College Counseling For Connecticut Students: Why college choice matters so much – “fit”

As always, I change the names and identifying details of college counseling clients.

“I figure I’ll go wherever…” so said Alvin a junior from Lyme-Old Lyme High School.  Alvin’s initial college list consisted of an eclectic mix.  For sake of simplicity, I’ll focus on two colleges that were on his list: Clemson and Emerson

Clemson is a large college in South Carolina.  A normal Saturday would include tailgating before the football game, watching their national powerhouse football team, and then heading to fraternity parties at night.

Emerson has 3700 students which I suppose is small-mid size, is located in Boston and is most known for film, communication, and an artsy student body.  The creators of Friends are from Emerson.

Both, by the way, are good-solid in different ways academically.  So this is not a comparison related to the academic merits of the institutions.

Suffice to say, Alvin would “fit” in far more at college like Clemson.

But in Alvin’s mind, he had lumped “college” into a non-differentiated amalgam.   In his mind, particularly as the oldest child, he had no idea that the differences in college were so vast.

We can educate your children on these differences.