Is it worth it to pay for a small liberal arts college?

[Anonymous]

9:32 here. FWIW I went to Southwestern University in Georgetown, TX, and it truly does change lives. Also, it has a fabulous endowment, so it's financial aid packages may make it not as "pricey" as it seems if you're looking solely at sticker price.

[Anonymous]

I went to Williams. Got a great education--incredible professors--never had a TA teach a class. Got first job out of school due to strength of alum network. That said, I often wish I had gone to college in a more metropolitan area. Williamstown is extremely remote--Boston and NY three hours away. Even Amherst seems more bustling that Williamstown. Also, if a social life is important to you/your child, small liberal arts colleges can be limiting. While I made some wonderful friends and got a terrific education, for the money, I wish I had gone to an Ivy (didn't apply--idiot college counselor told me I wouldn't get in--of course, he said I wouldn't get into Williams either.....). I even believe I would have had an overall better experience at UVA, Duke or a southern venue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to Williams. Got a great education--incredible professors--never had a TA teach a class. Got first job out of school due to strength of alum network. That said, I often wish I had gone to college in a more metropolitan area. Williamstown is extremely remote--Boston and NY three hours away. Even Amherst seems more bustling that Williamstown. Also, if a social life is important to you/your child, small liberal arts colleges can be limiting. While I made some wonderful friends and got a terrific education, for the money, I wish I had gone to an Ivy (didn't apply--idiot college counselor told me I wouldn't get in--of course, he said I wouldn't get into Williams either.....). I even believe I would have had an overall better experience at UVA, Duke or a southern venue.

i feel similar to this poster. went to wesleyan and loved every minute of it. but it took me longer to get my career off the ground (public health) because i just didn't know what was out there in the big world/big city. liberal arts colleges tend to provide for traditional majors (nothing wrong with that), but had i been in a bigger university with a medical school or even a broader selection graduate programs, i would've probably been able to imagine a career in public health at an earlier age. instead i sort of rambled it toward it during my 20s.

[Anonymous]

Check out Kenyon College too! Definitely worth it. Total of 1600 students, small rural town, very safe, small classes all taught by professors (no grad. students), etc. Excellent academics, with a chance to sample so many different subjects. Great place! I go back to every reunion that I can (every 5 years). Very special community.

[Anonymous]

I agree with the positives people have identified for small liberal arts colleges. I did not find the social life limiting. I went to Wellesley and could easily hop on a bus (free or negligible cost) to Boston. I went to many parties at Harvard and MIT and also enjoyed the MFA, symphony and restaurants. I also took classes at MIT. Of course, the OP said her daughter had ruled out single sex colleges, but maybe this perspective will help someone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Check out Kenyon College too! Definitely worth it. Total of 1600 students, small rural town, very safe, small classes all taught by professors (no grad. students), etc. Excellent academics, with a chance to sample so many different subjects. Great place! I go back to every reunion that I can (every 5 years). Very special community.

Good to hear. We are going there for a visit, hopefully in April or May. It has moved to the top of my dd's list.

17:12 - just to clarify I am the poster with the daughter who unfortunately isn't interested in women's colleges but I am not the OP.

[Anonymous]

Another Wellesley alum here -- agree that the Boston area is a very fun place to go to college, so you get that as a bonus in addition to the strengths that a small liberal arts college offers regardless of location -- no TAs; professors who really want to teach, are rewarded for doing so, and who know how to teach; a friendly, cohesive community; and a strong alum network. I had superb preparation for law school (Stanford) and still recall vividly many intense intellectual experiences at Wellesley in a range of subjects -- in particular, in art history, economics, math, English and history. Like many alumnae, I'd love to see my daughter at Wellesley, and I'm working on DS, now a high school student, to consider spending a semester there as a coed!

[Anonymous]

Depends on the college, and depends on your kid. I'd fork over the money for a child who a) worked hard in high school and who b) got into a good one (like those listed). Then I might believe that the small classes and attention could be money well spent.

If my kid chooses to be an indifferent student in high school, then she'll accept whatever VA is willing to offer.

[Anonymous]

Just curious: did anyone who attended a small liberal arts college "need" to go on to graduate school to get into a chosen career? Do they prepare you for the real working world?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just curious: did anyone who attended a small liberal arts college "need" to go on to graduate school to get into a chosen career? Do they prepare you for the real working world?

Depends on the field I say, but most of my alumni friends from a small liberal arts college ended up doing business school, law school, or something similar. For other fields, people were perfectly competitive with just the Bachelors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just curious: did anyone who attended a small liberal arts college "need" to go on to graduate school to get into a chosen career? Do they prepare you for the real working world?

I entered a field that requires a Ph.D. regardless, as did many of many of my college peers, so being from a small liberal arts college made no difference in my career prospects.

[Anonymous]

ust curious: did anyone who attended a small liberal arts college "need" to go on to graduate school to get into a chosen career? Do they prepare you for the real working world?

And I would just remind readers that many people come out of Ivies "needing" to go to graduate school, too, if they major in the humanities but don't plan to go the academic route. My DH wouldn't trade his BA in History at Columbia for anything, but he wasn't really getting job offers on that basis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

ust curious: did anyone who attended a small liberal arts college "need" to go on to graduate school to get into a chosen career? Do they prepare you for the real working world?

And I would just remind readers that many people come out of Ivies "needing" to go to graduate school, too, if they major in the humanities but don't plan to go the academic route. My DH wouldn't trade his BA in History at Columbia for anything, but he wasn't really getting job offers on that basis.

I went to a large liberal arts school and would agree. Most people I knew were going for med or law school. While I enjoyed the friends I made and think my major served me well in the long run (even though I didn't go into that field), it was tough finding a job. Part of it was because the local industries were geared toward research and sciences. Basically it was a matter of companies that came to recruit on campus and there didn't seem to be a big variety of industries represented.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:12:24 mirrors my experience too. I think hands down the access to professors and other experts is one of the biggest benefits. As an example, I had and missed an opportunity to take a Lit class taught by James Baldwin.

I personally don't want to pay 20-30K (or more) for inexperienced grad students to teach my kid freshman year, which I understand is common at larger universities.

Believe me, an inexperienced graduate student will more often than not put a lot more work into prepping classes that a tenured professor!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:12:24 mirrors my experience too. I think hands down the access to professors and other experts is one of the biggest benefits. As an example, I had and missed an opportunity to take a Lit class taught by James Baldwin.

I personally don't want to pay 20-30K (or more) for inexperienced grad students to teach my kid freshman year, which I understand is common at larger universities.

Believe me, an inexperienced graduate student will more often than not put a lot more work into prepping classes that a tenured professor!

This is true in many cases. But I know that as a grad student, I didn't have the ability to help students in other ways that professors could. My letters of recommendation weren't as valuable, I couldn't offer them any research opportunities or funding, I couldn't help them network... The ability to have a close relationship with professors as an undergrad is valuable, and it's most easily achieved at a smaller college.

Furthermore, at a small, liberal arts college, teaching tends to be more highly valued than at larger universities, so the quality of instruction by and interaction with professors is often higher. I had several professors or regularly held seminars at their houses near campus, complete with refreshments. Looking back, I can see how much time and effort those professors put into their teaching. (And how it must have impinged on their ability to do other things, such as research!)