Spaces:
Runtime error
Runtime error
| # Fit & modality basics | |
| College “fit” is not the same as prestige. A good fit balances **academic programs**, **learning modality**, **life stage**, **support services**, and **affordability**. | |
| ## Life stage switches | |
| ### High school / traditional | |
| - First-year experience, residence life, and peer community often matter more | |
| - Counselors, Common App / Coalition, campus visits, and senior-year calendars dominate | |
| - Major exploration is normal; avoid locking a lifelong identity to one ranking list | |
| ### Returning adult / online | |
| - Work, caregiving, and commute constraints usually dominate modality choice | |
| - Look for asynchronous options, evening cohorts, clinical/practicum logistics, and adult student supports | |
| - Prior learning, military credit, and transfer evaluations can shorten time-to-degree — get them **in writing** | |
| ## Modality checklist | |
| Ask every school: | |
| 1. Is the program fully online, hybrid, or campus-required for labs/clinicals? | |
| 2. Are there residency or proctoring requirements? | |
| 3. What is the typical time-to-completion for part-time students? | |
| 4. Which support offices serve adult or online learners? | |
| ## Shortlist hygiene | |
| - Prefer 8–15 schools over endless browsing | |
| - Tag each school: reach / match / likely as **planning labels only** (not invented admit odds) | |
| - Cut schools for verified deal-breakers (modality, location, required supports) — not marketing claims | |