The college search is on

How far from home do you want to be? Do you want a big school or a small school? Do you want to have in-state tuition or want to go out of state? Do you want a private or public school? What do you want your major to be? Do you want to be in a rural, urban, or suburban setting? How much are you willing to pay for tuition? What kind of residential housing do you want - or do you want to commute? Do you want there to be greek life? Do you want to be able to study abroad? Do you want to be in a certain club? Do you want to play sports?

All these questions are so overwhelming; as a college senior, it just makes you want to pull your hair out. The only questions you're concerned about are: Am I ready? How will I survive? How will I be able to be away from friends and family?

I knew somewhat of what I wanted in a college. I wanted a 4 year college that was medium sized, in a suburban area, big into community service (a CKI would be a plus!), had study abroad opportunities, nice dorms, had a major for Social Work, was closed off, and had super friendly people. Thanks to the College Board search, it was easy to narrow down colleges - or at least, narrow them down to a couple hundred. Where would I go from here?

I got advice from friends and family, but the list of colleges I liked kept building up - there were colleges in Maryland, Washington D.C., West Virginia, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey that I liked. How would I know when I found the right one for me? Day after day, I would sign onto college board - narrowing down my searches a little more by picking more specific criteria. No one said this would be easy, right? I just hoped it would be easier.