Location

Urban, rural, suburban; near home, far away (weekend distance); type of surrounding community; local transportation; proximity of long distance transportation facilities (airports, bus terminals, train stations); cost of travel; nearby cultural advantages and opportunities. 

Size of school

Number of students; amount of individualized attention available; ration of men to women students, or undergraduate to graduate students; ratio of commuters to live-in students. 

Class size

Large classes (100 – 500 students for lectures, 15 – 25 for seminars and study groups) or small (10 – 25 students); availability of independent study. 

Time structure

Quarters, semesters, trimesters, 4-1-4 (short fall semester); availability of “year abroad” study, work-oriented courses (study on campus for a few weeks, and then work at a related job off-campus for a few weeks); evening courses; Saturday courses; summer courses. 

Course offerings

Major fields offered, breadth of offering, possibility of switching majors, type of programming (required courses, electives available, etc.), assurance that first-year students can get courses they want or need.

Admissions requirements

Amount of emphasis placed on high school class rank, grades, test scores, tests required (SAT, ACT, Achievement); importance of student’s interview with the school’s representative. 

Costs

Private or state-supported status; quality of education and amount of personalized attention received for your investment; availability of scholarships, loans, on- and off-campus jobs; expenses in addition to tuition such as room and board, fees, books, travel, parking, clothing and entertainment; availability of used books, affordable off-campus restaurants.  

Type of student body

Economic, geographical, racial, social composition of student body; place of “independent thinkers” in the student body. 

Social structure and campus lifestyle

Rigid or liberal system of rules, students’ roles in making rules; curfews, types of dorms (co-ed, shared facilities, student-controlled, etc.); weekend social life on- and off-campus, fraternities and sororities, social and other extracurricular groups, types of entertainment favored by most students.  

Campus

Type of location (in a downtown or industrial area, in a residential area); availability of on-campus eating places, recreation areas, libraries, quiet study areas, beautiful walkways. 

Academic atmosphere

Tense or relaxed, competitive or geared to individual progress, high or low academic expectations, opportunities for recreational and cultural activities to supplement academics, types of recognition for academic achievement, honor system and academic discipline codes. 

Who teaches first year students

Proportion of first-line professors and teachers to graduate teaching assistants. 

Grading policies

Type of location (in a downtown or industrial area, in a residential area); availability of on-campus eating places, recreation areas, libraries, quiet study areas, beautiful walkways. 

Handling of student concerns

Facilities for health care, counseling services, assistance with study problems, tutoring services, job placement, guidance and advising systems; handling of financial problems. 

Activities

Frequency of concerts and up-to-date, inexpensive movies on campus, “mixers” and other “get-acquainted” activities for new students, possibilities for off-campus entertainment and activities, quality and popularity of on-campus dramatic, musical and other events. 

Prestige and background of the school

Reputation for academic excellence, social climate, quality of student life, success of former students in careers, graduate school public life, percentage of graduates gaining admissions to graduate and professional schools, no. of years school has been in existence; accreditation. 

Future of the institution

Financial soundness of the institution, pride and financial support of alumni

Extracurricular

Clubs and interest groups open to freshmen; religious groups; size of intramural program; openness of journalistic, dramatic, musical and athletic organizations to students “out of the department.” 

Student-faculty relationships

Formal or friendly (whether teachers know students by name, are on a first-name basis with their students, freely mix with students at social functions, conduct seminars in their homes), class size. 

Security/safety

Access to residence halls, keys to dorm rooms, campus escort service, campus lighting, location of emergency telephones, campus and surrounding community’s crime rates.