Links - College Prep
Selecting a college that suits your needs can seem overwhelming. Nationwide there are well over 3,000 colleges and universities, and in California alone there are 106 two-year community colleges, 23 campuses of the California State University (CSU), 8 University of California (UC) campuses, and over 70 independent colleges and universities.
College preparation involves taking the appropriate college prep courses in high school, exploring majors or careers that might interest you, and selecting a college. You will probably need to take college admissions tests such as the SAT or ACT. It helps to start your search with a basic idea of the location, size, and type of college you might prefer. Costs, available programs, and entrance requirements will also be important considerations. The following sites can help you with your college preparation plans. You might also try the topic guides on big search sites like InfoSeek, Hotbot, and Yahoo.
College.gov
Designed by students for students and features first-person accounts of students who overcame challenges to going to college such as peer pressure, lack of family support, and financial barriers. It provides relevant, comprehensive information about why to go, how to go, and how to pay for college or other postsecondary education programs. Young people who may not have considered higher education a viable option will be engaged, informed, and inspired to create their own "roadmap" to college.
California Colleges
Students and their families can find information on planning and preparing
for college in California;for junior high on up.
California
Community Colleges
This site shows students how they can pay for an education at one of the
state's 109 community colleges.
Students.gov
This one-stop portal provides all the services the federal government
has to offer students -- from paying for college to getting a passport.
California Private Colleges
If you are interested in going to a private college, check out the schools
of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities.
The Collegeboard
Official site for the College Entrance Exam Board. Fast, easy scholarship,
career and college search programs; SAT registration on-line, sample test
questions.
Yo SI Puedo.gov
In Spanish, visit this site to find tools to prepare for college
The Princeton Review
The Princeton Review homepage; good info on careers and SAT prep. Also
self-assessment interview questions and discussion groups.
Act
Official site of the American College Testing Program, which produces
the ACT test. The site has college and career search info, as well as
both free and for-purchase ACT test prep materials.
Universities.com
Links to over 4000 college and university homepages in the USA.
Petersons.com
A great all-purpose college-planning site.
California State Universities
The official site of the California State University, with links to all
23 CSU campuses, admissions info, and much, much more.
University of California
The official site of the University of California, with links to each
of the UC campuses.
Campus Tours
This site is a guide to virtual tours, campus webcams and maps, and websites
of a large number of colleges and universities. Very informational, and
some of the virtual tours are lots of fun.
U.S. Universities.com
A very extensive on-line directory to US universities, including a number
of very specific search engines.
Scholarstuff.com
Very student-friendly site, with directories of colleges, college student
organizations, college chat, and lots of other stuff.
IPEDS Cool
This brand-new site from the Education Department lets you "comparison-shop"
through data on thousands of colleges and universities.
School By State
RWM provides a database of Private Postsecondary Vocational Schools in
all 50 states. It is organized first by State, then by Training Occupation.