The Biggest Decision: College

Picking a college is probably the biggest and hardest decision highschoolers will have to make their junior year. It's a decision we all put off until we get to the age when every adult we talk to asks us what college we want to go to. The first time we get asked, we stare at them blankly and shrug our shoulders. Then the pressure starts. The decision for picking a college is upon us and we have no idea where to start. The time comes for college visits and getting that perfect ACT score. But that's a whole other stressful thing to worry about. Right now, in the Bloomfield Hills area, most teenagers are under the impression that they have to go to a "good" college. Not some small school up north that no one knows about. They all think that they want to go to either Michigan, Michigan State, or some other world-renowned school. They are raised to believe that this is the standard they have to make. If they don't get into schools like those, the thought is that they aren't enough. They aren't smart enough. They aren't good enough. Teenagers get confused about the concept of picking the college that is right for THEM. Not the college their friends are going to, or the one all the "smart" kids go to, or the college their parents want them to go to. My advice to to every junior, especially the ones who think that they aren't good enough, is this. College is about one person: YOU. College doesn't make you, you make college. Go to a college that is the perfect fit. If you do better in a small-classroom setting, visit small colleges. If you are interested in being something specific like a Psychologist or a Writer, research the colleges that are known for that. If you don't know what you want to do, go to a liberal arts school and figure it out. Who cares if the stuck-up kids scoff at you when you tell them you are interested in going to a small school? Don't try to live up to anyone else's standard but your own. Wouldn't you rather take that first step of being an adult in a place that is just right for you? It's your decision. It's your life. So make the most of it.