One of the biggest decisions senior’s face in the waning stages of High School, is the decision of where to go to college.  Some kids have dream schools, schools they have had their heart set sense the moment the concept of college was introduced.   However, most kids do not really know what school they really want to go.  We make lists of what schools have fun and eventful sports programs, offer the major we think we want to achieve, and look at where our friends are applying.  The best advice I can give to a soon-to-be and undecided college students is to think outside the “box.”  Take advantage of these 4-5 years of college and go someplace new.  Look at schools in places you never though you would ever go.  Life outside your hometown is different.  There are many many new and different experiences that you will never experience at home.  Some you may hate, and others you may love.

I went to school to a far far away place in Northern California at Davis.  Even though Davis is in California, anyone who has been knows that Northern California is not the same as Southern California.   Looking back I am very great full to have logged a few years up there.  I love LA, and Davis is far from the coastal cities I grew up in.  But I learned a lot from time I spent there.  Many of the things I did for fun were things I never heard of back home.  The people and food were new and different too.

So, leave home for college.  Go see and live in a place totally new from what you have known growing up.  When thinking of potential colleges, look at a map.  Look at places you have never been but want to go to.  There is a whole lot to be learned while in college outside of the classroom.