<p>While I do not recommend going into significant debt for undergraduate education, and feel that public flagships can provide a very high quality education for students who are mature, independent and energetic, there are some differences between pricey privates and publics that become significant for some students. A big one for some of my son’s friends has been the availability of some courses, particularly for freshmen. Course catalogs often list a wondrous array of course offerings, but that is no guarantee the class will be available. Over-enrollment is a common problem, but under-enrollment is a big factor also. Public univ. often will cancel classes with small enrollment, with little advance notice. My son is a freshman at a private university; one of his classes (a somewhat unusual foreign language) had only seven students enrolled. My husband, a prof. at a public flagship, commented that his university cancels any class that has so few students sign up. (He has lost the opportunity to teach several specialized seminar classes for that reason.) Meanwhile, a good friend of my son was unable to enroll in a required science class first semester at his public flagship due to over-enrollment, and it has thrown off the entire sequence of his program.</p>
<p>I still do not recommend huge debt, but I believe there are some real differences in the public/private experience. What I take issue with is the belief that a great experience is only available at a handful of big-name private universities. The options are not quite so limited as that.</p>