Guidance for Underclassmen: What’s in a location?
May 06, 2020How do you describe where you live? City? Suburb? Country? What aspects of your current location do you like or not like – and how far are you willing to go from home? As you explore colleges, one thing to consider is the location of the college. Location can make a significant impact on your college experience. Think about where you want to go to school.
Here are the terms and definitions used in college “locations”:
- Major City: Population 300,000 or more: or within a 25-mile radius of a metro area.
- Small-Medium City: Population 75,000-299,999 or within 15 to 25 miles of a metro area.
- Large Town: Population 25,000-74,999 or within 10–mile radius of a large town.
- Small Town: Population 5,000-24,999 or within 5–mile radius of a small town.
- Rural: Population under 5,000, in or near a rural community.
Things to consider related to location:
- Distance from home
- Nearest airport
- Nearest large city
- Nearest outdoor experiences (beach, mountains, etc.)
- Popular student gathering places on campus
- Popular student gathering places off-campus
- Nearest tourist attractions
- Movies, shopping, restaurants, or other entertainment nearby
- Employment/Internship opportunities
- Your faith community, on or off-campus
Be sure to explore all the options. View the college website for virtual tours. Check for info on the surrounding community Most importantly, look it up on a map.
Take Action
Use the Guided Search to explore the location of colleges you are interested in. GuidedPath offers search on location types. Also, check out:
- How many freshmen live on campus?
- Fiske Social Rating
- Fiske Quality Rating
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