<p>
In all but one type of research, yes. LACs are small, research is a secondary priority for LAC faculty, and there are few or no graduate students. So LACs rank way behind big universities, in terms of overall quantity and quality of research achievements. </p>
<p>But LACs commonly do excel in one specific type of research: undergraduate research. If there are no graduate students, then who do the faculty turn to for research assistance? They have no choice – they have to recruit undergraduates and plug them into their projects. So LAC students are more likely to be involved in faculty research as undergraduates, and are more likely to work with faculty at a meaningful level.</p>
<p>Top LACs have very high placement rates into top graduate programs. Grad school applicants from LACs usually have a solid grounding in the fundamentals, have done meaningful research as undergraduates, and are accustomed to close working relationships with faculty. These are general qualities that graduate programs are looking for. </p>
<p>LAC students are less likely to get involved with cutting-edge, state-of-the-art research as undergraduates. But grad schools aren’t typically concerned about this deficiency, because the grad school process is expected to correct it quickly.</p>