I always wait until the last moment to complete my year-end lists because in this job the unexpected is to be expected. Who knows what the final days of a year will bring? As it’s now almost 11:00 p.m. on New Year’s Eve, though, I think it’s probably safe to close the books on 2012. So, back to the countdown …

5. Pacific Islands Forum

A clear choice for the Top Ten list again this year was the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), held on Rarotonga in the Cook Islands. Trumping our participation last year, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton led the largest and highest-level U.S. delegation ever to attend the annual event in its 41-year history. For the second year in a row my Embassy hosted the delegation because the Cook Islands is within our area of accreditation.

With the Secretary and me were the Governor of American Samoa Togiola Tulafono, several of my fellow Ambassadors, U.S. Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Locklear, Coast Guard Commander Rear Admiral Charles Ray, and other senior officials from the White House, USAID, Peace Corps, Department of State, Department of the Interior, Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, and several other agencies.

The delegation came to work. As we did last year, my team and I scheduled our various principals for more than 120 separate meetings and public appearances with officials from other nations, NGOs, multilateral institutions, businesses, and citizens groups. It was a punishing but highly productive schedule for the 48 hours or so that most of our visitors were in town, as well as for the week that my team spending preparing for the deluge of arrivals.

The Secretary had perhaps the busiest agenda, packed with individual and group discussions with Pacific heads of government and heads of state, remarks to the Post-Forum Dialogue plenary, a commemoration of America’s historic and ongoing peace and security partnerships in the Pacific, and other events focused on trade promotion, gender equality, and fisheries. And she found time to chat with Cook citizens on the street during a couple of walk-abouts between meetings, which set off an island-wide “Auntie Hillary” frenzy.

In all, over the course of the PIF, Secretary Clinton launched a large number of new initiatives of mutual benefit to the island nations and the United States on issues of regional security, sustainable development, marine protection, climate change, gender equality, education, and economic partnership. Oriented toward capacity building, people-to-people engagement, and entrepreneurial self-reliance, the initiatives provide a recipe for empowerment, not dependency. For a full list of the extensive business accomplished, see my September post about the PIF.

4. Auckland Consulate General Restructuring

As I’ve discussed before, we’ve been engaged in a good bit of internal restructuring at the Mission to bring our programs, staffing, resources, and methods into alignment with current, rather than legacy, circumstances and priorities. That’s all much more difficult than you might imagine, but it’s essential to becoming more effective at our work. Simply put, there wouldn’t be a credible Top Ten list without our restructuring activity. In 2011 we focused on retooling the Embassies in Wellington and Apia (which is why “Embassy Restructuring” was #4 of my 2011 Top Ten). In 2012 we focused intensely on the Consulate General in Auckland.

When I presented my credentials in December 2009, we had a full consular team but just one catch-all program staff position in Auckland despite that city representing more than a third of New Zealand’s population. (The population percentage increases even further if one includes the greater metro area, which I  define as the places within an easy day’s commute of the Auckland CBD.) Such a skeletal deployment makes very little sense and certainly impaired our effectiveness.

Over the past year we’ve corrected the problem by creating new portfolios and moving several existing American-officer and locally-engaged positions from Wellington to Auckland. In doing so we have rebalanced our program staff to achieve a roughly 50/50 split between our two facilities, and have created in Auckland fully functioning economic, political, public diplomacy, and public affairs teams. I am particularly excited about positions we’ve created in Auckland for university outreach, educational advising, and Pacific communities engagement. The changes are already producing results, and will pay dividends far into the future.

3. Secretary Leon Panetta’s Visit to New Zealand

We hosted our third visit of the year by a senior member of the Cabinet when Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta came to Auckland in September. The first American Secretary of Defense to visit New Zealand in more than 30 years, Secretary Panetta engaged in a busy two days of meetings, including with Prime Minister John Key, Minister of Defence Dr. Jonathan Coleman, and Leader of the Opposition David Shearer.

The visit takes a place high on the 2012 Top Ten list because it was emblematic of the tangible revitalization of security relations between the two countries over the past two years.

In June, Secretary Panetta and Minister Coleman signed in DC the Washington Declaration, a short statement that expressed our joint commitment to expand defense cooperation and establish regular senior-level strategic security policy dialogues.

