I'm breaking down some of the key components I factored in to my college decision. A lot of these are pretty simple things you have heard a lot, but I'm going to try to explain why each one is so important.
1. What kind of school are you looking for? Do you want a big school or a small school? Do you want to go far away or live at home and commute? You probably already have an idea of this but having an idea of the size and location of the college you want to attend will help you eliminate some and discover others.
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| Ignore how terrible I look, but this was when I got my acceptance package to Drury |
I knew I didn't want to go to a big school so I automatically ruled out Mizzou. I didn't want to sit in a huge lecture hall, I wanted to be in a small classroom setting and be able to know my professor. Drury has approximately 1,600 undergraduate students. My biggest class this semester is my intro to criminology class of 30 students.
2. Majors/Interests. When you are looking at colleges make sure they have what you intend to major in as well as some other career areas you are interested in. A lot of college students switch their major, so I wouldn't pick a college solely because they have the major you think you want to pursue. However, don't bother looking at a school whose majors all center around engineering if you are interested in communications or language.
I wanted to major in public relations, and Drury specifically had a program called "Advertising and Public Relations" (the name of the degree has since been changed to Strategic Communication). Although I am pretty set in my major, I know there is a possibility I could change. I am also interested in criminology, which Drury has, and other areas of the communication and business fields that I'm interested if my major were to change.
3. Getting involved. A big factor in choosing a college for me was the campus life. I want to get connected on campus and be involved in student life. From the visits I went on and the people I talked to, everyone at Drury is passionate about their school and getting involved. Finding a place that encourages students to get involved with allow you to find what you are passionate about.
Drury's freshmen orientation is a requirement. I have read blog posts from students at different colleges that said their orientation wasn't required so they ended up sitting alone in their dorm room because they felt like they would be awkward tagging along with other people who already seemed to be friends. A campus that encourages you to get involved will help you establish connections early on and introduce you to meet more people from the start of your college experience.
4. Location. I kind of touched on this in my first point, but deciding on a location is essential to choosing a college. You have to first figure out how much you can handle. Are you okay with going all the way out to California, or do you want to come home for breaks or a weekend? If so, California is probably not the place to choose. Even if you stay in state, some Missouri colleges can be 30 minutes away, while others can be 4 hours. Figure out how far you want to go and look at colleges in between that range.
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| My terrible attempt at drawing a map from O'Fallon to Springfield |
Drury is 3 hours away from my home which is perfect for me. I wanted a college that wasn't too close but also wasn't too far. Three hours is definitely doable if I want to come home for a weekend but it is far enough where I won't be coming home every weekend.
5. Visit the college! I cannot stress this enough. If you don't do anything else while picking a college, just go visit. You have no idea if you'll like the college unless you get a vibe the campus and the town.
What I'm about to say is really cheesy but so true, once you are on campus you will know. When I walked onto Drury's campus for my first visit everything just felt right. I knew that was where I wanted to go, it felt like the right place, and it was a place I confidently knew I could call home for the next four years.
If you all want any more pieces of advice or tips, just let me know, I'll be happy to share!
Until next time,
Taylor xx
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