If you’re  considering taking a break after graduating high school and before starting college, you’ve probably heard about gap years. A gap year is a break — usually a year — between high school and college to explore interests, gain experience, or prepare for the next step in life. But how do you know if a gap year is right for you? Let’s break it down.

For many high school students, the journey to college comes with unexpected challenges. Beyond academics, there’s a “hidden curriculum” — unspoken rules and norms that aren’t taught in classrooms or found in syllabuses. 

Once you embark on your college journey, there is likely going to be some terminology that you don’t understand.

When looking through your college choices, it doesn’t just come down to acceptances; you’ll also want to consider overall fit to the college or university. You may consider academic, social, and financial fit, but you also want to consider personal, career, and geographic fit, as well!

College is a whole new world with so many different opportunities, challenges, and a lot of different support centers and offices. So many, that you might not even know where to start when you need help.

From grants and scholarships to FAFSA and federal student aid, there’s a lot for you to know about financial aid. That’s why we’ve compiled an alphabetical list of the most frequently used financial aid terms— check it out below!

We at the Coalition believe in the value of a college education: Research shows that students with a four-year bachelor’s degree earn an average of $1.3 million more than those with only a high school diploma. But we also realize that the cost to attend college can seem very high.

So, let’s talk about calculating the cost of your college education.