Earlier in the year New Zealand hosted both the first U.S.-N.Z. joint air exercises and the first U.S.-N.Z. joint army/marine exercises in more than a quarter century.

Also this year New Zealand was invited for the first time ever to send a ship to participate in the U.S.-sponsored RIMPAC, the world’s largest international maritime exercise.

Such engagement is of significant benefit to both our societies, as well as to our neighbors. In an unpredictable world, enhanced coordination and interoperability will allow us to respond together more quickly and effectively to natural disasters, humanitarian crises, and other exigencies here in the Pacific. Compelling evidence of what I mean was our joint U.S. Coast Guard / Royal New Zealand Air Force mission a year ago to provide emergency fresh water supplies to Tokelau, thus averting a crisis.

The steps taken this year were wise, long-overdue, and mutually beneficial. Considered together, the Washington Declaration and the Wellington Declaration provide a framework for engagement that both looks confidently forward and reaffirms the deep, vibrant partnership that our two countries have historically maintained.

2. Celebration of Samoa’s 50th Independence Day

On June 1, 2012, the nation formerly known as Western Samoa celebrated its 50th Independence Day. As you may recall from several of my posts that month, our Embassy Apia team put together an impressive schedule of substantive and ceremonial events to mark the august occasion and underscore the long, deep history of U.S.-Samoa friendship. In fact, the United States had the largest, most diverse, and most vibrant international presence at the independence celebrations.

I led an official Presidential Delegation appointed by the White House which included, among others, Admiral Cecil Haney (Commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet), Congressional Delegate Eni Faleomavaega, and my colleague Ambassador Frankie Reed (our current American Ambassador to Suva, and former Chargé d’Affaires at Embassy Apia). We brought with us the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Chafee (with 350 sailors on board), the N.O.A.A. climate research vessel Ka’imimoana, and several Coast Guard and Navy aircraft for ceremonial fly-overs.

Our U.S. Navy 7th Fleet Band paraded and played concerts on Upolu and Savaii. The acclaimed African American step group Step Afrika! performed at schools, in church halls, and on stage at the national variety show. The Navy musicians, steppers, Peace Corps volunteers, my Embassy colleagues, and I all marched together in the official procession on Independence Day. And we hosted several dinners and receptions at our new Chargé Residence, including for the Samoa Chamber of Commerce, the large number of fellow Americans from American Samoa who attended the festivities, and senior government officials.

In terms of substantive activity, we announced our plans to build a new district medical center near the airport. We awarded several economic development grants. And Prime Minister Tuilaepa and I signed a Shiprider Agreement which will allow the Government of Samoa to place Samoan law enforcement officers on American Coast Guard and Navy ships passing through Samoan waters. Those officers will be able to direct the interdiction, arrest, and fining of foreign vessels engaged in illegal commercial fishing, trafficking in persons, or trafficking in prohibited substances, all serious problems in parts of the Pacific.

One of the highlights of our program was a reception aboard the USS Chafee after we signed the Shiprider Agreement on the foredeck. The 7th Fleet Band entertained guests including the Prime Minister, Head of State, King of Tonga, Governor-General of New Zealand, Governor of American Samoa, Deputy Prime Minister, several Cabinet Ministers, senior officials from French Polynesia, and heads of NGOs active in Samoa.

Our commemoration of Samoa’s 50th year of independence was, in my view, the most impressive and successful effort in the history of Embassy Apia. My colleagues underscored meaningful historical linkages and ongoing collaborations, while taking significant steps to deepen and expand relations further. Our Apia team planned for many months and then, along with visiting support from Wellington and Auckland, worked 15-hour days for more than a week to implement the program. It was the kind of effort that puts a big smile on your face, and easily ranks as one of our top two Mission efforts of 2012.

1. Celebration of the 70th Anniversary of US-NZ Bilateral Relations
and the Arrival of American Forces during World War II

In a photo-finish with the Samoa 50th, the top slot on my 2012 list goes to the Mission’s extensive commemorations of two highly significant milestones in shared Kiwi/American history. In February we marked the 70th anniversary of the establishment of formal diplomatic relations between the two countries, and in June we marked the 70th anniversary of the arrival of American military forces in New Zealand at the request of Prime Minister Peter Fraser after the outbreak of World War II in the Pacific.

