Lake Forest College Top Questions

A school must be based upon a person's work ethic. If you are looking for a "party school" it would be best to attend a larger university. For a person with a good work ethic, a liberal arts college, such as Lake Forest is perfect. There are certain classes in eash department that all students are required to take that allow a student to explore the different majors LFC has to offer before picking one that is right for themselves. When a major is decided a counseler will help put a schedule together to take the classes needed to achieve the major of choice. The classes are smaller and teachers are willing to help outisde of class, either during office hours or to schedule an appointment if office hours conflict with a students schedule. For somebody with a learning dissability the accomidations are top notch and professors and the rest of the staff are easy to talk to. Often there are guest speakers, comedians, bands and more that come to the college. All of the people at LFC are friendly and helpful. I cannot forget to mention how beautiful the campus is!

Find a school with too many activities that you seriously want to join, and chances are, you'll find a few that aren't serious and many that you love. You find life-time friends in clubs. Also, don't let anyone force you to do something you don't want to do--it sounds cliche, but it's some of the best advice anyone can give you. A lot of the time, as a freshman, you are worried about fitting in, but the thing about college is that people respect you more for your individuality and confidence in yourself than for conforming. At the same time, don't be afraid to experience everything--college is the place to make mistakes. Also, know that you are on your own, and with freedom unfortunately comes responsibility, which means learning to do laundry and clean your room. One of the hardest parts is learning to balance work with play. Find a college that academically challenges you; there is no point in going if you're not going to learn anything. Also, however tempting it may be, don't go with high school friends or you'll miss out on meeting awesome people.

Go somewhere that YOU want to go, not your parents, your friends or your boyfriend/girlfriend. Remember that classes are important but part of college is the experience of being on your own, so live on campus if you can. You get out of college what you put into it.

Take the time and come to campus and actually talk to students about their experiences on and off campus.

Visit every campus you apply to. It is infinitely important that the campus you are on for the coming years matches up to your expectations. In particular, visit the facilities of the major you are interested in. If you don't it is highly possible that you will be disappointed. Also, apply to a variety of schools (state, private, small, large). You can't know what kind of school you will fit into unless you apply to various types of schools and visit them all. Find out as much as you can about student life before you accept a school. For example, if you are interested in the Greek system, make sure that going Greek is a big part of the schools you apply to. Make sure the schools have a lot of student organizations that you would be interested in joining. That is where you will make your friends and it will help you make the most of your college experience. And lastly, don't be afraid to travel far from home for school, whether that means out of state or even out of the country. These coming years are your time to learn about life.

With any school, find what you enjoy doing, find your passion, and challenge yourself. Try things you think you might not like, and utilize all the resources and support the school could possibly provide in the arenas you do enjoy. Push yourself to be different than you were in highschool, rebel a little, but find a cause for your rebelious nature. Find yourself, and don't be a lemming. Jumping off a cliff just because everyone else does...yeah, that's not cool.

Dont choose a college, let a college choose you. Visit as many campus as possible. When receiving advice about what decisions to make, always question someones motives for wanting you to go somewhere (especially parents, boyfriend/girlfriends etc.).

FInd one that have people with different thinking patterns and go there. Thats what makes it interesting.

If I had to choose one way for students and or parents to choose the right college, I would say that they should do many college visits and allow their children to do overnight stays if possible. Too many studens go away to schools and find out that they did not like the campus as much as they thought. They also find that the student life there may not be what they expected. I would say that if the family visits a campus and the student goes off and explores on their own ,rather the parents dragging them around, it is a good sign. The student will know when they are in a place that they are comfortable with. They will then begin to explore their surroundings with curiosity. I would tell parents to give their kids resources such as books that describe college profiles. I would also advise parents to make time to take their child to colleges of various sizes. Some students need the small school feel to learn more deeply, and others want to be in the big college experience. Putting your child in the wrong enviornment can mean they feel isolated or lost in the crowd.

Visit all the colleges on your list. Most likely you will be able to feel the decision out. Choose where you feel the most comfortable.

Look for the place that makes you feel like you belong. I feel that you have the ability to be happy with your college experience just about anywhere you go. It is what you make it. Also, make sure you go to a college that is a size you are comfortable with. Make sure that your college supports and offers clubs or activities that you are truly interested in. If you can't have fun with extracurriculars, you will go crazy from all of your schoolwork! Once you find the right school, make sure you get involved with anything and everything you can. There are so many opportunities in college for things you would have never been able to do before. Stay open-minded. You will meet some of the most amazing people in your life. You will experience things that you have never been exposed to before. Enjoy it. Drink it in. It's college--and it only happens once!

Don't judge your school on the first year - I don't think anyone liked Freshman year very much. Just be yourself and focus on where you want to be in the future and I'm sure you will make the right decision. Also, don't choose a school because someone else you know is going there.

There is no formula. Once you understand that each student has their own needs, and their own desires, choosing the right college for you becomes a much less daunting task. Visit each school, and talk to the students. Don't go on a saturday morning when everyone is still asleep, because no matter where you go, they will be. Ask the same questions to different people, include students, professors (if possible), and staff in your survey. Obviously the cafeteria workers won't have any clue about study abroad opportunities, but they have a valuable perspective on the student body, and social interaction. If you haven't been thinking about social life, you should be. Think hard about what you want from your social life at school. Even if you know you won't be binge drinking on a wednesday night, your roomate might be. Your friends down the hall might be. You could be dragged into situations you'd rather stay away from, and even if you do steer clear, you'll probably spend alot of time interacting with people who won't. The general happiness of students on campus will greatly influence your experience. It's all about experience!