Transfering from a large university to a liberal arts college?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I disagree. A midsize wouldn’t be that different and kid would have to start over.

I have a kid at an LAC. There are no lectures, all classes are small and profs really know the students. Kid is now in year 2 and said she can go to her favorite dining hall and always find people she knows. Just walking around with her she bumps into friends.

Don’t know about the transfer experience thought.

What liberal arts college? Even at the tiniest one I know, there are lecture courses in the sciences.

Even introductory science courses may be capped at, say, 30 students, however.

But they aren’t. Once again, bots here lying about how liberal arts colleges work.

My freshman at a highly ranked LAC had no more than 30 kids in any class first semester. STEM major.

Doesn’t mean there’s a cap. Please be a liberal arts education and read

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone's kid made this transition or are they considering it?
My child is currently at a public university (one in the top4) and doesn't like the large size. Hates never being able to find friends at the dining hall(s) or otherwise on campus, hates having lectures of hundreds of people (spring classes are again going to be really large), and not knowing professors etc.
Never really considered a liberal arts college in high school but now really wants to explore transferring.

Huge mistake.

Upper level classes are smaller.

Job opportunities are better from a large school.

Maybe change to a mid size.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone's kid made this transition or are they considering it?
My child is currently at a public university (one in the top4) and doesn't like the large size. Hates never being able to find friends at the dining hall(s) or otherwise on campus, hates having lectures of hundreds of people (spring classes are again going to be really large), and not knowing professors etc.
Never really considered a liberal arts college in high school but now really wants to explore transferring.

Huge mistake.

Upper level classes are smaller.

Job opportunities are better from a large school.

Maybe change to a mid size.

Pretty much everything is wrong here

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I disagree. A midsize wouldn’t be that different and kid would have to start over.

I have a kid at an LAC. There are no lectures, all classes are small and profs really know the students. Kid is now in year 2 and said she can go to her favorite dining hall and always find people she knows. Just walking around with her she bumps into friends.

Don’t know about the transfer experience thought.

What liberal arts college? Even at the tiniest one I know, there are lecture courses in the sciences.

Even introductory science courses may be capped at, say, 30 students, however.

But they aren’t. Once again, bots here lying about how liberal arts colleges work.

I wonder if posters like this learn anything from being incorrect, or whether they just keep on posting nonsense?

[Anonymous]

I visited my shy kid at a LAC in the first few months she was there, and everywhere we went people were greeting her by name, even just passing on the sidewalk. Including the President of the college. Her classes from the very first semester were small and some included students from all class years, even seniors who wanted to explore something new before graduating. It has been an amazing education and social experience so far.

[Anonymous]

Curious if those who would prefer small LACs are more shy or perhaps less confident?

Going to a school with equal or less students than their high school, especially in the middle of nowhere like some LACs - is not appealing to my social kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I disagree. A midsize wouldn’t be that different and kid would have to start over.

I have a kid at an LAC. There are no lectures, all classes are small and profs really know the students. Kid is now in year 2 and said she can go to her favorite dining hall and always find people she knows. Just walking around with her she bumps into friends.

Don’t know about the transfer experience thought.

What liberal arts college? Even at the tiniest one I know, there are lecture courses in the sciences.

Even introductory science courses may be capped at, say, 30 students, however.

But they aren’t. Once again, bots here lying about how liberal arts colleges work.

My freshman at a highly ranked LAC had no more than 30 kids in any class first semester. STEM major.

Doesn’t mean there’s a cap. Please be a liberal arts education and read

As an example, Hamilton caps all of its introductory biology courses at 30 students:

Hamilton College Catalogue - Biology Courses https://share.google/qDMNlDt1iG4KIbZOW

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone's kid made this transition or are they considering it?
My child is currently at a public university (one in the top4) and doesn't like the large size. Hates never being able to find friends at the dining hall(s) or otherwise on campus, hates having lectures of hundreds of people (spring classes are again going to be really large), and not knowing professors etc.
Never really considered a liberal arts college in high school but now really wants to explore transferring.

Which university is this? I also have a child at a large public university who hasn't experienced anything like this.

Obviously, there are many happy students at large universities. I'm glad your child is one of them. But does it surprise you that some students have had more difficulty finding their place?

