<p>LACs typically donât have âstronger fociâ on one subject more than others; sometimes they have departments that are well-known and very popular majors (sometimes because they are stronger than others) but in general you could go to any one of these LACs and major in a liberal arts discipline and get a very good education. Like teenage_cliche said, specializing in one major or area goes against the entire philosophy of liberal arts education.</p>
<p>Again, some schools are known for very good departments in some areas â like Middleburyâs language programs, Smithâs engineering program, and Bryn Mawrâs classics department. But it is true that Middlebury âfocusesâ on languages more than anything else, or that Swarthmore focuses more on engineering, or that Bryn Mawr focuses more on classics? No.</p>
<p>The quote that you mentioned doesnât prove that they try to excel somewhere; it says that they try to create a ânicheâ for themselves. First of all, this is just Petersonâs opinion â LACs already have distinguishing factors that make them more appealing than large universities (smaller classes, more intimacy with professors, a holistic education) so they donât need a ânicheâ to attract students. Most top students would select Amherst or Williams over their large flagship university even without the breadth of classes. Second of all, âemphasizingâ and âhighlightingâ arenât the same as a particular focus. A focus in this sense suggests the school is putting the majority of its energy into one thing, and thatâs not true for most LACs, as the entire purpose is emphasizing liberal arts education. They âemphasizeâ certain things for the purposes of marketing â âLook at our commitment to women in engineeringâ for Smith, or âwe have a great language programâ for Middlebury. Thatâs not the same thing as a focus on one subject.</p>
<p>To answer your question bluntly, no, you shouldnât be looking just at schools that excel in biology. First of all, pre-med courses are more than just biology (you also have to take chemistry, mathematics, psychology, and English courses). Second of all, you can major in anything and be a pre-med major. Typically to satisfy pre-med requirements only two biology classes are required, and students are usually advised to take a few upper-level courses as well. Are you really going to select your undergraduate college based on 4 classes?</p>
<p>Third of all, a majority of students change their major and career plans when they reach college. And fourth of all, biology is biology. The biology departments at top LACs are going to be very similar to each other; they are going to offer similar classes (with maybe the exception of a few electives) and by their nature as top LACs they are going to have great professors.</p>
<p>IF you are pre-med, what you really need to look at are medical school admissions success rates (where are students going after school?) as well as more holistic factors such as location and appeal of the school.</p>
