I think that there are a lot of families out there that would like to drop out of the race to get into the most prestigious college possible. They know that there are good reasons to look elsewhere. With seemingly ever decreasing admission rates among the brand name schools, the numbers are against you. And financially, it often just makes sense to go to a lesser-known school. But people can’t help but wonder if doing so means “settling” for less. They want to know what happens to people who go to colleges no one has ever heard of.
What Happens to People Who Go To Colleges No One Has Ever Heard Of?
When high school students start looking for colleges to apply to, they rarely consider college graduation rates. Even with the sky-rocketing costs of college, most families still don’t consider graduation rates. They may notice it when a school advertises its four-year graduation guarantee but I suspect most just dismiss it as not applying to “their” situation.
Trying to figure out your “hook” for college admissions? In general, a college hook refers to the element of your college application that makes you stand out from the crowd. It’s what will make the admissions office “bite” on your application. But not all college hooks are the same.
Should you use 
I think that the greatest unacknowledged truth in college admissions is that if you’re good enough to get into an Ivy League school then you are good enough to handle being rejected by them.
(See list of cheapest colleges by acceptance rates at end of post.) Budget, affordable, bargain, best value are all different ways at getting at what are the cheapest colleges in the United States? There are multiple options you can use as the number to rank colleges to determine which is the most affordable. More on that later. And some lists will actually divide schools up by geography which can be useful. But do you know what is the most useful way to classify value colleges regardless of how you define value? Acceptance rates.
Most people know that good grades will get you into college. And maybe if they’re good enough (along with an appropriate essay and the right extracurriculars and recommendations), they might get you into your dream or reach college. But while good grades may get you into your dream college, chances are they won’t pay for it with academic scholarships. This often comes as a surprise to students and their families but it really shouldn’t. There are 3 common situations where students aren’t going to qualify for enough academic scholarships to pay for college.
