Students finalizing their list of colleges know there are boundless sources of information to aid their college search: Naviance, the Common App, College Confidential, the Princeton Review, and all those books in the college section of bookstore chains like Barnes & Noble. But the most popular source for college info is definitely CollegeProwler, a site that gives universities grades for subjects like Athletics, Academics, Girls, Guys, Campus Strictness, Diversity, and even Computers. With a few clicks of the mouse, students are able to find statistics, application requirements, and information about every part of the school’s campus and curriculum. CollegeProwler may be thorough, but it’s definitely not objective.

     The most important aspect to take note of is that everything the site ranks on is based on the opinion of a student. The review writers on online sites all have diverse opinions on everything they rate. They hate some things and love others, but all of the reviews have different views on their school than every other person. Many reviews have extremely biased opinions based on condensed facts, and many are polar opposite from what other students are writing.

     “I looked at sites like CollegeProwler and they definitely impacted the way I viewed certain schools,” said class of 2011 graduate Amy Tolman, a freshman at UMass Amherst. “I remember reading a million entries about how UMass is a wild party school and how big and ugly it is, and how professors don’t get to know you. I almost didn’t apply to UMass because of a lot of what I read on online reviews and rumors about it… but now I absolutely love it here and I would recommend it to anyone,” she said.

     It’s not smart to base your judgment off of someone else’s judgment. The section in which this is most obvious is “Guys and Girls.” Admit it, you may be attracted to a completely different type of person than a friend of yours is. When the people grading undergrads on looks are hidden behind a computer screen, you have no idea how you relate to them! The person calling other students “ugly” or “hot” has an opinion all their own, and it cannot be assumed that other people will share it.

     In terms of housing, internships, financial aid, and other categories, there will always be students who go online to rant about how they had the worst experience ever at their school. There will also be students who think the opposite, and write with pride about how perfect and ideal their school is. Students just can’t take the word of others for these details; both sides could be overgeneralized and exaggerated. We’ll never know what experience we might have unless we go to the school ourselves. It could be completely different from anything written online.

     SHS grad Pat Sweeney, a freshman at Oberlin College in Ohio, advised high school students that asking students on campus would give a better perspective of the school than any online review. He thought the only helpful sections on websites like CollegeProwler were those regarding food, dorms, and what types of students the school attracted.

     “I’ve realized the benefits of a big school that those websites ignore. Basically, seniors shouldn’t take those websites seriously; they never give a complete or accurate idea of what college is really like. It’s awesome, so you should all be really excited,” Tolman said with a laugh.

     As you agonize over choosing where to apply this fall, don’t be too concerned with online reviews. They cause more trouble than they’re worth!