Spring break is like summer, only shorter and cooler. And for high schoolers, especially the upper classmen, it’s a time to either begin the college search or to narrow down college choices to only a few.

For high school seniors, the task at hand is a little different than it was during their junior years. Most have already received college acceptances and are finally over the stress of completing applications. But they’re still searching for the “perfect” college, and narrowing down the college list is not all that easy.

Despite having to visit fewer colleges since the acceptance process is mostly complete, seniors still have to pick the college that best suits them, the place where they will be happiest and most efficient for the next four years of their lives.

Senior Gaby Thomas, for example, is visiting Colorado College in Colorado Springs. Gaby was admitted this past December and plans on attending the Admitted Students Open House on April 9-10. Gaby said, “I’m visiting Colorado College because of its proximity to the ski slopes and [the college’s] unique block schedule – students only take one class at a time for three and a half weeks.”

Although Gaby has not decided which college she would like to attend next year, she plans on going somewhere with easy accessibility to ski slopes, preferably “colleges in the northwest, northeast, and Colorado,” she said.

Gaby’s ideal college would be “a small, liberal arts college [in a] tight-knit college town.” Gaby would also like a college in close proximity to almost all outdoor activities, including skiing, hiking, rafting, and rock climbing.

Senior Megan Golba, who is visiting both the University of South Carolina and Fordham University in New York City over spring break, is excited to get a better perspective of each campus during her visits. Although her top college choice is King’s College in London, Megan is still determined to keep an open mind while looking for more options.

She said, “I like Fordham better than South Carolina because it is a smaller school and also has a better history program and soccer team.” Megan also said, “I would love to go to school on the East Coast. I will probably go to school in either Boston or New York.”

Just about nine months away from applying to college, juniors are continuing or just beginning their college search.

Junior Cailan Healy is continuing her search in Northern California during spring break. A few of the colleges she will be visiting during break include Santa Clara, UCLA, Cal Poly, UC Berkley, University of San Francisco, and St. Mary’s. Though her main focus is colleges on the west coast, Cailan still hopes to visit other colleges in other parts of the United States.

Some sophomores, although still underclassmen, also begin their search for college during spring break. Ahead of the game and starting her first official college tour this spring break, Kaylee Kininger plans on touring east coast schools including Dartmouth, Emerson, and Amherst. Kaylee will also be visiting Brown and MIT, but will not have an official college tour.

Interested in colleges that offer strong programs in English and creative writing, Kaylee is most interested in Amherst because of “it’s size, location, and it being known as one of the best creative writing schools in the country.”

Searching for colleges, especially for the first time, can be daunting. However, in the end, college should be about what makes a student happy, allows him or her to grow, and at the end of the day, helps secure a job. Although it may be hard to find the “perfect” college, it’s during the search process that students discover who they are and what college will live up to their standards.