and try to set up a prospective student stay. It will help you evaluate the dorm life, night scene, academic atmosphere, and other students that can give you more of an inside opinion. But don't wait! Fall Break, Thanksgiving Break, and Winter Break are right around the corner! And applications are probably due right around the first of the year! You will probably have wanted to visit those schools and need to do so before applying! The application process can be time consuming and expensive! So like my advice before...PLAN AHEAD!

Time Management

One of the most difficult transitions of high school to college is TIME MANAGEMENT. Classes are scheduled usually twice or three times a week, can be spread out from each other, and there are even night classes. This usually leaves your day with many gaps, awkward break times of an hour or less, and no set "school time" of 8-3. Some people may find this refreshing, but sometimes it is difficult to stay on task and take advantage of your "empty time."

Right now I have class on Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 9:20-10:10am, 10:30-11:30am, then from 12:30-1:30. I have an hour to get across campus, eat lunch, and get prepared for my third class of the day. On Tuesdays I have an 8:50-9:40am Italian lab and class from 12:40pm-2:20pm (again an awkward break from around 10-12:40pm when I usually am tempted to take a nap). Thursdays I have class only from 12:40pm-2:10pm. But within these classes I have oral exams for Italian, special speakers I must attend for participation, online homework, and outside of the class due dates and professor meetings. This throws me for a whirl quite often and my week to week schedule is never the same.

I recommend PLANNING AHEAD. Making yourself "study blocks" where you sit down and have an hour for each subject a day. I recommend getting your homework done in advance and planning your papers and research in advance as well as they most likely involve extensive research and different citing then what you are used to. Unfortunately it is not like high school anymore and papers can be 3 or 4 pages, or 12 at the most for a semester long research paper. In college you will have 3-5 page papers due weekly, 8 pagers biweekly, and detailed research assignments. Go visit your professors with questions and don't get in the habit of procrastination. You will get overwhelmed and either harm your GPA or get sick. Neither of which is fun.

Cliffnotes for this post: Don't procrastinate on anything. If you are in this habit in high school...get out of it quick and start planning ahead and doing little bits of homework, paper research, and studying ahead of time. In the long-run it will help you.

Public or private?

Choosing between a public and a private university can be difficult. It is essential and I realized how much of a role it made in college decision. I went to a public high school with 4,000 kids and was in public schools my entire life. Private school didn't seem like it had anything different or better to offer...until I started going to a private university.

Classes are much bigger at public universities and most classes are taught by graduate students and T.A's (teachers' assistants). Public schools are usually larger overall, are spread out on a large campus, and there are many people you run into that you don't know. Private schools are much smaller (usually) with professors teaching smaller classes and the campuses are much more close knit. Skipping class is a lot easier to do at a larger university and attendance isn't usually mandatory. At a private school the professor notices when you are gone. If anonymity is up your alley, look into a bigger school.

Public universities also usually have more majors and classes to choose from. Smaller private schools are extremely limited on their majors and the curriculum may not have the diversity you are looking for. Public universities usually are more geared toward athletics, Big Ten, homecoming as private schools are usually Div. II or III where athletics and game day aren't as big of a deal. 

There are many other reasons to choose public over private or private over public! Let me know where your problems lie and I can help you figure out which school is your best fit!