Research is the very best tool for a successful college search. Below are some suggested sites and resources that are well worth your time for reading up on college admission.
Books
College Admission: From Application to Acceptance, Step by Step, by Robin Mamlet and Christine Vandevelde
Staying Connected to Your Teenager by Mike Riera
How to Make the Most Out of College by Richard Light
The Insiders Guide by Yale College News
Blessings of a Skinned Knee by Wendy Mogel
Colleges That Change Lives by Loren Pope
Harvard Schmarvard by Jay Matthews
College Unranked: Affirming Educational Values in College Admissions by Lloyd Thacker
Cool Colleges: For the Hyper-Intelligent, Self Directed, Late Blooming and Just Plain Different by Donald Asher
The Launching Years by Laura Kastner and Jennifer Wyatt
The Gatekeepers – Jacques Steinberg
Colleges that Change Lives — Loren Pope
The Overachievers — Alexandra Robbins
Fat Envelope Frenzy — Joie Jager-Hyman
A Hope in the Unseen — Ron Suskind
Recommended College Guidebooks
Princeton Review: The Best 376 Colleges – Robert Franek
The Fiske Guide to Colleges: – Edward B Fiske
The Insider’s Guide to Colleges – Yale Daily News
The Students’ Guide to Colleges – Jordan Goldman & Colleen Buyers
Rugg’s Recommendations on the Colleges – Frederick E. Rugg
General College Information
- www.collegeboard.com
This is the home page of the College Board. It contains information for students, parents and educators. There are links to the various programs College Board offers: College Search engine, PSAT, SAT I & II, AP Tests, financial aid and test prep information. - www.collegenet.com
Database of colleges, scholarships and other resources - www.collegeview.com
View pictures and multimedia from over 3,300 college campuses - www.commonapp.org
A common application form for almost 400 different colleges - www.cpec.ca.gov
California postsecondary education commission: College guides, policies, etc. - www.ucop.edu/pathways
Admission information and links to all of the University of California campuses - www.csumentor.edu
Admissions information and application for the California state university system - aiccu.edu California Independent Colleges (Private)
- www.ctcl.org
Colleges That Change Lives is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement and support of a student-centered college search process - www.ed.gov/about/inits/list/whhbcu/edlite-list.html
Link to historically Black colleges and universities - http://www.petersons.com/ Searchable database of college profiles
- www.review.com
The Princeton Review
Campus Tours
- College View Pictures from different campuses
- http://www.collegeclicktv.com/ Videos of college campuses and interviews with students
- National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC)
- Peterson’s College search and database
- The Princeton Review
- U.S. News – College
- www.campustours.com Virtual campus tours
College Affiliations
- The College of Distinction
- Colleges that Change Lives
- Lutheran Colleges and Universities
- The Associated Colleges of the Midwest
- Catholic Colleges and Universities
- Hillel—The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life
College Athletics
- ncaa.com
Information about playing sports at NCAA Division I or II college level - ncaaclearinghouse.net
NCAA registration site - naia.org
National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics regulation site
Financial Aid
- Calgrant.org Cal Grant application and GPA verification
- collegeboard.org/css CSS Financial Aid Profile
- finaid.org
A comprehensive Website for the financial aid novice - wiredscholar.com
- www.studentaid.ed.gov
US Department of Education resources on financial aid - ftc.gov
Federal Trade Commission information about scholarship scams - fastweb.com
A database of more than 180,000 scholarship, grants, fellowships and loans - fafsa.ed.gov
This application is required by colleges for all students applying for financial aid. Also find the FAFSA4caster on this Dept of Edu page to forecast your family’s EFC (Estimated Family Contribution). - salliemae.com
Student loan information - profileonline.collegeboard.com
The CSS Profile is the form many private colleges and universities require, in addition to the FAFSA, for those applying for financial aid. - college-scholarships.com
Information on colleges, scholarships, and test prep - nasfaa.org/home.asp?Tab=home
Great Website to help you learn financial terms - MeritAid.com
- Scholarship Scams
Testing Information
- www.act.org
Home page for the American College Test - www.kaplan.com
An SAT test prep site - www.collegeboard.org The College Board provides numerous tools and services, most notably the SAT and AP tests
- http://www.fairtest.org Information on colleges with test-optional or testing-flexible admission policies
