College Options101 Resources

College Review Guidebooks

  • Fiske Guide to Colleges

  • Princeton Review’s The Best 385 Colleges

  • Cool Colleges by Donald Asher

Liberal Arts Colleges

  • Colleges That Change Lives by Loren Pope (https://ctcl.org/)

  • The Hidden Ivies by Howard Greene

Books for Visual and Performing Arts

  • Creative Colleges by Elaina Loveland

Books for Navigating the College Journey as a Family

  • The Truth About College Admission: A Family Guide to Getting In and Staying Together by Rick Clark and Brennan Barnard

  • The College Conversation: A Practical Companion for Parents to Guide Their Children Along the Path to Higher Education by Eric Furda and Jacques Steinberg

  • Where you Go is Not Who You will Be: An Antidote to the College Admissions Mania by Frank Bruni

College Search Engines

Data, Research and Lists

College Tours

Financial Fit

Assessing Overall Fit

Favorite Blogs:

Financial Aid 101 Resources

12 websites to guide you in the process of applying for financial aid


  1. Create your FSA ID: https://fsaid.ed.gov/npas/index.htm

  2. Detailed instructions on how to fill out the FAFSA: https://studentaid.gov/apply-for-aid/fafsa/filling-out

  3. Sample 2022-2023 FAFSA Worksheet: https://studentaid.gov/sites/default/files/2022-23-fafsa-worksheet.pdf

  4. Listing schools on the FAFSA, including state-by-state grant money guide: https://studentaid.gov/apply-for-aid/fafsa/filling-out/school-list

  5. Subsidized and Unsubsidized Federal Student Loans Amounts: https://studentaid.gov/understand-aid/types/loans/subsidized-unsubsidized

  6. FAFSA YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEnu3BHoR9IYgBnCkqQdgmA

  7. List of schools requiring the CSS Profile. Be sure to filter by schools that require the CSS Profile for domestic US Citizens: https://profile.collegeboard.org/profile/ppi/participatingInstitutions.aspx

  8. Getting started with your CSS Profile: https://cssprofile.collegeboard.org/getting-started-your-css-profile-application

  9. EFC (Expected Family Contribution) Calculators: https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/pay-for-college/tools-calculators

  10. Article on 15 of the Biggest FAFSA Mistakes: https://grownandflown.com/fifteen-biggest-financial-aid-fafsa-mistakes/?fbclid=IwAR1h01HAFdGGIKERq2re7VdOl__MEmZBWeFH3Z98nSdgerfdIUfGb0WmoJU

  11. Article on FAFSA and CSS differences: https://grownandflown.com/what-need-know-fafsa-css-profile/

  12. Domestic Undergraduate Need-Based and Merit Aid Chart: https://www.bigjeducationalconsulting.com/resources


IECA Resources

The IECA provides a number of key resources to assist in the college selection process. Here are a few of my favorites: