Build a balanced college list of reach, match, and likely schools
A college list that fits your priorities and academic profile, sorted into reach, match, and likely schools, with what to verify.
The prompt
Help me build a balanced college list.
My academic profile: [GPA (weighted/unweighted), course rigor, test scores if any, class rank if known]
Intended major or interests: [DETAILS or "undecided"]
What I want in a school: [size, location, distance from home, urban/rural, campus culture, specific programs, support services]
Budget and financial need: [e.g. "need significant aid", "in-state public is the realistic max"]
Schools I'm already considering: [LIST]
Deal-breakers: [DETAILS]
Other factors: [first-generation student, athlete, specific accommodations, etc.]
Do this:
1. Turn my preferences into ranked criteria.
2. Evaluate each school I listed against those criteria and suggest types of schools (and some examples) that I may be missing.
3. Sort the list into reach / match / likely based on how my profile compares to each school's published admitted-student ranges. If you are not certain of a school's current numbers, mark them [CHECK COMMON DATA SET OR SCHOOL WEBSITE] rather than stating them.
4. Make sure there are at least two likely schools I'd genuinely be happy at and could afford.
5. Flag affordability: suggest I run each school's net price calculator.
Return: my criteria, a table (School | Category | Why it fits | Concerns | Things to verify), and a recommended final list of 8-12 schools.
Remind me to review the list with my school counselor and family.
Highlighted [brackets] are blanks to replace with your own details.
Fill in the blanks and use this promptMore Thinking & Decisions prompts
What to fill in
- DETAILS or "undecided"
- LIST
- DETAILS
- CHECK COMMON DATA SET OR SCHOOL WEBSITE
How this prompt is built
This prompt follows the RTF structure (Role, Task, Format). RTF tells the model who to be, what to do and what shape the answer should take. It is the quickest structure that still gives noticeably better results than a bare request.
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