When the wealthiest university in the country announces layoffs, it’s clear that no insitution is immune from the effects of the dismal economy.  Due to a projected 30 percent drop in its endowment, Harvard will be laying off 275 staff members, and that’s after freezing salaries and taking other cost-cutting measures during the past year.

There’s been a lot of talk about how the economy has impacted admission this year, but if you’re getting ready to apply to college, it’s even more important to know how financial pressures could affect the quality of the educational experience at a college.  Harvard is still a wealthy institution, but other schools may be forced to make changes that could impact your choices. If a college is increasing the size of the freshman class because it needs more tuition revenue, students could find larger classes and crowded triple dorm rooms.  More classes might be taught by graduate students rather than full professors.  Some courses and even whole departments could be eliminated.  If you are excited about a school’s linguistics major, or the opportunity to receive a stipend for doing summer research on campus, you want to know that those programs will be there when you arrive. Colleges could also make cuts in athletic programs, academic advising or health services.

All of this means that it is more important than ever to do your research. On college visits, you can see if the buildings and grounds are well-maintained. Ask admissions officers how the economy is impacting the school. Talking to students is always a great way to learn what’s really happening on campus. They can tell you if they have trouble getting into classes, the library has started closing earlier and it takes four weeks to get an appointment with a career advisor. As always, the more information you have, the better prepared you are to make decisions about college.