# CollegeCove

> CollegeCove is a fun, lifestyle-first college search platform for high school students and their families. Filter 4,400+ U.S. colleges by beach proximity, ski resort access, campus safety, weather, Greek life, NCAA sports, HBCU status, city vs. small-town setting, tuition, and more. Create a free account to get personalized match scores, save your shortlist, and share your search with family. Think of it as Zillow for college search.

## Who CollegeCove is for
- **Primary Audience**: High school students who are actively looking for the right college for their lifestyle
- **Secondary Audience**: Parents and family members who want to follow and participate in their student's college search
- **Tertiary Audience**: College admissions teams who want to connect with high school students

## Core Pages

- [Home](https://www.collegecove.com/): Overview of CollegeCove and how lifestyle-first college search works.
- [Search](https://www.collegecove.com/search): Interactive map and filter tool. Filter colleges by beach distance, ski proximity, campus safety, tuition, Greek life, NCAA division, size, weather, and more.
- [Browse Colleges by State](https://www.collegecove.com/colleges): Hub page listing all 50 states with school counts. Links to individual state landing pages.
- [Colleges in [State]](https://www.collegecove.com/colleges/florida): State landing pages for all 50 states (e.g., /colleges/florida, /colleges/california). Each shows the top colleges in that state by enrollment with lifestyle highlights.
- [Compare Schools](https://www.collegecove.com/compare): Side-by-side comparison of two colleges across academics, cost, lifestyle, and campus data.
- [Insights](https://www.collegecove.com/insights): Data-driven articles on college lifestyle trends, search tips, and campus life.
- [About](https://www.collegecove.com/about): The story behind CollegeCove and our mission.
- [Sign Up](https://www.collegecove.com/signup): Create a free account to save schools, get personalized match scores, and share your search with family.

## Ranked Lists

Curated, numbered rankings with methodology notes and ItemList schema for Google rich results:

- [Top Beach-Town Colleges](https://www.collegecove.com/lists/top-beach-town-colleges): The largest 4-year colleges within 10 miles of the ocean, ranked by enrollment.
- [Top Ski-Town Colleges](https://www.collegecove.com/lists/top-ski-town-colleges): The largest 4-year colleges within 50 miles of a major ski resort, ranked by enrollment.
- [D1 Schools with Ski & Beach Access](https://www.collegecove.com/lists/d1-ski-beach): Every NCAA Division I school within 10 miles of the ocean AND 50 miles of a ski resort, ranked by enrollment. Only 10 schools qualify.
- [Selective Colleges Near Ski & Beach](https://www.collegecove.com/lists/selective-ski-beach): Highly selective schools (under 25% acceptance rate) ranked by enrollment, with beach and ski proximity shown.
- [Surf & Ski Colleges](https://www.collegecove.com/lists/surf-and-ski-colleges): Every 4-year college within 10 miles of the ocean AND 50 miles of a ski resort, ranked by enrollment.

## Account Features

CollegeCove accounts are free and add a personal layer on top of the public search data:

- **Save Schools**: Heart any school to add it to your favorites list. Works anonymously (saved to your browser) and syncs to your account when you sign up.
- **Personalized Match Scores**: Complete a short profile wizard (ACT score, budget, location, lifestyle preferences) and every school gets a fit score from 0–100. Strong Fit (80+) and Good Fit (65–79) badges appear on search results, school pages, and the compare tool.
- **Your Matches**: A ranked list of your top college matches based on your profile, with "why it matched" explanations per school.
- **Family Linking**: Students can invite parents to follow along. Parents see their student's saved schools and top matches. Either party can revoke the link anytime.
- **Weekly Digest**: Opt-in email with new match suggestions and updates on saved schools.

## Collections

Curated lists of colleges grouped by lifestyle and vibe:

- [Beach Schools](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/beach-schools): Colleges within 10 miles of the ocean. 102 schools nationwide.
- [Lake Life Schools](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/lake-life): Colleges within 10 miles of a major inland lake (3,000+ acres). Lakefront campuses with sailing, kayaking, and lake culture.
- [Ski Town Schools](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/ski-town): Colleges within 50 miles of a ski resort. 576 schools nationwide.
- [NCAA Division I](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/ncaa-division-1): Big-time college sports, large campuses, high-energy game days.
- [HBCUs](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/hbcu): Historically Black Colleges and Universities — culture, legacy, and community.
- [Budget Friendly](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/budget-friendly): Colleges with out-of-state tuition under $15,000/year.
- [Greek Life Strong](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/greek-life): 215 colleges where fraternities, sororities, and social scenes define campus life.
- [Research Powerhouses](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/research-universities): R1 and R2 Carnegie-classified research universities.
- [Big City Campus](https://www.collegecove.com/collections/big-city-campus): Urban campuses with city energy, internship access, and endless off-campus options.

