Colleges love to see well-rounded qualities in their applicants, as well as their enrolled students. Part of what makes colleges and universities appealing is their "makeup," and much of that makeup is the students who are enrolled there. The students themselves help to set the standards for that of future students. They are often encouraged (if not required) to get some type of "experience" in college, in addition to their school work and studies. Some examples of these extracurricular activities and experiences include a part-time job, volunteering, clubs, on-campus groups, intramural sports, student government, and other types of leadership experience....

I did not take out loans for college, for a few different reasons. For one, I did not want for me or my family to accumulate loans or debt to have to worry about paying back later, when we could afford to handle it then. Going off of that, I had financial help from my family, so thankfully we were able to handle the expenses as I went along through college. While I...