<p>I’m very sorry for coming across so harshly. Please, however, stop trying to bring Pomona into this. While I do go to Pomona, I don’t advertise LACs only because of it. If you look at any of my posts regarding LACs on this board, I tell students to consider all of them, not just Pomona. My list had 6 LACs on it. And I’m a scientific researcher/PhD prospective, so there is a reason I considered all of those schools.</p>
<p>Let me clarify your misconceptions with some objective points. </p>
<p>It is not true that liberal art colleges are “behind” in science, as you say. Engineering, sure, but engineering is not a liberal arts subject. Plus, you’re considering Yale, whose engineering is bad compared to state schools, and U’Chicago, which doesn’t even offer engineering. Some LACs do offer engineering- Swarthmore and Washington and Lee, for example. Let us focus on science directly. I think you are getting your misconceptions from graduate rankings, which most liberal art colleges do not offer and thus would not rank in.</p>
<p>By far the most important marker of a science education is PhD production. The world of science is one of discovery. PhDs in part assure that new knowledge is discovered. When PhDs are produced, it shows that students from that school received a depth of academic learning that has them prepared to search for new questions and answers.</p>
<p>According to [Top</a> 50 Schools That Produce Science PhDs - CBS News](<a href=“http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-37242954/top-50-schools-that-produce-science-phds/]Top”>http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-37242954/top-50-schools-that-produce-science-phds/), 28 of the top 50 science producing PhDs were all liberal art colleges. Carleton, Swarthmore, and Reed all produce more PhDs per capita than any of the Ivy League schools.</p>
<p>According to <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/1270318-lacs-most-science-majors.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/1270318-lacs-most-science-majors.html</a>, several liberal art colleges have a substantial number of science majors. According to the Yale Profile, 23% of students majored in a physical or natural science, math, or computer science. So you see that these numbers are not very different. </p>
<p>According to [College</a> Rankings 2011: Brainiacs - Newsweek and The Daily Beast](<a href=“http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/features/college-rankings/2011/brainiacs.all.html]College”>http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/features/college-rankings/2011/brainiacs.all.html), which measures schools do in production of graduate fellowships and awards, the liberal art colleges do very well. There are many science fellowships and awards: Goldwaters, Fulbrights (in certain cases), Watsons (independent study in science), Nobel Laureates (Swarthmore and Haverford in particular do very well), Gates Cambridge (for studies in science).</p>
<p>Next- for the educational experience as a whole:</p>
<p>First, there is no benefit from attending a large lecture hall compared to a small lecture hall. Sure, you receive the same education. But with smaller lecture halls, it is easy to build a strong rapport with your professors. Easier to access their office hours and to have them write personal, deep recommendations. Easier to converse with them in general and hear from their experience so that you can decide what you want to do with a science major.</p>
<p>Second- there is a difference. At a liberal arts college, you are only taught by professors. These aren’t just some regular old professors, these are some of the best minds in the country on that subject. Haverford faculty hail from Stanford, Yale, and University of Cambridge Ph.D. programs. You will also find an overrepresentation of teachers coming from liberal art colleges at the top universities. And unlike teachers at universities, who have a focus on doing research, the teachers at liberal art colleges come to teach and prepare undergraduates. The atmosphere is more nurturing, individual, and one of growth. Individual attention is important. Unlike some universities, labs are small at a liberal arts college and you are given individual attention by only professors. </p>
<p>At universities, often times you might be taught by a TA. At most LACs, TAs don’t exist- only professors teach classes. And for those Nobel laureates that are only found in universities? Most of them are too busy to teach undergraduate classes, and their research labs are usually only open to graduates. </p>
<p>Third- Some liberal art science facilities are extremely impressive, even more than universities. When I visited Swarthmore College in the fall, I was shocked by how clean, well-maintained, and high tech the science facilities were. U’Penn was also nearby, and when I visited it, I wasn’t nearly as impressed. The reason liberal art colleges often have better facilities is because they have huge amounts of money, and it all goes towards the experience of the undergraduates. If you want a list, just look at the Princeton Review’s best science facilities rankings. The only university making the list is CalTech. </p>
<p>Fourth- Research. Research is a must for applying to PhDs, so if liberal art colleges do so well on them, they must clearly be doing something right. The top liberal art colleges have a huge emphasis on research. Williams spends the most on research money per undergraduate student. Pomona and Harvey Mudd have huge paid summer research programs, sponsoring anywhere from 15-25% of their student body to do research over the summer. Just about every liberal arts college requires that its faculty do research during the school year, so it’s easy to find a professor to work with, even as a first year. Especially with no graduate students. </p>
<p>The university experience is different. While it is true that you might find more projects of interest and more cutting edge facilities, most of these are limited to graduate students. Unlike a top liberal arts college, where research positions are openly advertised and just given directly to students, you have to work much harder to find research at a university. </p>
<p>Fifth- The atmosphere as a whole. At a liberal arts college, collaborativeness is the way to go. The students never compete in grades, there are no curves, and the rigor of the work emphasizes teamwork. Big state universities are known for being cutthroat, particularly in the sciences. While most of the top universities are not cutthroat, they can have harsh curves, or the students may be more reserved and independent.</p>
<p>Sixth- Academic opportunity as a whole. You mention that liberal art colleges are too small to offer substantial classes. It is not always true, however. A big thing to realize is that many of these liberal art colleges are in consortiums, and they come together to provide the educational experience of a university with the intimacy of a liberal arts college. Three big ones among some of the QuestBridge schools are:</p>
<p>Claremont Consortium- Pomona, Scripps, Harvey Mudd, Pitzer, Scripps
5 liberal art colleges, 2500 classes available, including 140 unique math classes and over 450 science classes</p>
<p>5 College Consortium- Amherst, Mt. Holyoke, Smith, Hamilton, UMass Amherst
4 liberal art colleges and 1 state university, 6000 classes available</p>
<p>Tri College Consortium- Swarthmore, Haverford, Bryn Mawr, U’Penn
3 liberal art colleges and 1 private university, 1800 classes available</p>
<p>By contrast, Yale offers about 2000 classes each year.</p>