It’s difficult to talk briefly about the anniversaries because the program spanned virtually the entire year, starting with social media efforts in February and concluding with the Marine Ball in November. I’ve already written more than a dozen blog posts about various elements of the commemorations, so I won’t recount the details again here.

I’ll simply say that, inter alia, we produced stamps, minted coins (at left), sponsored a 1940s video contest for students, held a memorial concert at Old St. Pauls, took the U.S. Marine Forces Pacific Band on a 3-week concert tour of cities and towns that had hosted Americans during the war, and held large 1942-themed Independence Day receptions for almost 1,500 folks in Wellington, Auckland, and Christchurch.

We talked live and online about the importance of shared history … Walter Nash’s arrival in DC to establish New Zealand’s first ever diplomatic mission abroad … the bedrock relationship formed when more than 150,000 American servicemen and women came to New Zealand during the war … and the shared service and sacrifice of our respective forebears during some of the darkest days of the prior century.

The Government of New Zealand held a wreath-laying ceremony at the National War Memorial attended by the Prime Minister, Governor-General, Leader of the Opposition, Minister of Defence, and other dignitaries. There was a moving sunset retreat on the Parliament forecourt with the Prime Minister and Governor-General, followed by a Parliamentary reception. Commemorative statements were read in the House, and New Zealand Post issued a set of anniversary stamps. The Kapiti Council and Kapiti U.S. Marines Trust held a series of additional events.

There was great warmth in the celebration of our shared history, which is the rock-solid foundation on which the relationship between the two nations still stands, whatever the vagaries of the politics of the day. Seventy years on, Kiwis and Americans still stand shoulder to shoulder on the issues that matter the most in the world. We advocate together for universal human rights from a position of deeply held, shared civic values. We still serve and sacrifice together in peacekeeping and reconstruction efforts around the world.

And we work closely together on a wide variety of economic development, climate change, disaster response, gender equality, rule of law, political empowerment, and other projects. In a show-me-the-money era when values are often viewed as quaint inconveniences, it’s important to remind ourselves that first principles rather than pecuniary gain bind our relationship together.

Of course, we don’t always agree on everything. But really, that’s to be expected. If we don’t occasionally squabble, then we aren’t being honest with each other. What matters is not the 5% or so of the time that we disagree, but the 95% of the time that our instincts, interests, and priorities naturally align. And what matters most of all is how we deal with disagreement when it occurs.

By those measures and all accounts, 2012 was a very good year.

*  *  *

That’s it for now. I hope you’ve enjoyed this brief tour through the highlights of another gratifying year at American Missions New Zealand and Samoa. Our 2010 was an excellent year significantly surpassed by 2011, which in turn has been exceeded by 2012. I’m very much looking forward to the pleasures and challenges of maintaining that steep trajectory in 2013.

Next year brings another couple of special anniversaries. October 12, 2013 marks the 175th anniversary of American diplomatic presence in Aotearoa. On that date in 1838, U.S. Secretary of State John Forsyth commissioned John R. Clendon to be the first United States consul in the lands later to be called New Zealand.

In addition, August will mark the 70th anniversary of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s iconic island-hop trip through the South Pacific during the height of the war. From August 27 through September 2, 1943, Mrs. Roosevelt stopped in New Zealand to tour Red Cross facilities, visit marae, raise the profile of women’s contributions to the war effort, and engage with soldiers and civilians in Auckland, Rotorua, and Wellington.

Plans are afoot …

For now, though, Dr McWaine and I, and everyone else at American Missions New Zealand and Samoa, wish you and yours a very happy, healthy, and rewarding New Year … Kia hari te Tau Hou … Ia manuia le Tausaga Fou … Hau’oli Makahiki Hou.

It’s hard to believe, but yet another year is drawing rapidly to a close. As we look ahead to the New Year, it makes sense to reflect on the twelve months gone by, so I thought I’d assemble a list of the efforts in which the American Mission played a meaningful role that most significantly contributed to positive momentum in U.S. relations with New Zealand and Samoa in 2012. Given the exponential acceleration of our activity, it was not an easy job to create a short list of highlights. After a good bit of thought and revision, here’s my Top Ten countdown:

10. Gold Standard Award for Social Media Communications

Our year started with some unexpected but greatly appreciated positive reinforcement when Public Affairs Asia, the leading regional professional association for corporate communicators, honored us with the Gold Standard Award for Social Media Communications at its annual awards event in Singapore in January. Although the trophy says “2011,” the award is emblematic of a large volume of impactful, innovative, high-quality work performed at the Mission in 2012.

