As any college student and his or her parents could attest to, the decision of which university to attend is one of the most significant choices young men or women will make in their lives. Finding an university that fulfills a student's needs -social, financial and educational -can be a daunting task, but a new trend aimed at easing such a transition potentially could undermine the valuable experience that comes with the difficult and sometimes agonizing search.
According to The Columbus Dispatch, the number of college consultants have risen steadily in the past five years from 500 to 2,000 nationally. For a fee, which can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars, consultants work with high school students to find a college that will fulfill their desires, help prepare them for interviews, offer pointers on composing strong entrance essays and help to organize an impressive application.
Although the consultants provide an increasingly demanded service, high school students and parents should seriously question the need for professional guidance and realize that using such a service deprives students of the experience of conducting research on the school and making their own decisions.
Certainly there are professionals in this emerging field who are worth the financial investment, and for some students, this might be the best option -but that number is likely a small minority. The college-selection process provides students with their first foray into the real world. Students -many for the first time in their lives -are forced to make a decision that will impact their entire future. It would be tempting to hire a professional to try to avoid a bad decision, but such an action could hamper the personal growth of an individual.
The hard work and effort students and parents normally put into researching universities -comparing the pros and cons of each and making that often-difficult decision about where to attend college -provides a wealth of practical experience for functioning as a responsible adult. Because the goal of college is to prepare youth for the adult world, it makes sense that students begin their college career acting as adults. Students who put in the work likely would be rewarded for their efforts and those who pursued the endeavor half-heartedly would realize there are consequences for not putting forth a solid effort.
And although students might want to avoid the trials and tribulations that come with selecting a college by hiring a professional, students should realize that the selection process is not nearly as demanding as the college workload and therefore the selection process realistically prepares them for their next four years.
There is nothing wrong with hiring a professional to complete a job if an individual does not feel up to the task. Yet the growing trend of hiring professional consultants should become the exception and not the rule. The vast majority of students would benefit more from the experience of conducting the search for a college themselves -not to mention saving those consultant fees for ever-rising high tuition, which rises nearly every year, and the outrageous price of textbooks -and still be able to make a good, informed decision about where to attend college.
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