Narrowing Your List

By this time, you will have found some colleges that meet your needs. Most counselors and college advisors view student applications as fitting into three categories: the reach school; the good match or target school; and the likely or safe school. You should have at least two safe or likely schools on your list.

Reach Schools

A reach school is a college where your credentials may not match those of the typically admitted student. You may have some of the credentials to fit their profile but when colleges admit a limited amount of students, other characteristics often play an important role in the admissions process.

Good Match or Target Schools

In this category, your credentials closely match those of the typically admitted student. This category may have the largest number of schools for you and may represent a group of colleges from which you might legitimately expect some letters of admission.

Likely Admit Schools

Many counselors and college advisors call this group of colleges on your list of colleges your safe schools. This category of colleges should represent those places where your credentials exceed those of the typically admitted student. It is strongly recommended that you select at least two schools from this group.

Rely on resources such as Barron's Profiles of American Colleges or The College Handbook, along with other publications, to help you as you begin to narrow your list of colleges. Your most important resource however, is your high school counselor.

By creating a short list, it will allow you to have several letters of admission from which to choose. Don't become one of those students who are left with no choices on April 15th of your senior year.