Each year the Gold Standard Awards recognize achievement in the Pacific and Asia regions across a wide range of public affairs and communications activity, including social media.

A panel of leading industry judges narrowed the many nominees in the social media category this year to a short list composed of Research in Motion (RIM), Kraft Foods Australia, Johnnie Walker Black Label, and the American Mission New Zealand (a.k.a. the Embassy).

We were selected as the ultimate winners based on an in-depth, comprehensive review of all four nominees’ social media activities and outcomes.

The award hits my Top Ten list as a proxy for the substantial commitment made by the Embassy to engaging new audiences via the internet and to positioning ourselves as a bit of an idealab for 21st Century diplomatic tools and approaches. In the year gone by, we significantly increased our reach across all of our existing platforms and experimented with new platforms such as Pinterest and Instagram. We also deepened the integration of our “live” and “virtual” activities, moving ourselves closer to the point at which social media will be an organic part of everyone’s work.

Perhaps most exciting, this year we broke ground on our new Digital Engagement Center in the Embassy. A combination of video studio and computer lab, the facility will allow us to create more professional, interactive content for our social media platforms, as well as to link more effectively to web-based collaborations elsewhere. The Center should be fully outfitted and operational by February 1st, so stay tuned for updates.

9. American Ambassador Outstanding Award

Throughout 2012 we continued to expand our already extensive engagement with youth and future leaders at the high school, university, post-grad, and early career stages. Among the many new efforts we launched was establishing the American Ambassador Outstanding Award as part of the Royal Society of New Zealand’s annual Realise the Dream Awards, a nation-wide secondary school science competition.

The new award will enable an aspiring Kiwi scientist or engineer to attend each year the annual Intel International Science & Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF), the largest pre-university science competition in the world, with more than 1,500 high school students from 80 countries and territories. Intel ISEF provides an extraordinary opportunity for science-oriented students to broaden their horizons, network with their peers, and revel in shared enthusiasm for research and invention.

It was certainly a personal highlight of my year to present the inaugural American Ambassador Outstanding Award to Sohail Abdulla of Mount Roskill Grammar School in Auckland for his work designing and building a glass-cleaning robot that climbs up windows. Sohail will be taking his impressive robot to the next ISEF, scheduled for May 2013 in Phoenix, Arizona. We very much look forward to presenting our award to a similarly promising young Kiwi each year, and to continuing to expand the Embassy’s youth and exchange programs.

8. Connecting Young Leaders Conference

Another Top Ten  highlight drawn from our youth outreach this year was our 2nd biennial Connecting Young Leaders Conference, which brought together my student advisers from around the country for two days of policy discussions, leadership and career skills-building, and networking with special guests from government, business, academic, media, elite sports, and not-for-profit circles.

In my travels I meet regularly with my student advisers at New Zealand’s various universities, but there is nothing quiet as energizing as bringing everyone together to brainstorm, socialize, and debate in an intensely concentrated but casual manner. There is no more powerful investment in the future than these kinds of interactive youth programs, and our first experiment with a conference two years ago was such a success that we’ve institutionalized the gathering as a regular event. This year’s conference certainly exceeded my high expectations.

Our all-star line-up of speakers, panelists, and coaches included Olympian (and CEO of Best Leadership Academy) Beatrice Faumuina, Zeenat Rahman (Secretary Clinton’s Special Adviser for Youth), Westpac Bank senior executive Mark Fitz-Gerald, MPs Jacinda Ardern and Julie Anne Genter, Burgerfuel Worldwide executive Alexis Lam, my former youth adviser (and now head of Maori Development at ICEHOUSE) Shay Wright, and many more. It was the kind of event that keeps me jumping out of bed in the morning, and the students seemed to find it valuable as well. We have already started planning for the next conference.

7. Secretary Janet Napolitano’s Visit to New Zealand

Regular circulation of personnel is as important to the health of a bilateral relationship as circulation of red blood cells is to the health of the human body. One of our top priorities at the Embassy has thus been increasing the number of serious working visits by American officials to New Zealand. We hosted a record number of official visitors in 2012 – more than quintuple the number received during the twelve months immediately prior to my arrival as Ambassador – including three senior members of President Obama’s Cabinet.

