Yahoo Finance How to pick the right college: Tips from a university president
It's time for many high school seniors to decide which college they want to attend.
It’s supposed to be an exciting time, but the college landscape can be intimidating for families. Yahoo Finance’s Rick Newman caught up with Steven Knapp, president of George Washington University at the Milken Institute Global Conference, and asked him for advice for parents and students.
“We have a great benefit in our country of having a wide variety, different kinds of institutions,” says Knapp. “We’ve got large research universities, private and public. We have small independent colleges that I think are neglected today as a choice many parents could make, I encourage families to take a look at all options.”
But with all those options, finding the right fit for a student can be tough. Especially with all those lists out there: U.S. News & World Report, The Princeton Review, and Money Magazine to name a few. Knapp says don’t just assume that what you see in the rankings translates to being right college to choose. “You want to look for something that matches the interests and the talents and aspirations of the students and there are a tremendous range of institutions that are out there.”
With college dropout rates high-- in the 40% range--one of the worst scenarios for a family is a student starts school, racks up debt, and then drops out without a college degree. Knapp says it’s a problem in this country. The high dropout rate, he says, “tells you there is a disconnect there in terms of the advice they are given, the preparation they have going in, whether it really matches what they are really interested in, what they want to accomplish in life.”
Knapp says there needs to be other options available and families need help learning about them. “We have let lapse in this country what used to be a terrific training system that opened tremendous opportunities to a very large segment of the population who frankly didn’t have any interest in going and majoring in English or majoring in physics or majoring in psychology whatever it might be.”
Another intimidating part of the process is financial aid. Keeping track of forms and deadlines can be complicated for families. Knapp says look for help from schools. For example, he says, George Washington University is leading a community outreach that helps families in the District of Columbia at all levels of income better understand financial aid. The University is sending people into schools to help understand how to fill out those forms because Knapp says, “If you’re a first time college going family, it’s very confusing.”
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