How to pick a “safety school” when applying for college

Posted October 19th, 2009. Categorized under Going into College. 14 Comments

Last week, I talked about deciding how many colleges to apply to and mentioned that you should have one or two “safety schools” on your list.

A safety school is a college where you’re convinced you’ll be accepted to. If for some horrible reason all of your other schools turn you down, you can count on your safety school to accept you, so at least you’ll have some place to go. Depending on how good your high school resume is, how selective the schools you picked are, and how many colleges you’ve applied to, you’ll almost definitely get into a school that’s better than your safety school. But it’s good to have a fallback option.

Unfortunately, a lot of students don’t put much thought into choosing a safety school and just pick the nearest college that they are all but guaranteed in to. This is actually a bad idea, because if you do end up going there, there’s a good chance you won’t like it.

#1: Does it have my current major?

Just because your safety school is your fallback option doesn’t mean you should forget about this. In the unlikely event that you do end up at your safety school, you won’t necessarily want to change majors, so you should check to make sure the school offers majors for your interest(s) before applying.

In fact, when looking for safety schools, you can afford to be a bit more choosy. Check around online to see if the school offers what you currently plan on majoring in. If it doesn’t, move on.

#2: How likely am I to get in?

It’s not too tough to get an idea of whether or not you’re likely to be accepted, but if you’re not sure how you stack up, you might try MyChances.net and CollegeBoard.com to see how you compare to current students. If you’re above the average, then you probably have nothing to worry about.

#3: Is it a school I’d actually like to go to?

Research the college online to find out what you can. Is the social life bad? Are the professors awful? Is the nearby town boring? Again, you can afford to be more choosy, so take advantage of this to find a school that still feels right to you.

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14 Replies to “How to pick a “safety school” when applying for college”

Comments:

1. Girish from Car Rental Auckland

October 19th, 2009 8:52 am

Hey Paul,

Excellent tips. I cant stop myself from sharing this with my youth friends who are aspiring to get into good universities. Last time I argued on the hierarchy of your points in the post you made, but this time I totally agree on your views.

2. Brittany Emch

October 23rd, 2009 12:21 pm

I found, while going through my college search, that looking at the negatives of a school are another way of going about what safety school you should apply to. While looking at all of the opportunities a school has by looking at it optimistically, it is important to know what you don’t want and base your decision off of that as well.

Great tips!

3. Justin Marlow

October 23rd, 2009 3:50 pm

Very good tips to take into consideration. I took an alternative route by going to a community college for 2 years in FL and once I got my associates degree, was pretty much guaranteed acceptance into any FL university of my choice. It wasn’t that I couldn’t get into a university to begin with, it was more of an issue about money. I saved a lot by going to a two year school first. The trade off is that you miss out on the college experience for those two years though.

4. Gene from new york glass

October 25th, 2009 1:00 am

I think a lot of people don’t apply for safety schools because a)they’re convinced they’ll get into their dream school. b) they don’t want to waste money on application fee to a school they won’t go to.

5. david from mini laptops

October 25th, 2009 10:49 am

Hey Paul, david again. Excellent tip buddy. I especially loved the researching tips. Yes, we need to do research online before making any decisions. But most of us fail to do this and end up in some college that we donot intend for.
Thanks paul!

6. Paul

October 27th, 2009 12:41 am

@Gene: That’s pretty true, and it’s really a bad choice. Sure, it’s a bit more money, but not having a fallback plan can REALLY kick you in the face.

7. Tracy from medifast.com

October 27th, 2009 9:21 am

Having a safety school is a good plan. But do not give up hope on going to your first choice. There are many colleges who work together now. You can start at a college that works with your original choice and then transfer there after a couple of successful years.

8. Joey from Discounted Rentals

October 27th, 2009 1:56 pm

I think a lot of people forget about #3 on your list when choosing safety school. They just apply to places they think they’ll get into without thinking about IF they want to go there. I think that’s a huge thing to consider when you’re sending our safety school applications!

9. Max from Cottage Rental

November 10th, 2009 5:06 am

Having a safety school is ok, but it shows more dedication and determination to those reading your app if you do not.

10. Paul

November 10th, 2009 1:03 pm

@Max: The schools you apply to don’t know what other schools you’ve applied to. Having a safety school is good for yourself.

11. Mustana from Florida Car Insurance

November 14th, 2009 6:16 am

As a high school student, there’s a lot of pressure on you to choose the right college or university to go to. You feel the pressure of your parents, your teachers, yourself and even your friends if they are competitive. After all, this is four years of your life and you need to figure out where the best situation is for you and what type of place you want to be at.

12. Towel Warmers

November 18th, 2009 2:24 am

Great secondary choice college tips, I will take this into account in the fall

13. heather from dental assistant training

December 23rd, 2009 4:39 pm

I really tried to go to a university but I was really counting on a scholarship that I did not get so instead I just chose a vocational school for half a year as a dental assistant and I am so glad that I did as I love my job now…I plan on going to college though in the near future to further my education in the dentistry field :)

14. Marc from cheap iphone

April 3rd, 2010 1:44 pm

I guess I got lucky, my safety school , was the one I wanted to get into.

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