Start Your List of Schools: Part 1

By Princetonreview.com

In the beginning, when you are just getting started on your serious college research, think BIG.

Don't limit yourself.

Preliminary Search
Start by doing a college search such as Counselor-O-Matic. There are thousands of schools out there. At this stage, you just want to eliminate those that don't fit your basic needs.

Get your results. Click on any school's name that strikes your fancy to read more about it. You don't have to get too deep into a school's description just yet. If there's something about it that you like (size, location, academics)—add it to your list.

Add Schools
Add any schools that you think you might like to attend based on your prior knowledge (from friends, family, teachers, etc.). Even if a school wasn't returned in your Counselor-O-Matic results, go ahead and add it.

Classify Schools
At this point, you should have about 15 or so schools in your list. Now it's time to classify them as Reach, Match, and Safety. If you aren't sure what category they fall into, visit their profile pages and click on the Is it a Fit? link to see what Counselor-O-Matic has to say. The reason you want to classify schools at this early stage is to make sure you have a broad range of schools in your preliminary list. If you only have Reach schools, you should go back and find a few other schools you are interested in that fall into the Match and Safety categories.

Go Back For More
Good news—you're on your way. Bad news—there's a lot of work to be done. Get out your accordion file, file folders, or whatever organizational system you're using, and start researching. Visit each school's website. Send away for more information. Take notes. Keep all your school information in one place.

If you decide you're not so fond of a school after all—cross it off you list. If you come upon a new school that strikes your fancy, add it! If you think you've misclassified a school, move it to the more appropriate category. Talk with your parents about the schools on your list. You don't want there to be any surprises later on.

Once you started your secondary research, you're on your way. Once you're done, you'll be ready for the next stage.