Smallish University ... everything else is right

My oldest daughter just completed a double major at the University of Richmond in VA, 3200 undergrads, in Biochemistry and CS. She found the quality of classes and professors in both subject areas to be excellent, and loved her time at UR, but completing both majors in 4 years definitely did take some planning, since some of the CS courses were offered only on a rotating basis. For her, the CS major was intended as a complement to her Biochem degree, as she is also interested in computational biology. She was able to apply her computer modeling skills to her Biochem coursework and her lab research.

UR really helps its undergrad students to participate in research, if they wish, across all subject areas, not just in science, pledging that every student can receive a $4K stipend for funding. They host an annual research symposium, and students also regularly attend academic conferences, with funding supplied for that as well.

Smaller Unis will have fewer majors and offer fewer courses, so it is definitely good advice to review the course listings and major requirements to make sure they are appealing and broad enough. My UR graduate and my current UR student have had such positive experiences and opportunities, and the course selection has been fine for them, that it was well worth the trade off for them.

I attended a large state Uni for an engineering program, and it was a great fit for me, but I have been blown away by the education that my daughters have received at a smaller school. The level of mentoring that they have received from their advisors, professors, and the head researcher of their lab has been truly exceptional. When we have attended the research symposiums and other functions, we have been able to meet and chat with many of their professors, which has been great, too.