She plays lacrosse. She has gotten recruitment letters from multiple schools. She chose American University. She is following her dream.
Samantha Breeze, a Middletown High School junior, received a scholarship to play Division I Women’s Lacrosse at American University. She has already verbally committed to play and will be signing a letter of intent in the fall of 2014.
With the end of the 2013-2014 school year approaching, rising seniors are faced with many choices concerning planning their future and choosing which college they want to attend for the next four years.
Most know what college or university they would like to attend, but are still working on finalizing this life changing decision. This is one of the most crucial decisions that students and parents will have to make together.
MHS junior Peter Heon is hoping to attend Syracuse University because “they have a great architecture program” that he would like to be a part of.
Heon will be applying to about seven schools, with Syracuse and University of Maryland at College Park as his top two. He loves the sports programs at both, but has family ties at Syracuse.
Many rising juniors are looking all along the east coast, north and south. Many of them however, are looking more towards the south because of the warm weather. Some students want to go far away from home, while others want to stay close.
Samantha Hockenbery, MHS junior, has visited schools down south such as East Carolina University, Coastal Carolina University and James Madison University. She hopes to attend Coastal Carolina University because “it’s close to the beach, it has great weather and it has what I want to major in.”
Coastal Carolina University is only a five hour drive from Middletown. “I want to be able to come back and watch my brother play football,” added Hockenbery. Being close to home but also at a college she will want to spend four years of her life at will be very hard to find.
When picking which college is in their future, students will walk on the campus and either love it or hate it. Most students love the campuses of the schools they have chosen.
Victoria Doing, MHS junior, would like to attend the University of South Carolina because “it has a very pretty campus.” “It’s gorgeous and has a great sports facility. When I walked on the campus, I loved it, and I couldn’t imagine going anywhere else,” Doing said.
MHS junior Trevor McClure has visited and wants to attend East Carolina University. “When I visited, the campus was stunning,” McClure said. East Carolina has many outstanding things about it, including “the sports facility, academic buildings and housing.”
Guidance counselors play an important part in helping their students choose colleges in which to apply to. They help out the students from their freshman to senior year, helping them with choosing colleges and getting them prepared for a higher level of education
MHS guidance counselor Bradley George thinks that “the most stressful thing about applying to colleges is finding that balance between competition and admission, and what the student can successively manage.”
“It is very hard for these students to adapt and adjust to the college life. They have to learn how to survive on their own and provide for themselves,” said George.
Many rising seniors are visiting or have visited around four or five colleges already. Visiting different types of colleges is good because it helps to show the student what they like and dislike.
Matthew Lynch, MHS junior, has visited four colleges and plans to apply to those four.
“I have visited George Mason University, the University of Maryland, Coastal Carolina University, and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill,” said Lynch.
Some colleges that these students are visiting do not have the major of their choice, which forces them to either choose a different one or look at different schools.
Madison Houck, MHS junior, wants to major in interior design; however, “two out of the three colleges that I have visited do not have this major.”
William McClain, another MHS junior, has already been receiving countless college recruitment letters from schools all across the country. McClain is a very talented football player who has many remarkable qualities.
“The University of Maryland has a great football program with some really great coaches,” said McClain. “I would love to have the opportunity to play with the people on that team.”
McClain has not yet chosen what college to attend in the fall of 2015. He has numerous offers that he has to take into account and sort through them all precisely. This choice will affect the rest of his life and his career after college.
One of the most important decisions in a person’s life involves college and choosing which one they want to spend the next four years of their life. It can impact everything, including your family and friend relationships, job opportunities, and your life after college.
