Choosing a College That Best Suits You

From the day a child is born they’re asked, “What do you want to be when you

grow up?”, but no one ever really asks, “Where do you want to go to college?” until the

child enters high school. The idea that one can figure out a career path many years

prior to deciding a college choice has been this way for years. This way of thinking can

make the process of picking a college difficult because one will need to find one that fits

the chosen career path. In this paper, West Chester University, Elizabethtown

University, and Millersville University colleges will be examined. A solid method for

choosing a college or university is creating a list of what one wants in a college. This

may narrow down the choices to consider. Important criteria that should be on both

parents’ and children’s list should be the values/mission statement of the college,

providing assistance to secure a job right after college, and the cost of schooling

needed to earn the desired degree.

Each college has core values that drive their educational system. Whether it’s the

belief of independent/self-paced learning, building interpersonal connections, and/or

helping the world be a better place, colleges have core values that represent and

reinforce their school values and purpose. For Elizabethtown, they believe in a

“transformative educational experience that benefits their students in their career”. As a

college, they help students develop skills and learning in their major and help them build

skills so that after graduation they can be successful[How Does]. This is important

because after college there is a major transition to the adult world where things are on a
graduate’s shoulders for the first time. It is beneficial for students to have guidance

before graduating from college. Students should learn as much about their field as they

can during their time in college. Class size is very important to discuss when exploring

colleges to attend. How many people do you want in your class? How important is the

teacher’s full attention to you? According to Elizabethtown’s college website, “Students

receive personal attention, as all employees commit to expressing sincere and genuine

interest in the educational success of our students.'' There are many large colleges that

can have up to 700 kids in a class, but Elizabethtown ensures that the class size is

small and that students are guaranteed a student-teacher relationship with a passionate

teacher[How Does]. Elizabethtown gets its students ready for their career, whereas,

Millersville’s website states, “We embrace a culture of exploration, creating a dynamic

learning environment that fosters intellectual curiosity, creative intelligence, innovation,

forward-thinking ideas, and exciting discoveries”.

Millersville allows their students to discover things that fascinate them through

hands-on activities. They are less like a traditional classroom. They don’t have as many

note-taking sessions, but they are more about self-discovery and developing a sense of

wonderment about new things. Their students use complex thinking skills and creativity

to forward their education. Millersville also believes in inclusion, so no student has to be

afraid that they will be discriminated against based on their religion, race, or sexual

orientation[Issue]. Differences are respected and welcomed to create a diverse family

atmosphere that helps those students feel like they belong and are able to learn with

ease. Many colleges are designated by religion or do not accept all types of people, so
finding an accepting college creates an easier transition from high school since

everyone is treated with love and respect.

Finally, West Chester website states, “​West Chester University is a community

of educators that develops graduates to succeed personally and professionally and

contribute to the common good”. They help their students learn how to be good citizens

of society[Forbes]. After college, young adults are released into the world and are

expected to contribute and make a difference in the world, so West Chester helps their

students find the right way for them to make a difference. Though values are important,

it’s not the only thing that matters when looking into a college.

Most students don’t think about what happens after they walk across that stage

and get their diploma. They know that they have to get a job, but it’s not as easy as it

sounds. Luckily, some colleges have resources to help you find a job after college. West

Chester has a 95% employment rate for after college with a 77% strong network

program that assisted and 94% found jobs at their career center[Niche]. Picking a

college with a strong network program is important because building connections in

college is ultimately what gets you a job afterward. Career centers can also help with

finding students jobs after college with application and counselors to assist them. Two

years after graduating from West Chester, most students make a median earning of

$37,900 a year. Now just because a student goes to this college doesn’t mean that

they’re entitled to earn this amount of money, but through getting into the workforce

early after college they’re able to make their way up the earnings ladder. Elizabethtown

has the same employment rate as West Chester but has an 85% for a strong network
and a 100% for their career center program[Niche]. This means that all of