The first of our Cabinet-level visitors this year was Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, who came for three days of discussions with senior Kiwi officials on a variety of issues including global supply chain security, trusted traveler programs, transnational crime, and human trafficking. The Secretary’s visit easily hits my Top Ten list because of the importance of the topics covered and the tangible progress made on projects of direct benefit to both countries.

In addition to meeting with Prime Minister John Key and Leader of the Opposition David Shearer, the Secretary signed joint statements of intent with Ministers Nathan Guy and Maurice Williamson, launched a study of how New Zealand’s Smart Gate might be synched with U.S. trusted traveler programs to better facilitate two-way business travel, and reviewed ways to extend the world-leading collaboration between the United States and New Zealand on expediting customs processing while increasing container security.

6. Project (R)evolution Social Media Conference

In a sign of just how important it is to our work at the Mission, social media takes another slot on our 2012 Top Ten list, this time for a conference we held in Auckland back in August. Partnering with Auckland University of Technology and Social Media NZ, we brought together more than 200 digital thinkers from New Zealand, the United States, and elsewhere to discuss the current status and future direction of connectivity technology and net-driven change.

Brainchild of my Embassy colleague (and relentless social media czar) Mike Cousins, the gathering was dubbed The Project: (R)evolution and pitched at a 3.0 rather than 1.0 level with research-based sessions and extensive opportunity for discussion. The impressive roster of presenters was assembled from major industry players, change-focused enterprises, entrepreneurial success stories, and seasoned net practitioners.

Approving the seed money to launch the process was perhaps the best decision I made in 2012. The conference attracted an elite cohort of thought leaders and trended globally on Twitter. The proceedings generated vigorous, deep, informed discussion of issues such as innovation, digital ethics, intellectual property, web access, and change management that are too often painted with cartoonish brush strokes. Based on our inaugural experience, we hope to make the conference an annual event with a different cutting-edge focus each year.

*  *  *

Stay tuned. I’ll continue the countdown tomorrow.

My series of articles about great American universities and colleges has stimulated a dynamic exchange with interested readers. I’ve particularly enjoyed responding to comments and queries inspired by the posts. Perhaps the question I’m asked most frequently is how can a prospective student best go about selecting a school from among the thousands of tertiary education institutions in the United States.

Frankly, I’m probably the wrong person to answer that question. No one (including me) knows what put the idea in my head, but from an early age I was focused exclusively on Princeton University. I politely resisted all other options and advice, including my high school guidance counselor’s dire warnings that no one from our coal town could possibly get into such a good school.

I did relatively little research, in part because my mind was made up and in part because information was difficult to get. (I lived in a rural area, and there was no internet back then.) I didn’t visit campuses because the logistics were prohibitive and, frankly, because I didn’t think the scenery would be relevant to my decision.

When the time came to apply for admission, I yielded to adult pressure, and assembled and submitted applications to two additional schools in the same general category as my first choice. And then I waited for the Princeton response to arrive.

Don’t do what I did.

Since I did just about everything wrong when I went through the process myself, I sat down recently with our Educational Adviser Drew Dumas to talk about how I should have gone about screening and selecting schools as a prospective student. Paraphrased below is a summary of his counsel, which I thought was quite good.

There is, of course, no single right approach to selecting schools. What would work best for you depends on a variety of objective and subjective variables including your own analytic style. A potentially useful starting point, though, is to consider the following seven factors, in order, which should help you narrow the range of options in an efficient and productive manner:

(1) field of study,
(2) geographic location,
(3) community size,
(4) school size,
(5) extracurricular offerings,
(6) financial considerations, and
(7) chemistry.

Field of Study.

It’s always good to start your thought process with what you think you want to study. Of course, not everyone enters university certain about what their major field of study will be or what kind of career they want to have after they graduate. Most students, though, have at least a general sense of direction or a few subjects they think they would like to explore.

Depending on your interests, part of your analysis should be what specific degrees does the school offer, and how much flexibility is there to combine fields of study. I once met a graduate student who wanted to specialize in “computer music,” combining computer engineering and music composition. She found three universities with existing degree programs in the field as well as a few others which offered the flexibility to combine the two components.

