With Barack Obama's inauguration coming up in a few days, many prospective college students are thinking about the best path to a successful career in politics. Dr. Katherine Cohen, CEO and founder, IvyWise, has identified the "Top Five Colleges to Attend If You Want to be in the President's Cabinet." In order from the least to most cabinet members, the colleges are...

• University of California, Berkeley
• Yale and Georgetown (tie)
• Indiana University
• University of Denver
• Harvard University

The admissions standards for these universities vary widely, so be sure to click on the links to get more admissions information.

My first college spotlight of 2009 takes us to the town of Richmond, Indiana, where we find the Quaker-affiliated liberal arts college Earlham. Earlham College is proud of the good it does in the world--the majority of students study off campus for at least a semester, peace studies is popular, and a high percentage of graduates go on to earn PhDs. Loren Pope included Earlham in his book 40 Colleges That Change Lives, and the school's strong liberal arts have earned it a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. The college's large 800-acre campus features attractive brick buildings and extensive areas of undeveloped fields and woods.

Understandably, many prospective students are concerned about the high cost of private colleges in today's difficult financial climate. Earlham, however, has a healthy endowment for a school of under 1,400 students, and they offer significant grant-based financial aid to most of their students.

If you'd like to learn more about Earlham College, check out the Earlham College profile and visit the official Earlham website. If you're familiar with Earlham, please share your thoughts below.

Every week I spotlight a great college that might be off the radar of college applicants. If you'd like to recommend a school for a future spotlight, please do so here in the College Admissions forum.

Related Links:

• Colleges Featured in the Weekly Spotlights
• Top Liberal Arts Colleges
• Should I Go to a Small College or Large University?
• SAT Scores for Top Colleges

The Princeton Review's newest ranking of best value colleges may surprise many prospective students. You won't find regional public universities or community colleges on the list, but it is packed with prestigious schools with high price tags. At the top of the private college list are Swarthmore and Harvard, and the public list finds the University of Virginia and the New College of Florida in the #1 and #2 positions. While you wouldn't think a school that costs $50,000 a year deserves the label of "best value," Princeton Review does have a decent rationale for their lists--many of these expensive and prestigious colleges and universities have excellent financial aid and high quality instruction. For more on The Princeton Review rankings, check out this article in USA Today.

Bargain hunters, however, might want to look into places like Olin College of Engineering, The Cooper Union, and military institutes such as West Point. They're all free. And the community college route is always an economical way to complete a lot of course work towards a Bachelor's Degree.

On Thursday the University of Florida and the University of Oklahoma, the #1 and #2 ranked teams, will face off in the BCS Championship game. Both are public universities, but the admissions standards are significantly different. Although Florida is twice the size of Oklahoma, it's also far more selective. Check out the stats below to see what it takes to get accepted, and click on the profile links for more information on admissions, costs and financial aid.

University of Florida:

• Percentage of applicants accepted: 42.1%
• Middle 50% SAT Math: 580 / 690
• Middle 50% SAT Reading: 560 / 670
• Middle 50% ACT Composite: 25 / 29
• Total Cost (In-State): $14,437
• Total Cost (Out-of-State): $29,021

University of Oklahoma:

• Percentage of applicants accepted: 82.5%
• Middle 50% SAT Math: 530 / 650
• Middle 50% SAT Reading: 520 / 640
• Middle 50% ACT Composite: 23 / 28
• Total Cost (In-State): $19,213
• Total Cost (Out-of-State): $28,327

Florida is the better bargain for in-state students. Out-of-state applicants can expect admissions to be more competitive than for in-state students. For more admissions information, check out the University of Florida profile and the University of Oklahoma profile.

Related Links:

• Big 12 Conference
• SEC, Southeastern Conference