Peterson's Four-Year Colleges 2008

If you want a massive reference book that covers most colleges in the U.S and Canada, you won't be disappointed.

The publisher bills this massive volume as "3 books in 1." The second of those books, "College Close-Ups," adds little to the work other than a thousand pages of bulk. The close-ups were written by college officials at the featured schools, so they lack the objectivity of the "at-a-glance" profiles of the first section. Moreover, the half-page "at-a-glance" profiles tend to contain just as much useful information as the close-ups.

Nevertheless, as a reference tool, this book is worthwhile. Whereas many guidebooks focus only on so-called "top" schools, Peterson's Four-Year Colleges pretty much covers them all. Also, the extensive indexes make finding what you're looking for easy. The major index is truly invaluable, for it allows you to find those few schools in North America that offer a particular major. If you're looking for equestrian studies or urban planning, this book will help point you in the right direction.

What you won't find here is commentary by students themselves or any of the more subjective quality-of-life discussions featured in other guidebooks. Peterson's "at-a-glance" profiles are small print, no nonsense, data-packed descriptions.

Peterson's Four-Year Colleges won't provide the last word as you research colleges, but it is an excellent place to start.