This is the Most Important Factor in Choosing a College
“Where’d you go to school?”
It’s a question that is etched into the very fabric of our society. Matriculating high school students and anxious parents are overwhelmed with the decision that looms large over dinner tables and college visits: where to go to college.
With a choice this big, it’s understandable to default to quantitative factors like ranking, acceptance rate, and brand. However, our obsession with college brand and the idea that one institution is a good fit because of it can be dangerous when choosing a school. Colleges are living entities, each unique in their culture and philosophy. Therefore, it is important that students and parents ask the right questions.
The most important question for students is this: “Where am I going to be happiest?”
What’s at stake
According to the National Association for College Admissions Counseling, roughly a third of students who enter two and four year colleges will transfer at some point. While there are a number of factors at play, for many students, going away to college can be a rough transition. The pressures surrounding a rigorous academic schedule and newfound personal responsibility are compounded by the fact that many college freshmen are moving away from home for the first time. This is a vulnerable time, and when students find themselves at a school where they don’t feel connected, they are at risk of falling into a cycle of bad habits — eating poorly, succumbing to physical inactivity, drinking excessively, or going home every weekend. Come winter break, they are considering transferring to another school. This is, unfortunately, a relatively common occurrence.
An unhappy student can also be a costly student. On top of the emotional turmoil involved, transferring often imposes a hefty financial burden upon the family. Often credits don’t transfer, and the student is forced to stay an extra year to make up for it. With the price of college tuition increasing annually, an extra year is no small amount of money. Additional tuition is not the only financial consideration — an extra year of school means delaying entrance into the workforce. The student is spending money when they could be making it.
How the “happiness quotient” works
The good news is that asking the right questions and considering the right factors when looking at colleges can play a huge part in preventing these challenges. Finding a school that complements a student’s personality can dramatically increase their sense of well-being; we like to call this the happiness quotient. You’ve heard it before. CEOs have been talking about it for a while: a happy team is a productive team. This reasoning extends to college as well. While you shouldn’t ignore the rankings in U.S. News or The Princeton Review, you should consider what schools would be the best fit socially, culturally, and environmentally, and rank them accordingly.
It’s not that the programs offered and the rankings count for nothing. But think of it this way: a student’s well-being, in large part, determines their participation and involvement in those programs. This logic extends beyond colleges. For example, New York City is considered by many to be one of the greatest cities on earth. It has every amenity imaginable, endless culture, and a vibrant history. I’ve known people who swear they’ll never live anywhere else. Yet I’ve also known some people who were at such odds with how the city worked that they never felt comfortable. They hardly left their apartment and didn’t end up staying long. A college is no different. It is a time of personal growth and discovery, which happens when you step outside of your comfort zone and push yourself into new experiences.
If a student is going to grow and develop, it is paramount that they feel good about where they are.
What you can do
On college visits, skip the questions about majors and acceptance rate. You can find this information on your own. Instead, get a sense of the place. What is everyday life like? Do students stick around on the weekend? What do students get most excited about on campus? What activities have the most involvement? Ask your guide to describe a normal Sunday afternoon at the school. Strike up a conversation with a student other than your guide; ask what he or she likes and dislikes most about the school. Do the answers to these questions match up with what you want out of your college experience?
Talk to current students about their professors. Students perform better in environments where they sense that their teachers genuinely care about their success. Do they teach enthusiastically? Do they make an effort to connect? Or do students get the sense that teaching is merely an unfortunate stipulation attached to their professors’ research funding? You might be surprised at how candidly the students respond.
After visiting, parents and prospective students should sit down and ask, “Did that place feel right?” As a parent, ask your son or daughter, “Can you see yourself being happy there?” While those might seem like obvious questions, they are often neglected. It is also important to make sure that this conversation is an honest one, one that looks past preconceived notions. Just because you’ve grown up loving a certain college football team, that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be happy as a student there.
Schools know it, too
Colleges are becoming increasingly aware that the happiness quotient matters. Schools like Wake Forest University in North Carolina and Frostburg State University in Maryland have launched initiatives to promote and improve the overall “happiness” of the student body. Even the Princeton Review is catching on. They now offer a “Happiest Students” ranking alongside the more traditional superlatives.
It might take some readjustment, but a more holistic approach to choosing a college can have a huge impact. Students who feel good are better students. They challenge themselves and take pride in doing so. They get involved in clubs and activities, broaden their horizons, and have the types of experiences that help foster growth and realize potential. Do the work ahead of time, ask the right questions, and you will be thanking yourself for years to come.
Billy Downing is an expert in the college admissions process and is founder and CEO of ESM Prep, a leading college counseling, test preparation, and academic tutoring firm in the U.S., Asia, and the U.K.