## Insights Articles

### Campus Safety
- [Safest 4-Year Beach-Town Colleges (Within 10 Miles of the Ocean)](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/safest-beach-town-colleges)
- [Good News for Families: Nearly Half of 4-Year Colleges Score Very Safe](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/nearly-half-very-safe-colleges)
- [Safest 4-Year Ski-Town & Mountain Colleges](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/safest-ski-town-colleges)

### Lake Life
- [10 Great Lake Life Colleges Where You Can Study Hard and Play on the Water](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/10-great-lake-life-colleges)
- [Discover Lake Life Colleges: The Best Schools for Great Lakes Vibes and Epic College Years](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/lake-life-colleges-great-lakes)

### Beach & Ski Lifestyle
- [Surprising Beach Schools: Lakefront Escapes at Northwestern, Clemson & UW-Madison](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/surprising-lake-beach-schools)
- [Why California Dominates the Beach + Ski College Lifestyle](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/california-beach-ski-dominance)
- [The 59 Colleges Where You Can Surf and Ski the Same Day](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/59-surf-and-ski-colleges)
- [Los Angeles Colleges: Beaches and Ski Hills](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/la-beach-ski-colleges)
- [The Slope-to-Surf Gap: Beach Schools Are 5x Harder to Find Than Ski Schools](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/slope-to-surf-gap)
- [The Active College Lifestyle: Why Ski Town Schools Attract Outdoor Lovers](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/active-college-lifestyle-ski-town)
- [Colorado Dominates Ski Colleges](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/colorado-dominates-ski-colleges)
- [Top 8 Ski Town Colleges](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/top-8-ski-town-colleges)

### Greek Life
- [5 Colleges Where Sorority Life Dominates: Rush Week, Bid Day & Participation Data](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/top-sorority-schools-rush-week)
- [Which Colleges Have the Most Students in Greek Life?](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/colleges-highest-greek-participation)
- [The 215 Greek Life Strong Colleges](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/greek-life-strong-215-colleges)

### College Admissions
- [Why Low Acceptance Rates Don't Always Mean a Better College](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/acceptance-rate-vs-yield-rate)

### College Visit Planning
- [Summer College Visits: Pros, Cons & Tips](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/summer-college-visits)
- [How to Plan the Perfect College Campus Visit](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/college-campus-visit)
- [How to Plan a College Visit Road Trip](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/college-visit-road-trip)

### College Search Tools
- [Why You Should Start Your College Search on College Cove (Not Niche, College Board, or Your High School Site)](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/college-cove-vs-niche)

### General
- [Why CollegeCove Exists](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/why-collegecove-exists)
- [Overwhelmed by College Search? Lifestyle Filters That Help](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/overwhelmed-college-search)
- [Hot Weather Colleges Where You Can Wear Shorts All Year](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/hot-weather-colleges)
- [The Best Small-Town Colleges](https://www.collegecove.com/insights/best-small-town-colleges)

## Data Sources

CollegeCove aggregates official U.S. government data:

- **Campus Safety**: U.S. Department of Education Clery Act crime and safety reports — [ope.ed.gov/campussafety](https://ope.ed.gov/campussafety/)
- **Enrollment & Academics**: IPEDS/NCES (National Center for Education Statistics) — [nces.ed.gov/ipeds](https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/)
- **Tuition & Outcomes**: College Scorecard — [collegescorecard.ed.gov](https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/)
- **Climate & Weather**: NOAA/NCEI 1991–2020 climate normals — [ncei.noaa.gov](https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/)
- **Athletics**: NCAA.com schools index — [ncaa.com/schools-index](https://www.ncaa.com/schools-index)

## About Us
- [Our Mission](https://www.collegecove.com/about): How we built a college search platform that puts *your* lifestyle first.

## Contact
- General: hello@collegecove.com
- Privacy: hello@collegecove.com