Lists of My College Lists!
My second favorite part of college admissions after the personal essay is helping create college lists. I love throwing out suggestions for students to explore and then go off on their merry little way and get lost in a world of college research.
After a bunch of years of suggesting colleges here on A2C and for my own students; a ton of college info sessions, college virtual tours, and college fairs; over 85 in-person college visits over the last few years; a lot a lot of book reading, and learning from my fellow counselors and consultants at conferences and through counseling/consulting groups, I’ve decided to finally organize and share all my thoughts about college lists into well… organized lists (sort of — you’ll see).
Most of the colleges on these lists are colleges I’m familiar with in some way — either I’ve personally visited, or I know someone who attended, or I’ve interacted with their admissions team, or a counselor or consultant I know and respect has suggested it.
Some of these lists were put together by others or in tandem with others. I’ve tried to give credit where it’s due. These lists are an ongoing project so I’m sharing them in google doc form so I can update them easily as I hear about other schools. And as the works-progress-that they are, I’d love to get your suggestions! Know a school you want to be added to one of the lists? That would be awesome. Let me know in the comments, please!
You’ll notice in my lists that I don’t provide links for the most part and I don’t organize by alphabet or region. These are truly lists of colleges I’ve bunched together over the years to help me get a sense of what works for what kids. You’ll have to do the googling for links part tho — sorry :).
Here we go…
Colleges You Might Not Think About
This folder is filled with some pretty random lists of colleges like:
City Campuses You Might Not Think About
Colleges for Hunting and Fishing
Colleges with Great Co-op Programs
Colleges that Change Live Type Schools
Hidden Gems
Honors Colleges That Require No Extra App
Mid Size Universities You Might Not Think Of
My Favorite LACs
Public “Ivies”
Southern City Campuses
Sure-Fire Sure-Bet Colleges
Trans and LGBTQ Friendly Colleges
If You Like This College, Then Check out These Colleges
Here you’ll find lists like:
If you like Harvard, you might like…
If you like NYU, you might like…
If you like Stanford, you might like…
If you like Swarthmore, you might like…
If you like USC, you might like…
If you like UT Austin, you might like…
If you like Vandy, you might like…
This is what I have so far in this one:
Coastal Colleges
If You’re Into Mountains and Outdoorsy Colleges
Definitely a work in progress here, but here’s where I am:
Biggish Southern Schools with Biz Majors
Biomedical Engineering Programs
Film Programs You Might Not Be Aware Of
International Relations Programs
Marketing Programs You Might Not Think Of
Poli Sci Programs You Might Not Think Of
Most of these lists are not my own, but I’m happy to share!
Jennie Kent’s and Jeff Levy’s “Domestic Undergraduate Need-Based and Merit Aid” (Aug 2021)
Colleges That Offer No Merit Aid
Colleges that Offer Really Big Merit Aid
Colleges Where Students Pay No Tuition
Colleges with Early Deadlines for Scholarships
Highly Selective Colleges that Offer Merit
Large-Scale Merit
Schools that Offer Full Scholarships
Most of these lists are not mine, but I’m happy to share the ones I’ve accumulated and organized
Jennie Kent’s and Jeff Levy’s “Domestic Undergraduate Need-Based and Merit Aid” (Aug 2021)
Colleges that are Need Blind and Meet 100 % of Financial Need (domestic)
Colleges that are Need Blind and DO NOT Meet 100 % of Financial Need (domestic)
Colleges that are NOT Need Blind, but that do meet full demonstrated need
Colleges that offer NO Loans
College Lists For International Students
These lists are of colleges that have historically been generous with international students
Ivy Achievement’s Guide (from 2019)
Jennie Kent’s and Jeff Levy’s “Financial Aid for International Noncitizens” (Aug 2021)
Colleges with Low COA for International Students
Links to other helpful info
2019 Undocumented _DACA Policies for U.S. Colleges _ Universities
And if you just want to take the time to go through all the lists, here’s the link to the whole folder:
AdmissionsMom’s Big Folder of College Lists to Share
I’m constantly adding to and updating these lists, so please feel free to make suggestions or check back from time to time — especially for sophomores and juniors who are just beginning the exploration process!
tl;dr: Some might say I’m a college admissions freak. Kind of true, for sure. But that makes me love to learn about all kinds of colleges, and not just the ones you might hear of if you only survey the first couple pages of USNWR. I’ve got lots of lists and they’re growing and I’m sharing with you!
