As a Junior myself, I can understand the pressure of picking the right college. There are many things one must take into account when choosing which colleges to apply to and which to attend. Not only should you take into consideration that the college specializes in the career path you want to travel down, or has a good program for it, but also where you will have the best experience. Our teenage years are dwindling fast, and I believe that it is important to make the most of it before it passes us by. Meet new people, make lifelong friends, go to a party, or even a study group if that’s more your speed. By no means am I encouraging you to make poor or rash decisions, but it’s alright to let loose once and a while. 

It’s a very prominent topic in my friend group to talk about what colleges we will want to attend. Some, like Naomi Peralta, are “excited to live somewhere different,” while others tend to want to stay local. While I believe there are benefits to both, and either way I’m sure you will have a terrific experience, I would like to be close enough to home where I have the option to drive home on a weekend or holiday. So if your looking for semi-local colleges to Yorba Linda, here are some options for you:

The first one I wanted to mention, and maybe the most obvious one, is Cal State Fullerton. Cal State Fullerton is a wonderful school, and Fullerton is a nice city with plenty to do. Many successful people I know went to Cal State Fullerton and continue to try to convince me to go since they loved it so much. Cal State Fullerton is a public university in Fullerton, California. This school has the largest student body in the California State University system and its graduate student body is one of the largest in all of California. Cal State Fullerton has an acceptance rate of fifty nine percent and a graduation rate of sixty eight percent. 

I would also like to expose you to some of the colleges in San Diego. Here are the big three: UC San Diego, University of San Diego, and San Diego State University. I recently visited all three of these colleges and I’d like to share some of my thoughts. For a while, I’ve been wanting to go to UC San Diego, a very prestigious and one of the best academic colleges in the state, but my thoughts were altered once I was on the campus. Keep in mind that I’m looking for a fun college experience as well as a good academic school. UCSD gave off a studious vibe, which isn’t necessarily bad, but it just wasn’t what I was looking for. The campus wasn’t as pretty as the other two, and the students didn’t seem to be having as much fun. 

When I first drove through the campus, my breath was taken away. USD must have been the most beautiful campus I had ever seen, with breathtaking views and architecture. I finally understood the extremely high cost to attend the school when I arrived on campus. However, one issue I encountered was that I had seen maybe ten people on campus the entire time I was there. It wasn’t a very positive or fun environment, but the beauty of the campus almost balanced it out. Again, it didn’t have all I was looking for in a college. 

The campus at SDSU was stunning, and the atmosphere made me feel happy just by being on the campus. There were countless people walking, skating, laughing, and studying. This school had a wonderful balance of work and play, and I found myself wanting to go here more than any other San Diego school. 

Another option is to attend junior college for your first two years and then you will be able to transfer over to any college you wish. Grace Peralta (12)  is considering going to junior college and trasfering afterward. This will save you a lot of money, but it is the path less traveled. 

Whichever decision you make, I wish you an incredible college experience and a successful future. Good luck with applications for next year junior mustangs!