<p>Some data points:</p>
<p>Per student endowment (2004)</p>
<p>Swarthmore: $789,735
U Chicago: $293,211</p>
<p>The Role of the Teaching Assistant</p>
<p><a href=“http://teaching.uchicago.edu/tutorial/tas.shtml[/url]”>http://teaching.uchicago.edu/tutorial/tas.shtml</a></p>
<p>“Although the specific terminology varies from department to department, teaching assistants are those individuals who conduct sessions that meet in addition to lecture presentations by faculty members. These sessions most commonly serve as an aid to large lecture classes, and the primary purpose of the sessions is to amplify and clarify the concepts covered in the lectures-often through problem solving and discussion. Teaching assistants are in a unique position because they often deal with only a subset of the members in a class and, in some senses, must function not only in an instructional role but also as a mediator between the undergraduates and the professor.”</p>
<p>Essay on Teaching Large Classes</p>
<p><a href=“http://teaching.uchicago.edu/pod/gillespie.html[/url]”>http://teaching.uchicago.edu/pod/gillespie.html</a></p>
<p>“It is important to appear approachable in large classes. Build rapport with your students, and recognize the individuality of each student. Move among them when talking. Increase student access to you by getting to class early to listen to their questions, comments, or complaints. Begin by inviting students to call out something they know or recall about a topic. Display the responses as an introduction to the day’s activities. Address some of the anonymity students feel in large classes. Try to learn some names, and call on those you know by name. Learn something about as many students as possible. Have your students complete information cards about themselves–career goals, hometown, special skills or interests, expectations for the course, or previous experience with course content. Ask for a few volunteers each day to help with demonstrations and activities and through this process learn some student names. Employ seating charts, take pictures of small groups of students in your classes, or make a videotape containing a brief auto-biographical sketch of each student.”</p>
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<p>IMO, there are legitimate reasons to choose UChicago over Swarthmore:</p>
<p>a) If you are sure you want to study in a niche field that Swarthmore doesn’t offer.</p>
<p>b) If you have already completed advanced college work in your field and know that you will require numerous graduate courses to provide sufficient challenge. [Note: very few Swatties feel that they are insufficiently challenged academically.]</p>
<p>c) If you want an urban college environment.</p>
<p>d) You look forward to a core curriculum.</p>
<p>Otherwise, do Swarthmore for undergrad and UChicago for grad school: the best of both worlds.</p>
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<p>PS: You’ll know right away which is right for you when you visit. Do overnights. Sit in on a freshman class in something that interests you.</p>