What College is Right for YOU?

Choosing a college to go to is never easy. You have to think about where the college is located, how much it costs, what qualifications you need, what programs does the school have, what major/minors does the school offer, and so on. Some students may feel more comfortable going to a school close to home and some students will end up going to a school in a different state. But what some students even forget to realize is that there are schools located all over the world. You can study law in Greece or dance in Israel. Everyone can influence your decision, but you need to remember this is your life. Choose the school that will make you happiest.

You need to pick two comparable colleges and compare them to one another Do research on each college you chose Majors offered Special strengths Courses Clubs Dorms Scholarships Campus size Programs Diversity Sports Location Social life Greek life Campus culture *You can add more information than what is listed here (The more effort you put in the better) TASK 1: College 1College 2 Major Special strength Clubs Dorms

After you are to write a 2-3 page paper on your findings In the paper you are to conclude which out of the two colleges would suit your needs better based on the research you have done and why! BE SPECIFIC in your reasoning REMEMBER!! You may not choose two colleges that are completely different. Ex: If you choose Five Towns college for Music you may not choose Adelphi for Forensic and compare the two. A suitable choice for comparison would be Julliard. TASK 2:

TASK 3: part A Sometimes visiting a college can help a student decide if he or she wants to attend that particular school Go to any local college and interview a current student Ask questions such as: 1. What helped you choose the college you are attending? -school location, dorm options, family, major offered 2. Did the cost of the school influence their decision? 3. After going to the college, does he or she feel they made the right choice? If yes, why? And if no, why? 4. Are the classes in college harder than classes taken in high school? 5. Is the campus life a plus or minus in why you chose to attend this particular college? 6. Was he or she surprised by anything after attending the school? 7. Was there unexpected difficulties that he or she met? -if so, what were they? This paper should be at least 2-3 pages The student you interview can NOT be a first semester freshman

TASK 3: part B REFLECTION: Write about the experience 1. Has visiting the college charged your perspective on what it means to be a college student? 2. Were you surprised by anything while visiting the college? 3. Did you notice any difference between high school classes and college classes? If so, what were they? 4. Are you more or less scared about college now that you have talked to a current college student. 5. Did you feel welcomed while visiting the campus? Sit in on a class(s) with the college student you are interviewing and take a tour of the campus and dorms (if available to you) Any other information you would like to add in your essay is welcomed

~ RESOURCES Website for Colleges in the USA Website for Colleges Worldwide Here are some website you can use to look up colleges to aid in your research

~ Conclusion Congratulations! You should now be able to navigate through a college website to find the information needed to chose a college that is right for you. Its always important to remember that its YOUR future and no one else’s, so picking the right college is important. Don’t worry though, if you make a mistake you can always transfer, but hopefully you won’t need to. GOOD LUCK!!! If you want to see how you will be graded click here here

Comparison Essay Rubric

54321 Organization Information is well organized with well constructed paragraphs Information is organized with constructed paragraphs Information is organized but paragraphs are not well constructed The information is disorganized and is suspect to being incorrect Information is not only disorganized, but incorrect and inappropriate to the assignment Quality of the information Information in the essay followed the given outline as well as added more information Information in the essay followed the given outline Information in the essay didn’t follow the guidelines to the fullest Information has little to do with the given outline Information has nothing to do with the topic or given outline Grammar No grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors Almost no grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors A few grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors Many grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors Many grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors with no proof of proof reading Reflection Demonstrate a conscious and thorough understanding of the information with reasonable conclusions and reflections based on the experience Demonstrates a thoughtful understanding, came to reasonable conclusions in their reflection Demonstrates a basic understanding and didn’t go to far into detail on their reflection Demonstrates little to no understanding and didn’t go into detail on their reflection Demonstrates no understanding and didn’t reflection on the experience Interview and Reflection Essay Rubric Teachers Page Click HereHere

Teachers page NYS ISTE NETS-S Standards 3. Research and Information Fluency - Students apply digital tools to gather, evaluate, and use information 4.Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making - Students use critical thinking skills to plan and conduct research, manage projects, solve problems, and make informed decisions using appropriate digital tools and resources. 6. Technology Operations and Concepts - Students demonstrate a sound understanding of technology concepts, systems, and operations. Standard 1: Language for Information and Understanding Students will listen, speak, read, and write for information and understanding. As listeners and readers, students will collect data, facts, and ideas; discover relationships, concepts, and generalizations; and use knowledge generated from oral, written, and electronically produced texts. As speakers and writers, they will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language to acquire, interpret, apply, and transmit information. Standard 3: Language for Critical Analysis and Evaluation Students will listen, speak, read, and write for critical analysis and evaluation. As listeners and readers, students will analyze experiences, ideas, information, and issues presented by others using a variety of established criteria. As speakers and writers, they will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language to present, from a variety of perspectives, their opinions and judgments on experiences, ideas, information and issues. Standard 4: Language for Social Interaction Students will listen, speak, read, and write for social interaction. Students will use oral and written language that follows the accepted conventions of the English language for effective social communication with a wide variety of people. As readers and listeners, they will use the social communications of others to enrich their understanding of people and their views.