ChiSquare

Other than the obvious - tuition - in what ways is St Mary's different from a comparably sized private liberal arts college?

samonite16

Hi, I am a current student. I do not have a huge frame of reference, but I think that the experience is fairly similar to private liberal arts colleges. The lower tuition for in-state students does, I think, result in a somewhat more economically diverse student body. If someone were dropped randomly onto the SMCM campus, though, it would probably take a while before he/she realized that the school was not private.

ChiSquare

samonite, thanks for that. Are you glad that you chose St Mary's, and were you a Maryland resident?

pumpkin65

Hi ChiSquare,

I hope someone of greater intelligence than me answers your question, because I have been wondering the same thing. Having made the circuit to a few LACs in the middle Atlantic states, I am not seeing a difference, other than affordability. It does not have the prestige factor of some, but like the other poster said - you would have a difficult time knowing you were at a public college when you walked the campus. And they do stress its ability to attract people from varied socio-economic backgrounds and they have succeeded in achieving that.

We have actually found some of the facilities at St. Mary's to be superior to some of the private LACs we have toured. At half or less than half the price of many, it is difficult to top, unless you are in love with a certain LAC for specific reasons - if it had a specific unique offering or program your student could not get elsewhere. Or, if you wanted a very recognizable name.

The location of St. Mary's is probably a love it or hate it thing as well.

I had a friend whose daughter would not get out of the car because she perceived it as remote. My child went into it with that picture in her mind, but left knowing she could probably be very happy there. It seemed like a happy place to us.

I think I might have to ask that question of some of its close competitors as we make decisions.

Keilexandra

Biggest drawback I can see is the lack of geographic diversity (most students are from Maryland). And the merit aid isn't particularly generous compared to some equivalent privates.

ChiSquare

Thanks pumpkin and Keil. We are visiting in April, and my D will be spending an overnight in a dorm (while I'm enjoying myself at a B & B). While she's enthusiastic about St Mary's from afar, I hope that will give her a realistic sense of what it would be like to live there. Actually, we'll be there during the Washington cherry blossom festival, which we are also going to visit, so it will probably be a positively-skewed view of what it's like to live in Maryland!