College Information
Choosing a College -- The Selection Process U.S. Department of
Education-This page offers information at the national level, including the
most requested links by educators, policy makers, parents, students,
researchers, and other citizens with a stake in education.
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College NET- Check out this searchable database of more than 2,000
colleges and universities.
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College View- Search for colleges, universities, scholarships,
financial aid, and more with College View@ college search. College View is a
free online college search service with profiles of all accredited colleges
& universities in the US and Canada, virtual tours of hundreds of schools,
electronic college applications, scholarships and financial aid info, career
information and career planning tools, a free college chat service and message
board, book experts, Ask the Experts, and much more.
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College Link- Prepare great looking college applications quickly
and easily with College Link, the program sanctioned by top colleges and
universities nationwide. It’s America’s largest and most successful computer
based college application program. Since 1991, tens-of- thousand of successful
college applicants have used College Link to simplify the application process.
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You know you want to go to college, but where do you start with
the search? The U.S. Dept. of Education has a resource book for parents with a
short section on the selection process called "How
Can My Child go about Choosing a College?"
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Getting yourself thinking about a few priorities will be a great
help in this complex process.
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To get an idea of what student on a campus are thinking and doing
and what the "issues" are, check the student newspaper. College News has
a very long list of student-run campus newspapers from across the U.S. and some
from other countries. Student newspapers offer a look not shown in the glossy
view books, virtual tours, or student-led campus tours.
Planning
for College
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College Is Possible is a site sponsored by
The Coalition of America's Colleges and Universities. Its goal is to serve as a
resource guide to students, parents, and education professionals. This site is
an excellent first stop to guide you to the books, websites, and other
resources that will assist in making college possible. Information is here for
parents of young children just beginning to plan, parents of older students in
elementary, middle, or high school, and for adults thinking about returning to
college.
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Think
College, a U.S. Dept. of Education site, is another wonderful source
of information. Full of tips for parents and links to other useful websites,
it's great for those hoping to send a student to college in 18 years or in just
a few months.
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Year-by-Year
Planning -- What should a freshman, a sophomore, a junior, and
a senior in high school be doing to prepare for college? Check the calendars on
the site of the National Association for College Admission Counseling for
useful tips.
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Steps
to College is an online newsletter produced by NACAC. It has
articles focused college selection issues, making the transition from high
school to college, and a wide variety of related topics. These are very good
articles for both students and parents who are involved in the college search,
application, and transition process.
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Saving for College is a great spot for information
on pre-paid tuition and college savings plans. Founded by a CPA who wanted
to know more about 529 plans, this site is aimed at anyone who wants to know
more about the details of and differences among the available plans. What to be
aware of, loopholes, tax questions, etc. are all found here. Ratings and
explanations of the various states' programs are here. Before you select a
plan, spend some time reading here. Their "Links" section is also
quite helpful.
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Two great reasons to be students in
Urbana-Champaign are The
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, our very own world-class
university, and Parkland College, our quality community college. Here, they
are just a click away!
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Apply to UI quickly by using their online
process. The Parkland online application takes only
minutes to complete and submit electronically. (Just be sure to complete a
transcript request form in the guidance office.)
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There are 12 reasons to attend a state school. Illinois
State, Eastern, Southern, and all the other State Universities in
Illinois are accessible along with addresses, phone numbers, links to home
pages and e-mail to admissions offices, and electronic (web-based)
applications. For a nice PDF document giving brief information on the 12 state
schools, download the "12 Reasons" booklet from the
IACAC (Illinois Association for College Admissions Counseling) site. If you
want a nice chart of majors and admission requirements, check "At a
Glance" on the same page.
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Interested in one or more of the Big Ten Universities
in addition to the U of I? Check out our Other
Big Ten Universities link for those other quality rival
schools.
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IllinoisMentor™,
is a service of the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. It allows users to
explore career options, compare colleges, complete and submit applications on
line, and ask questions. There is a huge amount of information here!
VIII. Misc. Links
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Illinois Virtual High School
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www.collegeparents.org-Great resource for
parents
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www.library.uiuc.edu/edx/ranking.htm- site
which ranks colleges
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www.highschoolhub.org-lots of good links
to various college options
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www.securityoncampus.org/- crime stats on
campus
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www.campustours.com -virtual
tours for many colleges
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www.cyberguidance.net -high
school guidance for colleges and careers in the best section
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www.ncaaclearinghouse.net -clearinghouse
for NCAA sports
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www.savingforcolllege.com - a thorough
guide that explains and compared 529 plans
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www.niu.edu/crc/major/weblink.htm - links
college majors to careers, courtesy of NIU
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www.ed.gov -links
to online material useful to parents and students for college planning
Searching for Colleges
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If you are not sure what colleges might be of interest, IPEDS COOL has
the tools to help you search for a college. You can search for a
college based on its location, program, or degree offerings. If you click
"More Options" at the bottom of the page, you will have the option to
use more criteria in your search. The more you specify, the smaller the number
of colleges that will fit your criteria. With either search option, once you've
found some colleges of interest, you can compare information on all of them.
(HINT: To clear data between searches, click on "COOL" at the top of
the page. This takes you to the first page. Then click "Clear" at the
bottom of that page and continue your searches.)
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American Universities is maintained by
University of Florida and provides a direct link to over 1500 American
colleges and universities. (It also includes a link to a database of
Canadian Universities, other international schools, and community colleges.)
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Another site by the same name "American
Universities" has a nice little map of the United
States which allows a user to click on a state and get a listing of
the 4-year schools in that state and links to those schools. It's a good
approach if you're looking for schools in a certain state. The site also allows
users to search for schools by alphabetical listings.
Two-Year Community and
Junior Colleges
Lake Land College
Olney College
Parkland College
Richland Community College
Heart Land Community
College
Four-Year Colleges and
Universities
Bradley University
Chicago State University
Eastern Illinois
University
Governors State University
http://www.govst.edu/
Illinois College
Illinois State University
Millikin University
Northern Illinois
University
http://www.siu.edu/siuc/
University of
Illinois-Chicago
University of
Illinois-Springfield
Western Illinois
University
Schools Around the World XX
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Looking for web links to World Wide Colleges and Universities? The
University of Southern California's Center for Global Education has established
a wonderful database of schools around the world, and it is arranged by
continent. Along with a link to the home language home page, the site also
provides direct links to an English Language Home Page and a link to the
school's International Relations Office. The site also provides background on
the system of higher education for each country around the world.
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Ever thought about attending college in Canada? It may be worth
exploring. The monetary exchange rate makes a Canadian education a good buy,
and it may be closer to home than many U.S. schools. Also, most Canadian
schools are accredited for qualifying for HOPE, Lifetime Learning, and Stafford
Loans, all U.S. aid programs. To check on attending a Canadian school, check
out Study in Canada. For specifics on being a
foreign student in Canada, check out the fact
sheet published by the Canadian government. If you want to read
about education and educational issues in Canada, check out Maclean's
Magazine's online publication.
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College and University Home Pages , a data base
started by C. DeMello at MIT lists over 3000 schools from around the
world. This takes you to the university's actual web site. This list has
recently been enhanced by colleges.com and breaks the college lists down into
focus area such as undergraduate education, business school, etc. It also lists
many foreign schools.
Schools Not Emphasizing Test Scores for Admission X
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Do all schools put a lot of emphasis on test scores? No. An
organization called FairTest has compiled a list of schools that either do not
use test scores or use them minimally in making admissions decisions regarding
some or all of their incoming freshmen. Check them out for the list of
these SAT/ACT Optional Schools.
Specialized
Schools, Religious, and HBCUs X
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Education.org is
a great site if you are looking for schools with programs of study in Art, Business, Computers, Cooking/Culinary, Environmental
Education, or Fashion,. They also list Medical
Schools. These sites list program offerings in these various areas
regardless of whether it is a public or private school or a certificate,
associate, bachelors, or graduate degree program. The site offers direct links
to the schools offering the programs, so the content is fresh and accurate. A
couple more valuable components of these sites are the financial aid and career
information links they offer. which are focused on the particular career areas.
Check it out!
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Students looking for a more religious education might want to
check the site of the The National Catholic College Admission Association,
the Christian College Mentor. These sites have a
great deal of information specifically for those looking at this more focused
type of educational setting.
Two-Year,
Vocational, and Technical Schools
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Looking for a 2-Year School? Maricopa Community
College maintains a searchable index of links to community
colleges in the U.S. A site still under development but coming
along nicely and now quite usable is U.S.
Two-Year Colleges. Choose schools by state. It lists community
colleges, technical colleges, junior colleges, branches of 4-yr colleges, which
focus on associate degree education, and accredited 2-yr proprietary schools.
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Is a vocational or technical school what you
have in mind? If you're looking for an educational program to become a jeweler,
plumber, cosmetologist, legal secretary, mechanic, etc., there are many private
post secondary vocational schools offering programs. This site has a database,
which is organized, first by state, then by programs offered.
The
Common Application X
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The Common Application is the recommended form
of many (around 300) selective independent schools and a few public
universities. Students simply complete one form, then copy it and send it to
each school to which they wish to apply, thus eliminating a great deal of duplication
of efforts by students and teachers. The Common Application may be downloaded
to either Mac or PC from this site.
Rankings,
Comparing Schools
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There are all sorts of rankings of colleges/universities and their
programs. The University of Illinois (Urbana) Library has done a nice job
collecting some College and University Rankings sites and
trying to put them into some perspective for users. This is an excellent site,
and the first link read should be the "Caution and Controversy" link.
This site goes on to list national rankings of schools based on student
reports, services for the disabled, minorities, activism, research, and even
the health of the campus squirrels! If you're into rankings, this is your site.
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Each year, U.S. News & World Report does a
special issue ranking colleges according to a number of criteria and publishes
their book entitled America's Best Colleges. Save your money on the
book by checking their site.
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Ordo Ludus, Latin for "School
Rankings" is a site where "lists provide a more well-rounded view.
They rank 126 colleges and universities in approximately 30 different areas
that are organized into 4 separate categories (Academics, Athletics, Quality of
Life and Tuition and Costs), which are then averaged together to produce
overall rankings.
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Squirrels. They're on every campus (or are they?) and some people
think that's a good way to judge a college or university. You may think they're
out of their tree and completely nuts, but the Campus
Squirrel Listing is our most unique resource for you to use in
the quest to find that "perfect" school. Enjoy.
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Wonder which residence hall to choose? Check out Dorm Advisor for
student comments and ratings of residence halls on a number of college
campuses.
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More rankings and critiques regarding
their usefulness and place in college selection, guide for parents.com offers
a nice collection.
Campus
Security and Safety X
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Campus safety and crime have become focal points in college
circles. There is a site devoted to this topic, and it is worth a look. Security
On Campus provides tips for campus safety, links to recent
legislation, news reports, and studies, among other topics. To get stats on
crime at a particular campus, click on "Crime Stats" on their home
page.
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The Office of Postsecondary Education Campus Security
Statistics Website is your link to reported criminal offenses
for over 6,000 colleges and universities in the U.S. This site is a result of
acts of Congress aimed at helping potential college students and their parent’s
research criminal offenses on college campuses. Any school that is Title IV
eligible (those that participate in awarding Pell Grants and other federal
financial aid) is required to publish and distribute an annual campus security
report. Stats on this site come from those rep