The best way to conduct your initial research these days is with Google. I suggest doing a few searches in the nature of “best school for [X]” or “top [X] programs.” More often than not, the first few results will relate to U.S. News & World Report, The Princeton Review, Forbes, or other famous university rankings. Such rankings can’t and won’t select the right school for you, but they will give you some indication of how particular institutions and degrees compare with their peers.

Useful as they may be, don’t rely too heavily on such rankings. They are inherently subjective, greatly dependent on precisely what variables are considered and how variables are quantified and then weighted. There may also be commercial, political, and marketing influences unrelated to quality of education, particularly with some of the newer entities generating rankings. And, of course, the folks doing the lists don’t know you, your goals, your passions, or your personality.

Your decision on what university or college to attend will greatly influence the rest of your life, so don’t subcontract the decision to a remote committee or someone else’s algorithm. Take a look at the rankings, draw up a preliminary list based on academic curriculum and reputation, and then proceed to step #2.

Geographic Location.

For many students this is a very important factor, particularly if they don’t yet have an idea of what they want to study. For other students this is only a small consideration. However heavily or lightly you weigh its importance, you should think carefully about where you want to spend several years of your life.

There are several different considerations. Is it important or helpful for you to go to school near family or friends in the States? Do you have a personal or cultural affinity for a particular city, region, or topography? Does a particular place resonate with your professional interests or advance future job prospects in your chosen field?

Does the kind of weather matter to you? As you would expect with such a huge country, the climate in the United States is extremely diverse, with everything from desert to sub-tropical to alpine to permafrost. Will it enhance your focus, motivation, and peace of mind to have four seasons, or just a couple?

If you don’t have initial preferences regarding location, this step might not narrow your list at the start of the process. If that’s the case, circle back to this issue closer to the end of your analysis. Even if location doesn’t matter much to you, it could be helpful in breaking any “tie” when you’ve come up with a handful of favorite schools later.

Community Size.

One element of location should be considered separately and with particular care – the size of the community in which the university sits. Given all you know about yourself, your goals, and your interests, do you think it would be better for you to go to school in a large city, a small town, or something in between?

For a variety of reasons, I was interested in going to school in a small-town environment close to a big city. That seemed to give me the best of both worlds, and in the appropriate doses. That was a very personal calculation. I have friends whose educations were greatly enhanced by being in the middle of a large city, or in a rural area with no nearby urban concentration whatsoever.

School Size.

As you know from my series of university profiles, you can find excellent tertiary schools in the United States with student populations anywhere from a few hundred to more than 50,000 on a single campus. Think about what might work best for you.

Smaller schools tend to have a more intimate community atmosphere in which you can really get to know your classmates and professors well. Larger student populations tend to have greater diversity of students, professors, and offerings, and sometimes provide enhanced opportunities for carving out customized niches for yourself.

Extracurricular Offerings.

Although parents and prospective students don’t always recognize the value of this one, it’s well worth taking a close look at the non-academic programs offered at the schools in which you are interested.

As a general matter, the array of student organizations and activities provides a sense of campus culture and priorities. As a specific matter, there may be particular organizations that would enhance your academic experience – e.g., having access to an award-winning student publication if you are interested in becoming a journalist, or to a world-class student symphony if you are a musician.

Some universities have vibrant, influential debating societies and active political clubs that foster life-long personal and professional relationships. Other universities invest heavily in public and community service activities for students. The fraternity and sorority culture at some schools exposes students to philanthropy as well as public service and professional networking.

And, of course, there’s sport to consider. Whatever your skill level, if sports are important to you, then consider the diversity, quality, and inclusiveness of the offerings at the schools to which you are attracted. Look to see how particular schools rank in the sports of most interest to you, and look to see if there are intramural or club opportunities to play if you don’t want to commit to the rigors of inter-collegiate varsity competition.

As you know from my prior posts, sports and athletics help define many American schools and contribute greatly to a sense of community, not only while you are on campus working toward your degree but throughout your life as an alumnus.

As a prospective student, I was about as laser-focused on quality of academics as a person could be (and grossly indifferent to other factors). As an alumnus, I realize in hindsight just how influential Princeton’s non-academic offerings were in my education … and in helping me navigate the rigorous academics with sanity intact.

Financial Considerations.

American universities are not subsidized by the central government (with the exception of our military academies). Thus, prospective students need to consider the relative cost of various options when compiling and evaluating your short list of targets.

