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Comparing colleges based on diversity

Stanford University’s Associate Vice Provost for Student Affairs emphasizes the importance of considering diversity when choosing a college. They suggest looking at the demographics of the student population and the resources the college provides to support students from different backgrounds. This helps ensure a supportive environment that fosters success for all students.

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Video transcript

- Many colleges now, if not all, have information and what they call the demographics of the student population. And that's important for you to look at, because that's one of the kind of scary transitioning to college is, "Gee, everybody is different from me." And that can be frightening. And you need that support of other students who share your background. And you also want to know as much as you can find out is how much the university or the college is putting resources into supporting students from different backgrounds. So look into that. Find out if there's a diversity office. So find out if there are other academic resources there. Find out how do they recruit students from different backgrounds. That all will give you indicators of how serious and committed the college is about supporting students from different backgrounds. And that becomes very, very important. You want to succeed when you go to college, and one thing that will help you succeed is being in an environment that supports you, who you are and your background.