How to Find Your Best College

Individuals attend colleges, universities, trade and vocational schools, and apprenticeship programs for a variety of reasons. Each person's needs and desires when it comes to education will result in a particular "Best College" or set of best-fitting post-secondary educational institutions for that person.

Be that as it may, a range of popular magazines, workforce professionals, educators, and economists compose multiple lists of Best Colleges in the US every year. We have a Top 100 Best Colleges int eh World" as well. America even has an expanded McDonald's Hamburger University and the Disney program for university credit. Education is never ending in diversity and magnitude in this country, evn though it may need some improvement.

I will begin by listing the Top 10 form a few lists and then finish with my own list that includes my opinion of the best post-secondary institution in America.

The Number One Best College is the world was named Princeton by US News & World Reports and one of the important deciding factors is the high average percentage of Alumni that make donations to the University - 60%. That may not be what is important to you.

This factor may be the overall cost of education and room and board, types and amounts of financial aid packages available, status and prestige of the institution, a family history of attendance at the school, a high rate of job placement post graduation from the facility, distance from home, living conditions on or off campus, the actual courses of study/specialties and certifications or diplomas offered, whether the ACT or the SAT scores are accepted, specific accreditation of the institution, sports and recreation programs, and many other items.

Many are surprised that some of the oldest and most well known colleges and universities are not accredited at all - including Harvard.

Each student must make a decision about what school to attend for post-secondary education. One first step is to make a budget and form a list of the most important factors for you as an individual. Then, choose several colleges to visit and find out all you can about those things at each school that are important to you in your decision.

However, some students I know have actually chosen a college based solely on the food served in the cafeterias. This is not the best parameter for making decisions, but it may be a factor.

MAKING EDUCATION CHOICES

As an example, if I were to return to higher education today, I would first decide on a course of study, Next, I would look for a public (as opposed to private) in-state school or an out-of-state school in a state in which it is quick to establish residency for in-state fees. Bible colleges are fine, but sometimes graduates must go on to a 4-year college in order to acquire a degree. In conjunction with all this, I would want an on campus part-time job related to my work.

After that, I would narrow my list to schools that use Green Operations, such as recycling and sustainable energy, etc. They would also have specialty studies in Green Industries available. Next, I would look at my list and determine schools of substantial diversity among the student body, faculty and staff. I would like a teaching hospital and high-tech biosciences department on campus, graduate schools, and a sizeable library of up-to-date materials for research and for helping people find jobs after graduation. Computer labs would need to be state-of-the-art.

Further, I would like churches and additional places of worship near campus, as well as basic shopping needs such as groceries. Sports and recreation should be healthy on campus, but the school, for me, does not need to be in the Top 10.

There are many, many other important factors to consider, but you can get a rough picture from my own example.

Top 10 Colleges, per Kiplinger, ranked by Student Debt Upon Graduation

I think this Top 10 List could be very valuable in at least the first half of the 21st century.

1. University of Pittsburgh NA (very low)

2. SUNY Cortland NA

3. SUNY at New Paltz $1,900 average student debt at graduation.

4. Florida International University $4,489

5. University at Albany (SUNY) $11,856

6. James Madison University (Va.) $11,932

7. SUNY at Oneonta $12,100

8. University of California, Davis $12,701

9. University of Virginia $12,726

10. University of Mary Washington (Va.) $12,800

You can look at Top Rankings according to several other factors at Kiplinger.com

ULinks.com has come up with their Top 100 list for 2008. This website is a directory for postsecondary education, arranged by Career Field on its home page and offering breakdowns into Colleges, Universities, Trade Schools, Community Colleges, and other categories.

The ULinks.com Top 10 include 8 American schools and 2 from the UK:

1. Harvard University

2. University of Oxford [UK]

3. University of Cambridge [UK]

4. Stanford University

5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

6. University of California, Berkeley

7. California Institute of Technology

8. Princeton University

9. Yale University

10. University of Chicago

ULinks.com is a comprehensive directory of educational insitutions divided among the categories below and also by Creer Field.

• Colleges and Universities
• Community Colleges
• Graduate Schools
• Trade Schools and Vocational Schools

My top choice for a college or university is Franklin Residential College (FRC) in Atlanta Georgia.

The Franklin Residential College is a residential college built on the example of Oxford and Cambridge in the UK -- The entire faculty and students live in a single community and promote a constant environment of learning and good will. Done in Atlanta, it also promotes diversity and the type of good will that America needs.

Since founding in 2000, FRC has become a premier residential system inpartnership with Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, the USG University Housing Office, and the Vice President of Instruction. Colleges in some parts of Virginia follow this model and E. Gordon Gee, President of The Ohio State University is working toward making OSU just such a residential learning community as well.

Other Colleges, Universities and similarities that I like are diversity-blessed and unique. You can read about them in my several Hubs regarding jobs in Metro Areas around the nation.