October 31, 2003
A: FROM MENTOR LESLIE WAITE IN CA
Hi Ashley;
It's great that you are thinking of all these things now. Getting
ready for college can be really confusing and overwhelming. I had a
lot of the same questions.
You ask about a few things:
Choosing a college, paying for college, and getting accepted to
college. I will deal with all of these, but first, let me say: take a
deep breath, calm down a bit: the good news is, that if you really
want to go to college, you can. Even if you don't have a perfect GPA,
even if you struggle with the ACT- there are options. I'll talk about
these below.
Now, hang on because this may take us a while.... :)

For choosing a college, it seems like you have two concerns: First,
you want to go to a good college; second, you want to go to a college
close to home. Getting both should be possible, depending on where
you are in Tennessee.
As to a "good" college: This can depend. Do you have any idea what
you are going to major in? Different colleges have different
strengths, so knowing your possible major will help you figure out
which schools are the best for you.
There are places that rank schools for overall quality and value.
While a lot of people feel that schools like Harvard and Yale are the
best, it might surprise you to learn that when it comes to success
after college, there are a number of State Universities whose
students do just as well as folks from the Ivy League.

Some places to look for ranking information:
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (my alma mater!) has a
site with links to several college ranking sites:
http://door.library.uiuc.edu/edx/rankings.htm

Two places I know of that rank colleges and Universities are
Kiplinger's Magazine, and US News and World Report Magazine.

Kiplinger's http://www.kiplinger.com/tools/colleges/ lets you see
rankings for free. You can see all of their listings, or just the
ones in Tennessee. You can have them listed by what kind of value
they are for out-of-state residents, which might help if you are
going to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, for example
(the top-rated public institution).

US News and World Report is good if you either buy the magazine at a
newsstand or sign up for the "premium online edition", which costs
money.
http://www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/rankindex_brief.php.

The University of Tennessee is listed as being one of the 100 best
colleges in the country for in-state residents by Kiplinger's, so you
might be right by an excellent school!

Depending on where you live in Tennessee, you might want to consider
a nearby out-of-state college. The University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill is listed as number one in the nation for public
institutions. There are several others, but I would go to the
Kiplinger's site and look around. be sure to read the page on how to
use the rankings so you can decide what information is best for you.

Also bear in mind that you can get an excellent education at most
colleges, especially if you work hard. If staying near home is
important to you, the state of Tennessee has a page with links to
Tennessee universities, both public and private:
http://www.state.tn.us/thec/tn_campus.html . The links show where in
Tennessee the colleges are located so you can see what is near you.

All of the above sites will have links directly to the Universities.
These are good places to go, since the Universities themselves will
tell you how they rank and which schools within the University are
particularly strong. Feel free to ask for information from any
college you are interested in, even if you are just a little bit
interested. You never know what will catch your eye until you explore
all your options.

Now to your questions about paying for college. When colleges accept
you, they assume that you can pay. They generally don't do any
screening, or ask you how you are going to pay. They wait until you
start going to classes, then a few weeks into the semester, they send
you a bill and they expect you to pay it. So don't worry about having
to "prove" that you can afford college. Depending on your financial
situation, it can be a good idea to look into scholarships, grants
and loans for school. Most schools offer financial aid to their
students based on need. That is actually something you can ask about
when you are considering applying for college - how available is
financial assistance for students who need it? You can feel confident
asking, because the people who know about financial aid and the
people who decide whether or not to accept you are completely
different, and your acceptance will NOT be based on your financial
situation or whether or not you will need financial aid. A number of
scholarships are out there. The best bet is to surf the web, or go to
the library or your school counselor to ask if they know of anything,
especially local scholarships. One caution: don't pay anyone to find
scholarship info for you. They usually just find things you could
find on your own for free.

There are also loans that you can get from the federal government,
but remember you have to pay them back after you graduate. Finally, a
number of schools have work-study programs that allow you to work for
money for school. Again, ask the colleges you are interested in.

Finally- to your concerns about not getting accepted into any college:
I can't guarantee that you will be accepted into every college you
apply for. No one can. What I can say is that even if you don't get
into the college of your choice on the first round, you have options.
I can also say that you are probably better off than you think- a lot
of people panic about not getting into college, and they get accepted.
How can you help your chances of getting accepted?
Right now, you can study really hard. I know that sounds cliche', but
it's true. One thing you have control over is how well you understand
the material. Make it your "job" to work really hard in school. Don't
just do assigned questions; do them all. If you don't understand,
review the book, or ask your teachers to explain. Do everything you
can to truly understand the material, not just to remember it for the
exam.

What if you don't get accepted into college? No problem. Take classes
at your local community college. Again, study really hard. This is an
excellent way to let colleges know that you are serious about school,
and are ready for the demands of college. With some success at a
community college, you can apply again to the Universities that you
are interested in. You can also re-take SATs and ACTs to improve your
score.

Hopefully this information helps; Feel free to write in again with
more questions- I am sure a lot of other people here are concerned
about the same things.

Good luck!
Leslie
*******************
A: FROM MENTOR JOAN LUSK IN RI
One good way to search for colleges is on line - try
http://www.collegeboard.com/ or
http://www.petersons.com/ugchannel/
to start with. You can limit your search to your local geographic area, look for fields of study and extracurricular activities that interest you, and find out what the typical academic achievement level (GPA, SAT, ACT scores) is for applicants and students. Colleges should post their own achievement record: what fraction of students actually graduates in 4-5 years, and what careers to they have? Your high school should have a guidance counselor who can help you understand the information you find, and teachers who know you and your abilities and interests may have good suggestions. If you have some older friends who are now in college or have recently graduated, they can help de-mystify the jargon for you. To a newcomer, it can feel as if you need to learn a whole new language just to understand how colleges describe themselves.

Some colleges have a policy of meeting their students' financial needs - figuring out what the family ought to be able to pay, what the student could earn, and making up the difference with loans and scholarships. Some colleges don't; they leave it to the student to find the money. I don't think any of them ask you to _explain_ how you'll pay. They send you a bill. It's up to you and your family to figure out how high a bill you can pay, and choose a school you can afford. Be aware that in general the more expensive schools also offer the most financial aid; look into the true net cost, not just the sticker price.

There are also sites that give you a lot of information about scholarships. I hesitate to endorse any one, because I really don't know which are good and which not... but here's one: http://www.college-scholarships.com/
Occasionally you hear about a student who applied for many, many scholarships and may be paying the entire bill by adding together 20 little ones. There are scholarships with very obscure requirements; some are applicable to only a single college but many are "portable" wherever you might go.

You must have heard of a few colleges in your area. Each one will have a web site, and each one is interested in attracting students. So look them up and see how they present themselves - what does each one think are its unique best features? You can write for more information from those that interest you, and I highly recommend visiting the campus if you possibly can. The atmosphere and the attitude of current students are so important to your success and happiness. Colleges arrange campus tours for prospective applicants.

On-line applications often require you to pay by credit card - you type the number into a secure web site. Some will also let you send a check, separately, and process your application after they get the check.

Good luck! Remember that there are around 3000 colleges in the US and many of them could fill your needs - there's more than one right answer. And remember that colleges are eager for students - they will welcome your inquiries and try to encourage you to apply and attend. Their admissions people are accustomed to answering questions. Most colleges are not very selective - they accept most of the applicants - so don't let the the whole process intimidate you. Enjoy comparing your imagined life at several different colleges - and thinking about what your life would be after graduation.