As you know from my series of profiles, our public universities (i.e., the schools established by individual States) tend to have lower tuition and fees, with discounts for folks already resident in the State. Our private universities typically have higher tuition and fees but more extensive financial assistance for international students.

Schools from both categories often have scholarships for students who excel at particular sports. Reviewing the financial aid pages of universities’ websites may also give you ideas about potential outside sources of scholarships, grants, or loans, as well as whether the school provides campus employment opportunities for students who wish to work.

Depending on your goals and resources, you might also want to consider what are called community colleges (or junior colleges), which offer 2-year associate (rather than 4-year bachelor) degrees. Community colleges tend to have smaller classes, a more flexible atmosphere for learning, and significantly lower fees and costs.

Drew tells me that most American community colleges have partnerships with larger 4-year universities that allow students to spend their first two years at the community college before completing a second two years of more degree-specific classes at the university. For many students this approach can be a very cost effective path to earning a bachelor degree.

Chemistry.

The above steps should help you winnow our thousands of schools down to a dozen or so options that seem to fit your needs. Then let chemistry take over. In my experience, the best choices are a combination of intellectual and emotional, rather than all one or the other. As I said at the outset, I didn’t end up at Princeton because of a checklist (although the checklist seemed to validate my gut instinct).

Superb chemical agents for your process are alumni, and you should certainly try to talk to graduates of your target schools once you have narrowed your search. Virtually all American schools have extensive alumni cohorts into which it is easy to tap, either through the school or artful googling. Talking with an alumnus can really bring a school to life, as well as give you a way to probe points that might be of particular importance to your decision-making. The alumni with whom I spoke when I was in high school were candid and genuinely interested in helping me make the right choice.

* * *

For more information about finding schools and narrowing your options, please feel free to contact our Educational Adviser, Drew Dumas, at DumasAG@state.gov. In addition to responding to inquiries, Drew regularly runs group sessions on school selection, SAT preparation, college essay writing, and more. Email him to find out when future sessions will be held in your area.

FYI, the next in my series of university profiles will run just after New Year’s, highlighting either Cooper Union (a prestigious New York City university where every student receives a full-tuition scholarship) or my alma mater, Princeton University, whichever I finish first.

If you’re linked with me on Facebook, Pinterest, or Twitter, you know that our Embassy Marines and I visited Children’s Hospital in Wellington yesterday to distribute a large pile of toys to kids who unfortunately will be spending their Christmas as in-patients rather than at home. As we went room to room I was reminded of words President Obama spoke earlier this month on Christmas in Washington, a televised annual concert benefitting Children’s National Medical Center, which I think nicely crystalize the true meaning of the season:

“Tonight is a chance to get into the Christmas spirit; to spread some joy and sing along with artists who have much better voices than we do. But it’s also a chance to make a real difference in the lives of some very brave young people being treated at Children’s National Medical Center. Many of these kids and their parents are going through tough times right now, and your support helps give them a reason to hope –- not just during the holidays, but all year round.

“And that’s really what Christmas is all about. Each of us is incredibly blessed in so many ways. But those blessings aren’t just meant to be enjoyed — they’re meant to be used and shared with those who have less.

“The Christian faith teaches us that on this day a child was born so that we might have eternal life. And at the heart of many of the world’s great religions is the idea that we’re all better off when we treat our brothers and sisters with the same love and compassion that we want for ourselves.

“So yes, tonight is about … all the talented folks on this stage. But it’s also about the [people] who are spending this holiday in a hospital bed, or a shelter, or protecting our freedom on a battlefield far from home. Let’s keep them in our prayers, and follow Christ’s calling to love one another as He has loved all of us.”

In the hustle, bustle, clatter, and clang of the season it is often too easy to overlook the reason why so many workplaces are closed today, families are gathered, songs are sung, lights are lit, and feasts are prepared. The reason is not the gifts under the tree. The reason is the gift for which the holiday is named, and what that gift teaches us.

To everyone celebrating around the world today, Dr. McWaine and I wish you a very Merry Christmas. To those who are injured, ill, homeless, hungry, lonely, or in harm’s way, our thoughts are with you, and we pray that those who are able to share their blessings with you will do so. And to those around the world who must celebrate Christmas quietly behind closed doors due to fear of reprisals, we wish you strength, courage, and glad tidings.