That's why finding out about nonacademic life is important. Gathering basic information about a school's activities is often a first step toward making a sensible judgment about where to go to college. Most basic data can be found in brochures or on World Wide Web sites, where students are likely to confront an array of options. For the civic minded, there is Human Corps, a program that links students to more than 300 volunteer organizations.
Many students find that extracurricular activities fill the bulk of their time.
Prospective applicants interested in a particular organization should find out whether they would feel comfortable in that group. Athletes would do well to find out whether a coach is exacting or easygoing and, if they are serious about equipping themselves for life after college, whether a school means it when its literature says that academics come before athletics. Shot-putter and discus thrower Alison Albrecht, for example, ended up choosing Ohio Wesleyan because its academic priorities matched her own. A visit to a campus is the best way to take the measure of a school and its activities. Students can talk to those already involved in programs that attract them.