Searching for the Best...Perhaps an Unhealthy Start

Chris Boehm
According to Google mobile searches for “best” grew over 80% in 2017 & 2018 (Wheaton). As we begin initial meetings with juniors about their college search and selection, I wonder how many commence their search by asking Google, what is the best college for (insert major), as if they were shopping for a commodity like earbuds or a cup of coffee. This belief is influenced by the most popular statement I hear from juniors, “Mr. Boehm, I want to get into the best college that I can.” Wanting the best is universally natural, how it is defined is anything but. Let’s thoughtfully flip the vernacular, using more productive, less exclusive, and healthier verbiage. 
  1. The search starts with the student. Looking inward to act outward is crucial if we believe that not every student is the same. Eric Furda, dean of admission at Penn, provides a nice guide with his 5 I’s (https://www.page217.org/5i/). Reflection upon experiences and focusing on identity will help us create foundational priorities to better realize what types of schools will be a good “fit.”
  2. The “best” is not an objective absolute (Wheaton). Whether it’s movies, music, sports, or food, people will debate based upon their own criteria who or what is the G.O.A.T. Jordan, James, Wilt, Magic, or Kobe? Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Pink or Adele? Dairy Queen, Rita’s, Cold Stone, or Baskin Robbins?
    In the context of colleges, one person might use the standard of small class sizes, graduation rates, warm weather, and opportunities for co-ops in engineering as their basis of evaluation. Contrastingly, a student searching for an extremely diverse student body in an urban setting, with spirited sports programs, emphasis of study abroad, and the flexibility to be undecided in their studies would yield much different results. Neither student is wrong and both should be confident that their choices are better for them.
  3. We shouldn’t value a college more based upon the extent that other people are deprived of it (Roth). A school’s selectivity or ranking is not an assurance of success or happiness. Instead of using an acceptance rate as a search criteria, Michael Roth, president of Wesleyan University, recommends evaluating schools on the basis of their ability to: provide a student the opportunity to discover what they love to do, through school resources - get better at the things they love to do, and to learn to share what they’ve gotten better at with others (classmates, parents, mentors, employers). 
  4. Education is not a commodity (Rawlings). Students don’t buy a diploma, not even on Amazon. They invest in an opportunity to take advantage of experiences that will accumulate into an education. The colleges are responsible for providing these opportunities and it’s a student’s decisions, effort, and talents that are the variables predicting success. If we believe in this thought process, we can conclude that there is more than one college at which a student can succeed.
Let’s agree that students are the most important part of the college search. They are all unique, bringing different talents, hopes, interests, and motivations into the process. To begin or continue a healthy college search, we must respect our students’ uniqueness and varying criteria, and believe they have the talent and ability to succeed at more than one place. Instead of a jumping-off point of “getting into the best school” let’s flip the verbiage to, “finding schools that are among the best for me.” This mindset allows students to see there are always multiple paths they can travel to reach their goals and a singular admission decision is not a death sentence nor a golden ticket.
Resources:
Furda, Eric (August, 2012). 5 I’s. Retrieved from: https://www.page217.org/5i/
Rawlings, Hunter (June 2015). College is not a commodity. Stop treating it like one. Retrieved from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/
Roth, Michael (December 2017). What is college for? (Hint: It’s not just about getting in.) Retrieved from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2017/12/13/what-is-college-for-hint-its-not-just-about-getting-in/
Wheaton, Ken (August 2018). Ask a researcher: What does ‘best’ really mean? Retrieved from: https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/intl/en-145/perspectives/global-articles/ask-researcher-what-does-best-really-mean/
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Archmere Academy is a private, Catholic, college preparatory co-educational academy,
grades 9-12 founded in 1932 by the Norbertine Fathers.