College Discussion Non-Confidential

Readers of the Professor’s Guide to College Admissions might be interested in exploring College Confidential, a website with much useful information.

What College Confidential does best is to allow users embarked on the college admissions process to search for colleges in both the US and Canada by discipline. College Confidential lists key information relevant to students contemplating their college admissions options. The college’s city, state/province are listed, as well as figures for in-state and out-of-state tuition. College Confidential places “request info” buttons next to some search results. Clicking these brings users to a form to fill out. College Confidential will then (presumably) send this information off to the relevant college, which can send the applicant college admissions information in printed or electronic form.

The “Campus Vibe” section of College Confidential is sure to be extremely helpful to college admissions applicants trying to determine what it might actually be like to live at the various colleges to which they’re applying. The videos hosted on College Confidential provide a not-so-confidential assessment of different aspects of campus life.

In fact, college admissions applicants can discuss their college interviews in this part of College Confidential’s site. This proves to be one very beneficial aspect of College Confidential: the way in which it facilitates the sharing of key practical college admissions information among college applicants.

College Confidential’s financial aid section is also filled with useful tips on paying for a college education. However, some will find College Confidential’s advice to be controversial. A student asks College Confidential how to afford college given that her family income is $20,000-$30,000. College Confidential’s reply: parents should send their child to the best and most expensive school they get into.

College Confidential’s reasoning is that these colleges have the largest endowments, and so will likely be able to offer financial aid to students in need. The trouble is that there is no guarantee of receiving financial aid merely because the college is the “best.” So, parents and students must proceed on a case-by-case basis. It is not clear that the highly general advice College Confidential has offered in this case is the best. Granted, College Confidential does tell this parent to spend more time doing research – but that is only after advising the parent to seek out the most expensive college.

College Confidential has many features that make the lives of college admissions applicants far simpler. However, like any other college admissions resource, students should use their own critical reasoning abilities in evaluating the advice and information presented on College Confidential. And, as always, it is best to seek out many different points of view and various different peoples’ answers to your college admissions questions before making major decisions about your college education.

Related Posts:

• Admissions Data 2010
• College Discussion
• College Class Size – Is Smaller Better?