Research Universities vs. LACs???

itsgettingreal17
Tue, 19 Jun 2018 18:35:05 +0000

It’s a matter of personal preference, and I think parents should take their student to visit at least one of each, and preferably multiple of each of differing types (size, location, etc).

I went to an elite LAC. I loved the academics, but hated everything else about the school. It was in the middle of no where, very homogenous, and quite boring. Many loved it and are still very involved as alums. By contrast, I loved my grad school experience at a large research university.

Sophomore year, during our college road trip, I included an excellent LAC on the list so that my D could decide for herself whether she could see herself at one. It was the one school she had a strong negative reaction to (as I suspected she would). She only applied to large research universities as a result. As for class sizes, as an honors program student (and entering with junior standing), her freshman year classes were generally smaller than that of most freshman at LACs. She developed great relationships with her profs and was able to obtain multiple outstanding recommendations to competitive programs and scholarships. None of her classes were taught by a TA.

No LAC can match the breadth of research, majors and courses, extra-curricular and social options, or the school spirit, which were all very important to her, that is offered by a major research university.

A research university is the perfect fit for her. But it might not be for others looking for a different undergraduate experience. I don’t think one is per se better than the other.