By: Christina Koshzow

A few weeks ago, I surrendered. I joined Facebook.

Sure, it was “for research,” but after a handful of exchanges with old friends, 135 photo uploads, and countless hours later, I was addicted.

And then I got a message from a former Carnegie Mellon classmate: I’ll be disappointed if you tell me you’re still in Pittsburgh.

That was all it said. Perfectly framed in white, that one-line sentence stood out against the background like a fortune cookie. And it made me think.

Why shouldn’t I be here?

In high school, I simply assumed that Pittsburgh was my home, and when it came time to make a decision about college, nearby Carnegie Mellon seemed like a good choice. Aside from family trips to Florida, other states seemed worlds away.

Then came college. All of a sudden, everything seemed a little closer and a lot more exciting. I wanted DC. I wanted New York. And even though I never considered the possibility of starting a business, I ended up wanting that, too.

Somewhere along the way, undergrad turned into grad school. And just as seamlessly, grad school turned into my first company. I, along with other friends from Carnegie Mellon, created College Prowler, an ongoing series of student-written guides on colleges and universities across the country.

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