Re: What is a good college to go to, to give me a degree in Zoology?

Hello, Clare. Choosing a college is a difficult, but important decision. First, let me give you two links that actually have interactive screens that help you determine "the best college for you":

US News - Find your ideal school

Money Magazine College Guide - Find your Best Place

Here is my own personal perspective: I have now attended several different universities. I absolutely did not like the first college I attended, and would not recommend it to my worst enemy...no, I have to be honest here: I WOULD recommend it to my worst enemy.

However, I have a good friend who attended and loved that very same college. And, the college that I disliked is rated one of the top 50 colleges by US News and World Report. So, my first point is that this can be a very personal, individual issue in terms of what matters to you.

My second point is exactly that: what matters to you? Generally, you may want to consider how important are location, weather, closeness or home or - contrariwise - distance from home, prestige, ease of entering the graduate college of your choice, ease of getting a good job, and quality of life ...alright, FUN.

You might have a particular part of the country you'd like to live in....there are a lot of colleges to choose from, so you can narrow your choices quickly with this issue and still have good choices left.

You might want to live in a certain climate. The college I didn't like had unpleasant weather that I wasn't used to, and this frankly detracted from the college experience.

After high school, some college freshmen want to still live close to home, to be able to visit their friends and family frequently, to keep the connections that they value. Other college freshmen see this time as their time to "break away", to get out on their own, to become their own person.

Some colleges are very prestigious, and can impress people and potential employers and graduate schools by their very name. Other colleges are less famous, but provide a good education.

My own perspective on this is that in fields like zoology, you are likely to go on to a graduate degree. Prestige of the college seems to be most important in terms of graduate schools rather than undergraduate: MBA's, law degrees, etc, from Harvard, Princeton, etc, have a lot of impact...and it doesn't matter much whether the person with a PhD in Zoology from, say, Princeton attended some state university that isn't quite so famous.... all that seems to matter is the PhD, both in terms of the university, and the research that was done.

So, if I was going to give my own personal advice - and, you don't know me from Adam, so have no reason to consider this advice any more valuable than the advice you will receive elsewhere - my own advice would be this:

Choose a college from which you think you will have good memories. Nearly all accredited colleges and universities will give you a good education if you choose your major and classes with some care. But, just as important as your education, this is a major, important time of your life. You will meet a lot of people who will be friends for life. It is likely that you will meet people you will fall in love with, and out of love with, and possibly someone who will be with you for the rest of your life. You will have some funny experiences that you will laugh about for years afterward.

It's important to study, and get good grades, but this is also the time when you will find yourself, and many of your closest lifelong friends. So, choose a college from which you think you will have good memories. As you read the college descriptions, as you visit campuses, imagine your college experience there, and I think you will know it when you find it.