To find a college that meets your needs you simply have to know what you want in a school, research the qualities of schools that appeal to you, then compare them. If several schools appeal to you, apply to all of them. This increases your chance of acceptance, and can even give you some negotiating power with the financial aid office. Find the colleges that best fit your needs by using Loan to Learn's School Search & Cost Guide.
Here are some basic college characteristics to consider.
- Location
- Degrees offered
- Available courses of study
- Cost/affordability
- Academic reputation of the school, particularly in your field of study
- Number of students
- Extracurricular possibilities, campus life
- Retention and graduation rates
Research current attendance costs of thousands of colleges with our up-to-date School Search & Cost Guide. Get help with college planning online, along with stacks of useful planning information, at the American Council on Education.
And remember, if you intend to borrow money through private student loans to go to school, borrow responsibly. It's a simple fact that the more you borrow, the higher your monthly payments will be after you graduate. So don't just guess – use the Loan to Learn loan payment calculator to estimate your monthly student loan payments.