If you’re like most students, the thought of researching colleges is a daunting one. Somewhere out there is a college for you: a good academic fit that offers opportunities for personal growth as a student and career opportunities after graduation, all with a price tag you can afford. But with nearly 6,000 colleges and universities in the United States and many thousands more around the world, how can you possibly narrow down the options?
College is a huge investment in your future—one that will cost tens (if not hundreds) of thousands of dollars—so choosing the right college is important. If you enroll in a college that isn’t the right fit, transferring is always an option, but it’s much easier to get it right the first time. In some ways, this is easier than it’s ever been. Thanks to the internet, all the information you need is at your fingertips, but it can also be overwhelming. If you’re struggling to get started because you don’t know where to begin, this step-by-step guide can help you understand how to research colleges online.
How to Research Colleges Online
Identify What You’re Looking for in a College
Your college search doesn’t start when you fire up a search engine—it starts with you. The first step in researching colleges is to do a bit of self-reflection focused on what matters most to you:
- Academics: What do you plan to study in college? If you’ve already decided on a major, you’ll want to find colleges with strong programs in that area. If you’re unsure, colleges with a broader range of top-quality academic programs (especially in areas you think you might be interested in) will provide opportunities to explore your interests and help you find direction.
- Location: You’ll spend most of the next four years living at the school you choose, so location is crucial. Do you want to stay close to home, or try living across the country (or even in another part of the world)? Do you want to live in a warmer climate, or do you prefer cold weather? Do you want to be in the middle of the action in a big city, or is a cozy smaller town more your speed? Don’t forget to consider hobbies or activities you’d like to continue in college—if you’re a skier, you’ll probably want snow-capped mountains nearby; if you surf, you might want a warmer climate near the ocean.
- Size: Campus sizes vary widely, from just a few hundred students at the smallest schools to tens of thousands at large universities. Do you thrive in an environment with lots of people around, or do you prefer a quieter atmosphere with fewer people? Think about the size of your high school and how comfortable you are there: If you love your small high school where everyone knows everybody else, a smaller school might give you a similar college experience; on the other hand, if your small school feels stifling, a larger college might be for you.
- Culture: The culture of a school plays a huge part in your college experience, setting the stage for experiences you’ll remember long after graduation. Imagine your dream college experience: Do you want to go to a school where most students live on campus, or would you rather go to a commuter school? Are there any activities, hobbies, or clubs you’d like to continue in college? Do you want a college with lots of school spirit, where you can cheer on the teams in your favorite sport? It’s also important to consider political and religious climate to help you find a school that supports your values and beliefs.
- Cost: Cost can be a make-or-break factor in choosing a college, but remember that most students don’t pay the full “sticker price” for college. Financial aid, which includes grants, scholarships, and loans, can significantly reduce the actual cost of attending, but it’s important to have a clear idea of what you can reasonably afford to pay each year.
Not all of these factors are equally important, so take some time to think about which ones are most important to you, then begin making lists of “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves” that you can use as you research colleges online.
Use Online Resources to Research Colleges
Once you’ve thought about what you’re looking for in a college and determined your priorities, it’s time to put that information to use. The internet has a wealth of information to help you as you research colleges.
Online College Search Tools
College search sites make researching colleges online easy, but not all college search sites are created equal. Some offer tons of information free of charge, while others offer just a bit of information, saving the details for those with a paid subscription.
Sites like the College Board’s BigFuture, the US Department of Education’s College Navigator, and the Princeton Review offer free search tools that include every school in the United States (and even many schools outside the country). These databases include all kinds of to help you identify schools that are a good fit for you, including admission rates, average ACT/SAT scores, and academic programs; some even include student reviews.
You can use these tools to filter schools based on criteria like major, location, type, cost, campus life, and more to narrow your search to schools that check off all the boxes on your “must-have” list. On BigFuture and the Princeton Review, you can sign up for a free account that allows you to save your search results or come back later and pick up where you left off.
College Websites
After you’ve discovered what colleges fit your criteria, you can learn more about the schools on your list by exploring their official websites:
- Admissions: This section includes everything you need to know about the admissions process, including application requirements and deadlines. The admissions section also includes information about campus tours, tuition and fees, and financial aid.
- Academics: Here’s where you can explore the school’s academic offerings: degree programs, minors, academic departments and faculty, course catalogs, and research and study abroad programs.
- Campus Life: This section is all about the college community, including housing and dining, student organizations and activities, and campus culture.
- Net Price Calculator: Every college includes a Net Price Calculator on their website, usually on the Financial Aid page. (You can also search the Net Price Calculator Center to find the calculator for any school in the United States.) This tool uses information about your family and personal finances to provide an estimate of your actual cost to attend the school, which you can use to determine whether the school is a good financial fit.
Remember that the purpose of a college website is to attract potential students, so it’s important to look beyond the marketing hype to find useful information. Diving deeper into the school’s website can help you find factual information and details that paint a more complete picture of what the school has to offer.
Virtual Tours and Info Sessions
Most colleges offer virtual tours and informational workshops for prospective students. These events are a great way to explore colleges that are too far away to visit in person or to learn more about schools before deciding which ones to tour in person.
You can sign up for virtual events right on the college’s website. Some colleges have a “Visit Us” tab or button; others have a “Virtual Tours” link on their Admissions page. Often colleges offer both live and prerecorded events; both offer great information, but live events give you the opportunity to interact directly with admissions reps or student ambassadors, who can answer any questions you have in real time.
Social Media and Review Sites
You can also learn a lot about a school from third-party sources. Students love to talk about their experiences at college, and student reviews on social media such as TikTok and Instagram, subreddits like r/ApplyingToCollege, YouTube videos and vlogs, and sites like Unigo and OnlineU can give you a sense of what real students think about their school.
These reviews can give you insight into the academic and social experience—good and not-so-good—of students at a school, but it’s important to remember that any one review is just that student’s opinion. When considering student reviews, you want to look for patterns: Several student reviews relating similar problems likely indicate a common thread, but one outlier may be an isolated experience that doesn’t reflect the overall student experience.
Organize Your Research
Taking good notes and using a system to organize information as you research colleges is critical. You can use any method you like as long as you can effectively manage the information and find what you need quickly.
- A spreadsheet that includes basic information about location, size, and academics for each school is an easy way to track your research. You can also include columns to indicate when you’ve completed further research and whether each school is a “yes,” “no,” or “maybe” after you’ve learned more about it.
- Use digital or physical files (or both!) to organize more detailed information. Create a file for each school to store brochures and other materials downloaded or printed from the school’s website, along with your own notes from online tours and workshops and online research.
- As you narrow down your college list, archive the information from your “no” schools, but keep it accessible in case you want to reconsider any of the schools later on.
Conclusion
Finding the right college can be a vast undertaking, and the internet has made it both easier and in some ways more intimidating. By following a solid research plan that starts with identifying what you’re looking for, then using online resources to create a broad list of schools that fit your needs and then to narrow your choices, you can filter through the endless information and learn everything you need to find the right college for you.
Need help finding schools that meet all of your criteria? Reach out to HelloCollege for a free consultation with one of our college experts—we’re here to guide you every step of the way.
