How to Make Your Final College Decision – Part 11

We’ve come to the end of my posts on my Senior daughter’s journey through the college application process. This is the final post in the series. If you want to start at the beginning of the series, click here.  Here are some tips for how to make your final college decision.

I thought I would end the series with some analysis of the data we received during our research. My husband came up with this analysis and I thought it was very interesting so I thought I’d share it with you.

Two of the main things we consider when making our final college decision are: 1) what is the bottom line price after scholarships  2) how hard the school is to get into with their SAT / ACT score requirements or average admitted score, and hence their academic reputation. Our goal is to find the best price with the best reputation that our students can achieve.

Financial Considerations

In our case, we will be able to receive the Georgia Zell Miller scholarship which will make in-state schools tuition free. It’s hard for the out-of-state schools to come close to competing with that. Of the ones on our list, Alabama came the closest with their offer. When my oldest daughter was going through this, the college she chose offered more than the Zell Miller did, so it was actually cheaper to go with the out-of state-school. All that to say, each case is different. Don’t rule anything out until you are done with the process and you have looked at the bottom line.

Academic Reputation

Each school usually has published their average SAT score (or ACT – either is fine) for admitted students.  This will reflect their academic reputation. For instance, when comparing two in-state schools, usually the school with the higher average SAT scores of their freshman admitted class will have a harder academic reputation than a school with a much lower average score.

But if you are comparing two schools and one has a better scholarship offer and also a better academic reputation, it helps make the decision.

Using A  List To Help Make Your Final College Decision:

Below is a list of colleges ranked by their average SAT score for admitted students.  I selected schools in the Southeast since most of my readers are based in this area. The data is from prepscholar.com, taken 4/16/2020.  If you come across this post a year or two in the future, you can easily just google “prepscholar SAT (college name)” and it will come up.  Pick the first prepscholar result you get, scroll down for the blue SAT or ACT box and you’ll have the latest score to compare.

Their data maybe a year or two old, but if you compare the colleges all at the same time, then it’s a comparable snapshot in time and an easy way for you to see quickly how the colleges on your list stack up. Then you can go to their Admissions website to get exact and current figures for this year.

Now, just because your college might be lower on this list, that doesn’t mean that they aren’t a good fit for you. First, your student’s score might be on the lower side. It’s a great idea to apply to schools where you match well. Also, the schools with lower scores may give you a higher scholarship if your score is higher than their average. So that doesn’t mean you should rule them out. You should also consider the general feel of the college and what your student thinks about it. Definitely don’t push a college on them that they really aren’t loving. That’s a recipe for disaster! Even if it was your alma mater!  Hopefully thinking through these things will help you make your final college decision.

Average SAT scores by college:

Georgia Tech 1425

UGA  1320

FSU  1290

South Carolina  1270

Mercer University 1263

University of South Florida 1260

University of Tennessee 1241

Covenant College 1240

Auburn University 1236

Berry College 1218

Georgia College and State 1198

University of Kentucky  1189

LSU  1183

Mississippi State University1180

University of Mississippi (Ole Miss ) 1170

University of Alabama 1170

Samford University 1168

Kennesaw State University 1160

GA Southern  University 1140

Western Carolina University 1130

I hope this is thought-provoking as you consider how to analyze the data you receive when you go through the application process. Let me know if I can help you in any way or what you’d like to see me tackle next on the blog. This post is the last in a series of blog posts on the college application process and finding a good fit. If you’d like to go to the first post in the series, click here.