We all know someone who has chosen a college just because a boyfriend, girlfriend or best friend was going there. Or maybe you know somebody who chose a college simply because of the location – either it was hundreds of miles away from home, in a big city somewhere, or a tropical climate complete with palm trees.

But there are many important factors to consider when pondering your postsecondary options. First and foremost, what do you hope to be doing after you’ve completed your postsecondary studies? What is your ideal end result? What do you hope to gain from your postsecondary experience?

For example, if you are fairly sure you would like to go into a career in agricultural engineering, the first thing you’ll want to check out when researching schools is whether the colleges you are considering have agricultural engineering programs.

You’ll also want to consider what kind of schooling is required for entry into your particular career. Is completion of a bachelor’s degree a prerequisite – or could you obtain the same position with an associate’s degree, which takes half the time to obtain?

Cost, size and location are also factors to consider, because you want to select a school where you will succeed. Once you’ve logged into SDMyLife, you can check out and compare schools by clicking on the Schools tab near the top of the page.