Having More than One Option

Many people go on multiple college visits before they finally make the decision on which school they would like to attend. However, there are some people that go on one visit and immediately make the decision to attend there. My philosophy is why would you only visit one school when there are so many more out there that you have yet to experience? If you only visit one, how are you going to decide which school is really best for you? In order to find out which school is the best one that fits you and feels like home, you need to visit more than one.

I have gone on five college visits so far. I like going on all of these visits, because it allows me to compare and contrast what I like about one school in comparison to another. However, my mom doesn’t want me to go on too many more because she is afraid that they will all get jumbled up in my mind and I won’t remember as clearly which school was which. In a way, she is right. All of the schools I have gone to visit are four-year private, liberal arts, in the Midwest. Because of this, they all look pretty similar: older buildings and a lot of trees. So far I have found two schools that I really like and that I am interested in applying to. Even though I have these two schools in mind, I would still like to visit more schools so that I have more options if something doesn’t go my way. This is where my mom and I disagree, she wants me to stop, and I want to keep going.

My point of view: I did average on my ACT and I am in the top ten of my class; most people would say that I probably won’t have trouble getting into the school I want to get into. However, I am very superstitious and I am worried that if I only apply to two, I will only get into one, and that will be my only option. When I keep looking, I am expanding my number of schools that I may be interested in, and the schools that are interested in me.  I don’t want to be rejected and then only have one school as my option. I want to have the opportunity to choose, not just be forced to go somewhere. By having more options, I feel like I will be better off.

My mom’s point of view: My mom doesn’t think that I will have any trouble getting into either of the schools. She also thinks that both of my top schools are equally great schools that I would succeed at. She wants me to stop looking because she doesn’t think that I will find anything I like better, and she personally likes both of these schools as well. Like I mentioned before, she believes that if I visit too many more, I will not be able to decide in the end which one I want to go to, and it will lead to a stressful experience. However, my mom was one of those high-schoolers that visited two schools (ever) and only liked one, and relied on that one. Luckily, she got into that school! But, I think she thinks that if it worked for her, it will work for me. And I personally want more than one option.

I know this summer I will continue visiting schools in the Midwest in the hope of finding another/more that I am interested in applying to in the fall. I know that will personally be more comfortable with the college application process if I am not just relying on getting into two schools, ultimately possibly having to rely on one. My philosophy is that it is always better to have more than one option.