A Checklist For Finding The Right School
With close to one hundred universities in Canada—and thousands of graduate schools, colleges, career colleges, and learning institutes—looking for the right place to go can be overwhelming.
With close to one hundred universities in Canada—and thousands of graduate schools, colleges, career colleges, and learning institutes—looking for the right place to go can be overwhelming.
Terrifying, even: it’s the rest of your life! It’s so much money! It’s growing up and being a real adult! What are you going to do?
Fortunately, you’re not alone—nobody is. Here are some steps to get you started:
Make a list of what’s important to you. Start off with your career choice and write about the things that you love doing, the things that you feel really good at. Do you want to travel? Do you want to make a lot of money? Do you want to change the world? Be honest—and don’t be afraid to be passionate, or if you haven’t got the words quite right.
Also, think about what’s important about university for you. Do you want to stay close to home or move away? Do you want to get involved in clubs or sports? Do you want to go to a big university, or a smaller place?
Talk to your guidance counsellor. They’ll know how to get you started, and they have access to your school records and curriculum—they can help you out. Guidance counsellors can tell you what grades you’ll need, what courses you’ll need to take, and if you need to write any essays or do any volunteer work (it always helps!).
Visit university fairs. Universities and colleges will get together every year to hold fairs for students, to show off all their programs. This is a great opportunity to look at different schools and get an idea of which place feels right for you. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and take notes—and keep everything organized!
Contact the college or university directly. If you have an idea of which school you’d like to go to, you can go on the school’s website or contact them through telephone or email. The admissions department may even be able to arrange a campus tour or invite you to some on-site events.
Above all, keep your mind open to every possibility. Going through applications can be a tough process, and if you’ve been rejected—especially for a school you really wanted to go to—it’s really hard. But if you’ve done step 1, and you know what’s important to you and what you want to do, nothing is impossible. There’s always a way to go forward.
No matter what your field, good luck with finding the right school!
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