LACs with best Biology programs

tk21769
Mon, 03 Sep 2012 14:21:06 +0000

The metrics used in most rankings are oriented toward either the entire college, or toward research quality of graduate departments. So it is difficult to compare specific department strengths among LACs (which by definition usually have few or no graduate degree programs). One measurement available is the per capita production of PhDs among alumni. Here is a CC thread that discusses this for biology departments:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/893945-undergraduate-origin-biology-phds.html

LACs that have had relatively high PhD production in biology include:
Reed
Swarthmore
Kalamazoo
Harvey Mudd
Earlham
Haverford
Lawrence
Carleton
Oberlin
Grinnell
Hendrix
Bryn Mawr
Bowdoin
Wellesley
Amherst
Pomona
Beloit
Hampshire
Knox
Williams

These schools span a fairly wide range of selectivity. Williams, at the bottom of these, is one of the most selective. The fact that other LACs generate even more PhDs than Williams may simply mean that more students at Williams chose a career in medicine instead of going to graduate school in biology.