National College Fair Assignment

The purpose of this worksheet/assignment is to assist in making your day at the National College Fair as productive as possible. Your journey of exploring post-secondary educational programs and career options will be a life-long one, but it is critically important at this time. Please complete each section below. Your responses are to be submitted to Terry by Oct. 9th.

We suggest that you use the following questions as an interview guide, but certainly ask whatever questions you like:
• What is the average class size for freshman classes, as well as upper division?
• How would they describe the relationship between students and instructors at their college?
• Does their university place a greater emphasis on research or on teaching?
• What are their policies and procedures relative to financial aide, Scholarships, work-study, etc.?
• What internship, cooperative-education, and foreign study opportunities are available to undergraduate students?
• What major is their college best known for?
• What are the transfer policies and admissions standards for their college, including college testing such as SAT and/or ACT?
• How would they describe student life on their campus and in the local community?

1. To gain a broad perspective relative to the different types of colleges, campuses, and programs, provide the name and a brief description of the following: (Do not hesitate to explore colleges outside the Northwest states, do not use the same college twice, and do not simply list information available on their website.)

• A public college
University of Puget Sound
the University of Puget Sound is a rather large liberal arts college. I was interested in their music business undergraduate program which seems captivating, but they do also offer a decent medical course, which I also took into account. Another reason why I considered it was because it just happened to be in the area, which would be very efficient for me.

• A private college
Whitworth University is a sensible Christian college which would be fitting for me because it supports my faith, because of the fact that it is in the state of Washington (Spokane) and because that it offers an impressive music program. This University is well known for its liberal arts institution, something that made me consider it.

• A rural college
Columbia University
although it is located in Chicago, this is a famed arts college with a high success rate and very broad music program. There are many famous artists who were former students of this University. It has an overall impressive music program.

• Traditional large university
University of Washington Seattle is known for its hands on medical program which I would be interested in. It is also close to home and known for its sustainability. It also offers a large variety of programs in the arts and medical field. Its campus is fairly large but then again so is their class size (can get up to 600 students). This university is famous for its wide selection of research programs.


• A small alternative college
Evergreen
This College is located in Olympia, Washington; it is a science and liberal arts college. It has a relatively small class size class size which means there would be more interaction between student and instructor and the fact that it is in the area is appealing to me also.


2. Select a college major that you might be interested in pursuing. (Either something in the medical field or Music production) Find three colleges that are known to offer quality programs in that major. You may choose only one of the three colleges from within the state of Washington. Briefly describe what impressed you about each of these colleges. Then finally, describe how your overall educational experience might differ if you were to choose one college over the others. In making your comparisons, be sure to consider some the issues raised in the “suggested questions” above. (You probably should do some research on this before attending the Fair)


University of Washington the Seattle branch Is fairly close to home, it presents a famed medical research program which is relevant to my interests and provides multiple internships available for undergraduate and graduate students. The fact that it is in the area presents itself as an obvious and efficient choice, but then again I wouldn’t realize the complete college experience if I stayed in the state for my schooling.

Columbia University in Chicago is a famous college for liberal arts, performing arts as well as visual arts. The thing that impressed me about this university is its very wide-ranging music business program which offers many different career options and choices from live sound to studio work producing. This program also offers hands on training which is essential for success in an actual career. I had the opportunity to speak with their representative, who was very knowledgeable about many different aspects of the school and its programs. I realize that I would be far from home and that travel would become essential to visit my family, but at the same time, I would be gaining a valuable experience.

Pacific University is a private liberal arts college in Oregon, it has a very sought after medical program which includes dental and physical therapy. It also has a mediocre music program in performing arts but it does not offer one in music production which rules that option out if I attend this college. The tuition rate is very fair and the class sizes are exceptional. If I go to this school I would still be in the northwest not too far away from home but would still be able to enjoy an actual college experience.


3. Attend at least one of the workshops during your time at the Fair. Briefly describe the content of the workshop and evaluate the information received.
The content of the workshop that I attended focused mainly on how to finance a college education. It was very extensive and talked topics such as financial support, how to take out a loan, and the types of loan out is liable for. Although this workshop was helpful on a informative level, it wasn’t something that I would be focusing on at the moment.

4. Write a personal evaluation of your experience of attending the National College Fair. Share whatever thoughts you have, but be sure to include a discussion of the following:

The college fair was a very beneficial experience for me personally. I appreciated the fact that I was able to talk to many representatives of the colleges that were within my line of interest all at the same place, and receive answers to questions I had on the spot. This event provided me with information that could be helpful in narrowing down my choice of schools and it gave me insight on what to work on to get into the schools I was interested in. The workshop that I attended gave me an idea of what kind of loans are available for students to support their college education. I enjoyed this college fair and also though it was an informative and enhancing event for my career planning process.