Welcome to PK College Admission Connection

As a Lutheran Pastor's Kid with experience working in undergraduate (traditional bachelor's degree) admissions, I am launching this blogger site and a Twitter account @pkcac to help in the navigation of the college admissions world.  Choosing where to go to school and what to study can be a simultaneously exciting and nervous experience.  It is important to know your options and your high school guidance counseling office or college room is a great place to start.

Also, get on the websites of colleges that you're interested in and if you're able to afford the trips, be sure to visit a number of them.  Admittedly, after about three (3) college visits, a lot of the information will begin to sound the same, yet its important to get a physical feel about the campus that you're looking to call home for the next four years.

So, here are a few questions to the High School Class of 2014 looking at enrolling next year to consider asking themselves:

1. What do I want to do when I grow up?
2. What type of education do I need to enter the workforce of the position I'm looking at (None/High School Diploma/A.S/A.A.S./B.A./B.S./M.A/J.D./M.D./PhD/etc.)?
3. Do I want to go near or far away to college?
4. What major/minor do I want to study in college?
5. $$$ What is the realistic amount of money that I have available to help with college expenses or will be willing to take out on a student loan? $$$
6. How much does my career field pay on average in the first 10 years? (Important when determining if you'll take out a student loan to pay for school).
7. Do my grades and ACT/SAT scores line up with scholarships?
8. When it comes down to it, am I okay with staying local to a community/technical college first, or for those in metro areas and near college towns, attend the local university?

I'll stop here with the questions, but now that it's August 1, these are important questions to consider and hopefully you've already thought about these. If you haven't, while you're finishing up your school supply shopping for this final year of high school, start to work through these questions with your parents/guardians or another trusted mentor.

Best to you on your college search, and if you or your parents have any questions, visit @pkcac on Twitter and post a question on there.

John Zimmerman
Originally Posted: August 1, 2013