| threefive: All LACs are different. Some are better in some departments, some in others. In general, the idea is to get a somewhat broad educational experience, learning things in a bunch of different categories, and learning important basic skills like critical thinking, etc. Regardless, there ARE majors and specialization, and the majors are not all the same. Just like anywhere else, you choose your major based on your interests and then have to complete certain requirements (a certain number of credits in that particular major, for exp.). As johnwesley said, the best ones are awesome across the board.
MOST are probably not as hard to get into as the ivies, but that's largely because the ivies are so prestigious that their reputation along gets them a bajillion applicants, meaning the percentage accepted is gonna be smaller. IMO, a lot of LACs can provide just as good an education as the ivies, and some of the more selective ones can still be really tough to get into.
And as to people, I'm the kind of people that apply to LACs (rising senior), and I think that the want to learn vs. easier issue depends hugely on the specific LAC. Personally, I'm on the completely impractical want-to-learn end of the spectrum. As in, I want to major in anthropology and learn everything I can about indigenous people in Australia, Northern Canada, Siberia and Peru/Brazil, ignoring the fact that, in the real world, such knowledge has very little practical application. I will probably end up in grad school and, following that, stuck in academia for the rest of my life.
Woohoo! An eternity of learning! |