Colleges and universities spend billions of dollars each year to enroll a shrinking population of college-bound students. However, relatively little is known about the high-ability, high achieving students whose enrollment decisions can have positive effects on retention, graduation, faculty satisfaction, alumni giving, and overall institutional reputation. This qualitative research study utilizes semistructured interviews to identify characteristics most important to this college bound population as they make their final decisions as well as the individuals and resources that influence those final decisions. Recipients of a highly selective national scholarship competition were interviewed after their college decision and prior to beginning their first years of college. After administering a screening questionnaire with 89 respondents, I conducted 22 semistructured interviews of approximately 60 minutes. Following transcription and coding of these interviews, four salient themes were constructed that identify characteristics most important to this population when making the college decision: (a) school prestige and reputation; (b) finances and cost; (c) academic offerings and administration; and (d) student culture. Another three themes were constructed to identify the individuals or resources influencing the college decision: (a) college contacts and resources; (b) non-college online resources; and (c) high school contacts. These themes may guide the creation of methods and materials to recruit and enroll these students, who have an outsized impact on retention, graduation, and other important metrics of institutional success. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]