by Andraya Hamilton

From the moment you start high school, college becomes a reality. What classes do you need to take, what clubs should you get involved in, and how many extra curriculars do you need are the questions you are asked repeatedly each year. But deciding where to go to college, and what type of college you want to attend is really the hardest part.

There are so many options, and decisions to make, and when you get to your senior year you have to make those decisions, which is difficult because you are essentially mapping out your future, even if you don’t have the slightest idea what you want to do. Choosing between a community college, state college, or university is an important choice, and you need to make the one that is right for you. Picking the right type of school is crucial, because it determines your entire college experience.

Most students decide to go to community or state colleges because of two things–cost and requirements. “Community and state colleges provide essentially the same education as universities, just without the prestigious name,” explains RHS senior Meghan Hernandez. Another RHS student, Layla Walker, adds, “Universities cost a lot of money for the same classes that are offered at Reedley College. I’d rather pay less, finish my general education, and then go to a grad school.”

The majority of students also decide to attend community or state colleges because they believe it will be easier to get in. The requirements for those prestigious universities are not that different from the requirements of the California State Universities and other California State colleges. Like the big universities, state colleges require a student’s SAT and ACT scores, transcripts, a personal statement, and one or two recommendation letters. Students don’t usually apply for universities because they believe that they don’t have a chance if they don’t have a 4.0, straight A’s, and a lot of extracurricular activities, but those are not actual requirements for universities.

Being a senior myself, I understand the stress of making a choice of which types of colleges to apply to. Unlike most of my peers, I lean towards the university type of college rather than the state or community college. Although there is a difference in the cost of tuition, the difficulty of the application is about the same as it is for California State colleges.

RHS Senior Andraya Hamilton

Choosing the type of college to attend is definitely one of the hardest things students have to deal with in their entire high school career. It takes a lot of thought and research. I encourage any high school student to carefully research and gather information on any college they are interested in, and make an educated decision about it. After all, it isn’t just a decision about where they will spend the next four years of their life, it’s also the starting line of their future.

Andraya Hamilton is a senior at Reedley High School, where she is taking several AP classes & is the president and founder of the Book Club. Andraya plans to attend a university on the East Coast, major in English, and someday become an editor/publisher.