College is a time for independence. It is four years (or a little more) for YOU. You get to explore yourself, take risks, and find where your place in the world truly is before you even graduate. No doubt there is trial and error along the way, but that only equips you more for the real world.

So, why would parents try to choose which school their child goes to? Good question. I may not have all of the answers, but in my opinion, this is wrong. Yes, parents are often the primary providers of tuition, but that shouldn't dictate where their money goes. The student should have full freedom of where they want to explore going to college. Whether it be close to home or on the other side of the country, parents should most importantly focus on supporting their child wherever they decide to go.

For example, let's take experiences from my college search.

What stood out to me at CSU, besides the really pretty campus, was the Key Explore program. I had no idea what I wanted to focus my studies on for four years (but no one really does, right?). During my Freshman year, Key Explore really helped me to discover the best traits and assets about myself that I could potentially put towards a major. Aside from finding a major, Key helps you to make friends super quick, even before school starts. They even put some members of your cluster in your classes so you have someone to study with and compare notes. All Key students live in Braiden Hall on campus, so everyone is easy to find. I made lifelong friends through this program, and I wouldn't trade that for anything.

What wasn't ideal (and there are very few things) about CSU was that it was far away from home in Texas. I grew up going to Colorado all the time, but I never saw myself going to school there. I had applied to and gotten accepted into schools much closer to home. My older sister was encouraging me to go to the same school as her at the time, and my parents liked the idea of me being a short car ride away, of course. But once I stepped on the Oval (let's face it, that's the biggest and best selling point) and got accepted the day I toured, I felt CSU was where I was being called to go to school. Now in my second year here, I can't see myself anywhere else. I love the friendly people and the laid-back environment. Old Town is pretty hard to beat as well. The amazing weather (most of the time) is also a plus.

I don't think I would have actually come to Colorado State had it not been for the support of my parents. Even though my Dad was a CU grad (bless his heart), and my Mom was only familiar with a few Colorado schools, they still had my back every step of the way. After a lot of research and finding connections to CSU through old friends, and even finding out that a high school friend of mine currently attended CSU, my parents and I knew that Fort Collins was the place I needed to be. So, thank you Mom and Dad for instilling confidence and more of an independence in me that I didn't think I had.

Again, college is a time for four years of discovering yourself and being independent. Even though it may be hard to give an 18 or 19 year old the freedom of choice, I think it is necessary for both parent's and student's growth. After all, parents aren't the ones trying to figure out where they are going to spend the next four years.