Critical Thinking Case Study

Picking the right college can be very stressful! Students have to continually maintain their grades, take tests, fill out entrance forms and financial aid paperwork, and at the same time, they must try and decide which school is right for them. The mind can go wild trying to keep everything in order!! Ryan hasn't quite figured out which school he wants to apply to; this is usual because a lot of effort goes into making such a decision.

When applying to colleges, many people have different views on the endeavor. Some people think that it is an exciting adventure filled with many turns and twists, and decisions that lead to a different outcome, while others may think that it is a stressful ideal, filled with looming questions, pressure, and “what if’s”. To Alaijah, she believed it was the latter. When I asked her how she felt, she said that it was “A heavy task. However,” She states. “Once you’ve done everything you need to do you feel accomplished.” She feels that way for the simple fact that she knows it will help her accomplish her goal of getting a better future for herself. When I asked if she thought about college a lot, she responded the way most students would respond.

Sue Biermert explained to our junior class that night that life is about taking risks and facing problem after problem. It was obviously not getting any easier by applying to colleges. However, this is what we all had to do in order to feel like our parents in thirty years, because our culture has forced us to be part of the system of going to some sort of university. She admitted that many of us would feel rejected, literally and emotionally, in a year from our top choice. Though, one never knows until you take that leap of faith as she quoted a popular Michael Jordan poster in our Chicago-suburban high school that reads: “I miss 100% of all the shots I don’t take.” Biermert reiterated to us that we were there that night to be part of the process, therefore we must be willing to tackle the admissions problem head on and do the best we can.

During the time of uncertainty that comes with graduating high school, students have two choices: to moan and groan about applying to college, or to accept the challenge and put forth the effort. Humans tend to want to avoid the difficult road, and find the easy way out. Attitude is a choice; how one chooses to spend their time will affect their future.

After graduating from high school, students must choose between going to a public college or a private one. Different colleges prepare students in a variety of ways. Some colleges concentrate on specific fields, while others broaden their selections. There are multiple colleges to choose from. However, different colleges attract different kinds of students. Some students prefer larger class sizes, some prefer a more direct lecture from their professors. Tuition rates might sway a student’s decision when choosing a particular college. With the amount of post-secondary institutions in Florida, students may feel overwhelmed when figuring out which college is the best fit for them. In Miami, Florida, public and private colleges share similarities and differences related to their financial assistance, tuition, acceptance rate, and size class.

Lexi applied to many school and ended up getting accepting into eight different schools. She ended up attending Elizabethtown for it’s similarity to Hanover. “They encouraged you to be an individual and to be involved in a lot of stuff. Right from the get-go, I was already working on the newspaper and TV station, so it was a lot like Hanover in the sense that it immediately involved you in the community.” However, Lexi ended up transferring from Elizabethtown to Shippensburg. “I went to a private school. I got a huge scholarship, I was a good student, but it still was a ton of money. It wasn’t that I didn’t like the school, the quality of education, or the experience I was having, because all that was very good, it was just so expensive.” Lexi ended up graduating from Shippensburg in just 3 ½ years. “I saved so much money by going there. I wouldn’t say I have regret

A majority of high school students contemplate the correct college for them to personally attend. While many students end up at their forever home right off the bat, some must transfer and still continue looking after graduation. There are many important aspects while searching for a college, but price is often a key factor. When picking a college, many students have to look at the degree program offered by the specific university. Many students, for their first year away from their parents, do not want to stray to far from home, while also feeling like they are on their own. In comparing the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma City University, there are many different aspects students need to put into consideration, but price, degree program,

This model describes the college choice process in terms of four layers of social context influencing the relevant economic decisions. For example, the demographic characteristics of a student’s local area may influence the marketing and recruitment activity of a potential college at the student’s high school, which may influence the availability of knowledgeable counselors or other resources at the high school. All of these contextual factors, combined with the student’s personal characteristics, or habitus, influence the student’s ability to make an informed decision about which college to attend, if

High school seniors, who decided to continue their education by going to college, have many things they need to consider when choosing their schools. When the

He may have gotten a scholarship for basketball but he still didn’t know what he was going to major in for college. He soon started second guessing himself wondering if he was even going to go to college. He asked himself “Is it the right choice?”, “Am I college

As students are a step away from going to college, they are frightful of their path after high school. Once students know their college choices, they are faced with making one final choice of where to attend. Usually, a student’s college decision is made by considering the distance from his/her home as well as if their parents will be able to afford the expenses that their college asks for. Colleges, though, look into the distance from home, SAT score, high school GPA, parents income, parents education, ethnicity, and gender in order for a student to be accepted into their college. All of these factors are important, but the one that tends to have a heavier weight in a student's college

The college selection process is essentially synonymous with the home selection in numerous ways. At some point in life, you will have to decide if you want to enter the workforce right out of high school, or attend college. Similarly, once you are ready to move out of your parent’s home, you have to decide what type of place you want to live in. To begin the process, you think about what you are looking for: features, location, and price range. Eventually, you choices narrow down your choices and put a deposit down. Each person goes through a similar process in selecting their future school or home.

Every year at the same time, thousands of students face the same difficult decision: What college should I attend? Consider two young men both of the highest intellectual capacity and deserving of admission into the nation's most prestigious institution. Steven, high school All American, student body President, and leader of the debate team, hopes to be admitted to the university of his dreams. Christopher, most valuable player in the high school division and aspiring NBA athlete, wants to attend college with students of the same caliber. Steven's parents are both successful neurosurgeons at the local hospital planning to see to it that their son is awarded recognition for his efforts. Christopher's mother, unemployed and unable to care

Meet Mary, a college student I met at a Texas state school. She’s a Junior, and she’s changed her major three times. She picked her first major because her mom told her to. She picked her most recent course of study because her best friend is doing it, too. Mary wants to travel the world when she graduates. She’s very aware of the amount her education is costing her family. She loves college, but she’s anxious about her future. She’s anxious about decisions. She’s anxious about everything.

When faced with a decision in life, it is often difficult for individuals to make a choice without considering outside influences. In The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, Alexandra Robbins shows the struggle between an individual’s desires and the pressure from others in decision-making through an interview with high school seniors who have to decide which college to attend. The pressure to prove oneself by attending a prestigious university seems to weigh heavily on the students’ decision, perhaps even more than their genuine interest in a school with less recognition. Even if external factors are present, a person should avoid making a decision swayed by outside influences because it can lead to obstacles in identity development, identity disorientation, and hindrance in personal development. As illustrated in Robbins’ book and in an article about peer pressure, decisions determined by external influences are harmful for personal development and building character.