This article is exceprted from 8 Steps to Help Black Families Pay For College by Thomas LaVeist, Ph.D. and Will LaVeist.

A school’s atmosphere is very important.It determines whether you’ll feel comfortable there, whether you’ll find your niche. We once heard it put like this: “Going to college ain’t about getting in, it’s about fitting in.” This issue has raised for many African American students the question of whether to attend a Historically Black College or University (HBCU) or a predominantly white institution. African American students can be successful at either; it’s up to the student.

The Scoop on HBCUs
First of all, by definition, an HBCU is a school that was established before 1964 with the intention of serving the African American community. Often people talk about HBCUs as if they were all the same, but nothing could be further from the truth. There are more than 100 HBCUs in the United States, and they come in all types and sizes. HBCUs can be public or private, and come in both the two-year and four-year variety. Some are large, and some are small. HBCUs are located in 20 states, Washington, D.C., and the Virgin Islands, in both urban and rural areas. Some have competitive admissions standards, whereas others offer quality educational opportunities to students who have less than stellar high school grades. Some, such as Lincoln University of Missouri, actually have large white populations. And few, if any of them, are really all black.

There are some important distinctions in definition to note here: Colleges may be “historically black,” “predominantly black,” or “having a plurality of black students,” and these mean different things. Historically black colleges, as we said above, were established specifically to serve black students, though many white students also attend. Predominantly black colleges have a student population that is more than 50 percent black (so a historically black college could very well also be predominantly black). And in a school that has a plurality of black students, a large segment of the student population is black, though black students do not make up the majority. Only HBCUs have a history of being focused on the African American population.

HBCUs have their advantages and disadvantages. In terms of financial aid, many HBCUs, particularly the smaller private institutions, often lack the resources necessary to offer enough scholarship or grant aid to cover the student’s financial needs. This is because most HBCUs do not have large endowments. Some of the better-known predominantly white schools can often provide more generous financial aid packages because they have stronger funding sources. Their funds are often boosted by large donations from alumni and lucrative corporate relationships.

The Real World
Some people think that you and every other African American student should attend an HBCU because you will feel more comfortable and perform better if you are surrounded by students from your own culture; others advise that you should not attend an HBCU because it doesn’t mirror the “real world” of racial differences that you’ll face once you graduate and enter the workforce. We don’t agree with either of these schools of thought.

Here’s why: First of all, some of the larger state universities have more African American students than most HBCUs (a few examples are the University of Maryland, the University of Michigan, Temple University, Wayne State University, and the University of South Carolina). If the goal is simply to “be around” students from your own culture, you can do so at those schools as well as any HBCU. Second, HBCUs reflect the “real world” as well as non-historically black colleges. The fact is, many African American students at non-historically black colleges join all-black fraternities or sororities, form a Black Student Union, and even live in African American dormitories.

The African American environment at any college is a factor you should weigh carefully before you apply. Dig beneath the perceptions and stereotypes, and discover for yourself which environment is best for YOU. Visiting the schools you are considering is a great way to assess their environments.

HBCU or Not, You Should Visit the Campus
The best way to learn about any college’s atmosphere is to visit the campus. By visiting schools and talking to students (especially African American students and upperclassmen, but not ONLY African American students), you can get a more accurate picture of the school’s environment. You can reflect on the size of the student body and campus setting, and you can try to imagine what it would be like to attend each school. Visiting for only a day or staying overnight won’t allow you to see everything, but if you ask the right questions and make the right observations, you’ll walk away with a wealth of information to help you make your final choice.

There are many ways to approach the college visit. Every college arranges campus tours, but tours may also be offered by local alumni chapters, church or community organizations, or private groups. Whatever you do, don’t just follow the tour guide down the beaten path.

Spend some time wandering around to get a better feel for the place. Check out the student union, the cafeteria, sports facilities, and the library. And don’t forget the dorms. They may not be palaces, true; but can you see yourself living in them? If not, you may want to investigate the cost and availability of off-campus apartments.

Be sure to interact with students. Ask them how they feel about the school and what they do for fun. Do students hang out on campus most of the time, or is it a suitcase school, where the majority of students go elsewhere for the weekend? Observe how the students act toward each other and toward you-are they friendly and open? Is the student body ethnically and racially diverse? You’ll want to go when the campus is alive, so plan ahead.

Summing Up
Deciding where you will spend the next four or five years of your life is a major decision-one of the most important decisions you’ll make. Weigh your options carefully. Consider your individual needs and factor in the cost appropriately. High price does not always equal high quality, and vice versa. There are plenty of schools that offer a great education at a low cost.

Most important, choose a school for the right reasons. When you watch the next March Madness NCAA basketball tournament on TV, don’t get carried away by the winning team. You wouldn’t want to make your most important academic decision based solely on who wins the big game.