Elizabethtown’s students believed that their career center helped them get the jobs they

are at now, so for them, the career center helped significantly, more than just making

connections. Plus their students make a median earning of $42,900 a year after two

years. Finally, Millersvi​lle is for employ​ment as the other two, but their networking

program helped 86% of students. However, their career center had a 94% which is six

percent less than Elizabethtown. That means that Millersville uses the connections that

they make more than Elizabethtown. Elizabethtown relies more on application and

openings than the connections they make with the people, which is unlike Millersville

who relies on who they know to find jobs. Before students even apply for a job though,

they have to go through college and in turn, find a way to pay for college.

Debt is something that everyone who goes to college has after their years there.

Many people struggle to climb out of the hole and pay off their college debt. If a student

lives on campus, not only do they have tuition and technology costs, but also room and

board, and food costs. Finding a college that is close and affordable is important to

being able to get out of debt faster. The tuition for Elizabethtown on average is $32,960

[Elizabeth]. That doesn’t even cover technology, commute, room and board, or food.

Though they have a high tuition cost, they also offer financial aid to help pay for some of

it. Those who are able to apply for financial aid are able to handle the cost of college

better than those needing to take care of the costs all on their own. For West Chester

the tuition on average is $7,716[West Chester]. That is a very affordable price for

college and they also offer financial aid. West Chester is a good choice for those who
have to pay their way through college themselves or have no savings for college. The

low tuition helps kids in poverty get a degree and help them earn more money[Forbes].

Everyone can benefit from low tuition though. It makes students able to move out of

their parents’ houses faster and be able to start their lives without starting out in debt. At

Millersville for twelve credits, it costs around $7,656[Millersville]. That is also

significantly cheap for college. They also offer financial aid that helps pay for college.

Millersville lets their students focus on their education instead of worrying about their

debt. Colleges should focus more on educating their students for a more affordable

price, so students wouldn’t have to worry about working and paying off their debt as

much.

Choosing the right college is a huge decision to make. Maybe even more so than

picking a career path. The colleges’ values, jobs afterward, and the cost of colleges

should align with what you’re looking for in a college. West Chester University,

Elizabethtown University, and Millersville University are all great options for college, but

Millersville is the best college to choose from. Their values, job finding efficiently, and

cost best aligns with what many college students look for in a college.
 Work Cited

Educational Philosophy and Goals - Elizabethtown College

, https://www.etown.edu/about/philosophy.aspx.

“History.” ​Millersville University,​ 12 Dec. 1970

, ​https://www.millersville.edu/about/history/index.php​.

“How Does Elizabethtown College Rank Among America's Best Colleges?” ​U.S.

News & World Report​, U.S. News & World Report,

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/elizabethtown-college-3262.

Millersville University. “Millersville University Review - Spring Summer 2019.” ​Issuu

, ​https://issuu.com/revieweditor/docs/uc_m_springsummer_review_online​.

Our Mission - Elizabethtown College​, https://www.etown.edu/about/mission.aspx.

“Tuition & Fees.” ​Millersville University,​ 12 Dec. 1970

, ​https://www.millersville.edu/osa/tuition-fees/index.php​.

“Undergraduate Admissions.” ​Tuition - West Chester University

, ​https://www.wcupa.edu/_admissions/SCH_ADM/tuition.aspx​.

Tuition Cost - Elizabethtown College

, https://www.etown.edu/admissions/tuition-cost.aspx.

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, ​https://www.niche.com/colleges/elizabethtown-college/after-college/​.

“Value of a Millersville University of Pennsylvania Degree.” ​Niche

 ,

https://www.niche.com/colleges/millersville-university-of-pennsylvania/after-colleg

e/​.

“Value of a West Chester University of Pennsylvania Degree.” ​Niche

https://www.niche.com/colleges/west-chester-university-of-pennsylvania/after-coll

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“West Chester University of Pennsylvania.” ​Forbes,​ Forbes Magazine

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5182d43.