On Tuesday, September 27, Poudre High School hosted the Northern Colorado Out of State College Fair. More than 120 universities from across the world sent representatives to guide students in their college application decisions. The majority of students who attended the fair were juniors and seniors, though some freshmen and sophomores came to get an early start in the decision making process.

Ean Shields and Jake Pritchett are both seniors at Poudre High School, and they went to the college fair to look into colleges that they hadn’t considered. A soccer player, Shields already had Denver University at the top of his list, but he was concerned that his GPA wouldn’t be high enough for acceptance. He found several alternative options at the fair, and was relieved to know that he had a fallback plan after high school.

Mary Kreta is the director of admissions at University of Alaska Fairbanks. She believes that the most important thing students should do in high school to make their application stand out is to get involved. Kreta stated, “Being engaged, both in the classroom and in extracurriculars, really sets a student apart.” Colleges look for students who will not just perform well academically, but will be engaged and get involved in the university culture.

Emma Michaels, a junior at Fort Collins High School, knows that she wants to double major in business and performing arts. This was her first college fair, and she plans to come to future ones. She believes that the best part of the college fair setup was how knowledgeable the representatives were, feeling that they understood her questions and how to assuage her fears.

Rachel Prince, a representative from the University of Arkansas, thinks that college fairs are important to exposing students to schools outside a thirty mile radius from their homes. Although the in-state tuition can help some students, Prince believes in finding the perfect fit for each teenager, which sometimes can require looking at schools that are farther away. She advises that students make sure to ask about reduced tuition and automatic scholarships that each school might provide.
Some of the tables at the college fair were dedicated to programs, rather than colleges. For example, the CSU ROTC program was there to provide information to any student looking for a unique college experience as well as reduced tuition.