I asked which university specifically because I’m curious about all of the bolded, none of which my kid has experienced. I wasn’t referring to anyone being unhappy or “having difficulty finding their place” - all of which can occur at any college, regardless of its size.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Curious if those who would prefer small LACs are more shy or perhaps less confident?

Going to a school with equal or less students than their high school, especially in the middle of nowhere like some LACs - is not appealing to my social kid.

OP here. My kid is quite social but is just chronically socially exhausted at the large public. Every meal with a friend needs to be pre-arranged. There is no just running into friends at a dining hall. They can go an entire day without running into their half dozen close friends. They were in lectures of 200-500 kids this fall in most classes. The smallest class was 75 kids, I believe.
It's fun--university sports, activities all the time, school spirit-but also tiring and they feel chronically unmoored. We'll see how spring goes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Has anyone's kid made this transition or are they considering it?
My child is currently at a public university (one in the top4) and doesn't like the large size. Hates never being able to find friends at the dining hall(s) or otherwise on campus, hates having lectures of hundreds of people (spring classes are again going to be really large), and not knowing professors etc.
Never really considered a liberal arts college in high school but now really wants to explore transferring.

Huge mistake.

Upper level classes are smaller.

Job opportunities are better from a large school.

Maybe change to a mid size.

Huh? Job opportunities are about the same. You throw your app in these days and live on. There are more majors at bigger schools so people go down different (not better) paths.

[Anonymous]

Swarthmore alum - had a few classmates transfer in and out of ivies for various personal reasons, it is worth considering if size is major factor.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I disagree. A midsize wouldn’t be that different and kid would have to start over.

I have a kid at an LAC. There are no lectures, all classes are small and profs really know the students. Kid is now in year 2 and said she can go to her favorite dining hall and always find people she knows. Just walking around with her she bumps into friends.

Don’t know about the transfer experience thought.

What liberal arts college? Even at the tiniest one I know, there are lecture courses in the sciences.

Even introductory science courses may be capped at, say, 30 students, however.

But they aren’t. Once again, bots here lying about how liberal arts colleges work.

My freshman at a highly ranked LAC had no more than 30 kids in any class first semester. STEM major.

Doesn’t mean there’s a cap. Please be a liberal arts education and read

As an example, Hamilton caps all of its introductory biology courses at 30 students:

Hamilton College Catalogue - Biology Courses https://share.google/qDMNlDt1iG4KIbZOW

Nowhere does it say that. You can over enroll your courses. Amateur hour out here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Curious if those who would prefer small LACs are more shy or perhaps less confident?

Going to a school with equal or less students than their high school, especially in the middle of nowhere like some LACs - is not appealing to my social kid.

Meh. My kid is an absolute social butterfly and just doesn’t want to go to school with 40,000 people. It’s not like being at a big school actually means you socialize more. It’s great to be an introvert at a state school, because you could go your whole 4 years lonely and no one would bother you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I disagree. A midsize wouldn’t be that different and kid would have to start over.

I have a kid at an LAC. There are no lectures, all classes are small and profs really know the students. Kid is now in year 2 and said she can go to her favorite dining hall and always find people she knows. Just walking around with her she bumps into friends.

Don’t know about the transfer experience thought.

What liberal arts college? Even at the tiniest one I know, there are lecture courses in the sciences.

I meant no large lectures. Some classes are more lecture than others but all are small.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Curious if those who would prefer small LACs are more shy or perhaps less confident?

Going to a school with equal or less students than their high school, especially in the middle of nowhere like some LACs - is not appealing to my social kid.

Meh. My kid is an absolute social butterfly and just doesn’t want to go to school with 40,000 people. It’s not like being at a big school actually means you socialize more. It’s great to be an introvert at a state school, because you could go your whole 4 years lonely and no one would bother you.

yes, i actually feel like my friend's more introverted friends are the ones who are happiest at the giant state schools. They spend a good deal of time alone and are happy to just see friends once a day or every other day. If you thrive on human connection these schools can be challenging. Every interaction with friends requires formal texting: "let's meet to go running, let's eat dinner tonight, let's grab coffee." If you really love people and friends and want to see friends 3 times a day it can be exhausting to constantly be having to arrange things.