I went to state school, kids going to LAC

[Anonymous]

LACs/SLACs place one in a small community. Might work for some, but, as another posted, be careful what you say & do as it will become social gossip.

The nastiness/snarkiness of LAC/SLAC supporters gets tiresome.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From parents who attended SLAC’s whose kids are going to state schools (opposite perspective but hope this helps):

1. More people, more students
2. More name recognition (not having to explain your kid’s college)
3. Cheaper tuition
4. Greek life
5. Not getting into certain classes as easily
6. Your kid has to move into an apartment after the first year
7. Easier to find rides home for vacations if you’re in-state
8. Easier to find others in your immediate circle whose kids have attended or are attending the same college

I would add:

9. Far more majors and depth of courses to choose from.

I would also add:
10. More likely to have large lectures rather than small seminars.

I went to a SLAC where it was typical to have 5 person classes. Kid is now at a large public and the difference is astonishing.

This is the part that’s a hard sell for me. I find no utility in going to a 200+ person lecture. Just read the lecture notes and go to exams. It’s a waste of time for everyone to pretend that you’re actually learning from that.

Thank you for recognizing the appropriate learning process for 19MM post secondary students in the US.

Learning is generalizable and you typically can’t learn without any individualized attention- kinda why the AI guys are trying so hard to sell personalized education right now.

[Anonymous]

I find it weird when people who attended lacs say there’s no opportunities. You must have attended a completely crap institution, weren’t looking, or just wanted a major in a non liberal arts curriculum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From parents who attended SLAC’s whose kids are going to state schools (opposite perspective but hope this helps):

1. More people, more students
2. More name recognition (not having to explain your kid’s college)
3. Cheaper tuition
4. Greek life
5. Not getting into certain classes as easily
6. Your kid has to move into an apartment after the first year
7. Easier to find rides home for vacations if you’re in-state
8. Easier to find others in your immediate circle whose kids have attended or are attending the same college

I would add:

9. Far more majors and depth of courses to choose from.

Yes, majors that you can actually get jobs in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From parents who attended SLAC’s whose kids are going to state schools (opposite perspective but hope this helps):

1. More people, more students
2. More name recognition (not having to explain your kid’s college)
3. Cheaper tuition
4. Greek life
5. Not getting into certain classes as easily
6. Your kid has to move into an apartment after the first year
7. Easier to find rides home for vacations if you’re in-state
8. Easier to find others in your immediate circle whose kids have attended or are attending the same college

I would add:

9. Far more majors and depth of courses to choose from.

Yes, majors that you can actually get jobs in.

All the liberal arts college grads are so poor that they chose the most popular majors in the US!

[Anonymous]

OP,
The two key points have been made on this thread.

1) social: the small size makes for a nice, friendly village feel but you do have to take more care since it is so small and there is less privacy. Not a problem for most kids, and the pros outweigh the cons. Kids choose LACs because they like the small, tight-knit community feel.

2) academic: can't hide in large lecture classes, so make the most of the close contacts and opportunities possible. LAC profs will go out of their way to help students in a way larger universities don't, due to grad student focus (with a few exceptions). Focus on oral and written communication skills a big plus, whatever the professional path chosen.

Those are the key differences from your own experience. Hope your kid has a wonderful time!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As the title suggests, I went to my state flagship school and my kid will be starting at an LAC in the fall. I have been giving advice based on my college experience, but I recognize that their experience will be very different. What should I keep in mind in terms of differences? What will they experience that I did not?

Would help to know why your student chose to attend an LAC in order to assess whether or not his/her expectations are realistic.

It is easy to romanticize a small town or small community type setting, but, in reality, very few chose to live in Mayberry RFD because of the smallness (same faces day after day and limited options socially & academically/professionally).

Different strokes for different folks is a comforting thought so long as the small school student is open to taking a year abroad to break-up the monotony.

If not headed to an elite LAC, then it might help to checkout the retention rate of first & second year students at the particular LAC.

[Anonymous]

There are ways to get around the smallness and/or isolation of a LAC. Spend a semester or year abroad. Look into LAC’s that are part of consortiums or which are in/near larger cities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From parents who attended SLAC’s whose kids are going to state schools (opposite perspective but hope this helps):

1. More people, more students
2. More name recognition (not having to explain your kid’s college)
3. Cheaper tuition
4. Greek life
5. Not getting into certain classes as easily
6. Your kid has to move into an apartment after the first year
7. Easier to find rides home for vacations if you’re in-state
8. Easier to find others in your immediate circle whose kids have attended or are attending the same college

I would add:

9. Far more majors and depth of courses to choose from.

I would also add:
10. More likely to have large lectures rather than small seminars.

I went to a SLAC where it was typical to have 5 person classes. Kid is now at a large public and the difference is astonishing.

I also went to a SLAC with tiny classes and found it completely suffocating. Zero diversity of opinion, the same faces every single day... the experience my kids are having at large publics is indeed astonishing. I never had access to the wealth of opportunities that they do. And the large lectures have only been encountered in one or two 101 classes. The rest have been around 30 people/per class.

You are doing some serious rationalizing. Have another cup of copium.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What type of high school / prep school did your child attend ?

Most LACs resemble private boarding schools in most respects. LACs are somewhat like small towns--living in a tiny community where seemingly everyone knows your business.

Ours went to an elite prep boarding school and has shared that the idea of attending an LAC was of no interest as it would be too much like repeating boarding school.

You share this experience often in posts about LACs. You might consider where and when this anecdote would be helpful. Should you join a thread to point out that our own child decided against a choice that someone else has already made? (Especially when your kid had a rarified school experience different than the vast majority of teens today?) No, that's not helpful or appropriate.

Your insight might be helpful if a poster asks "where should my elite prep boarding school student apply?" It's not relevant to the vast majority of families considering (or already committed to!) liberal arts colleges.

+100. So annoying to have poster mention this so often. We get it. You’re special.

[Anonymous]

Didn't read the bickering.

One thing that can be helpful for a parent to understand the difference in institutions, is looking at the expected credit load. Look at credit required to graduate and divide by number of terms, e.g. 8 semesters if that's the setup. At my state school this was something like 15 units per term, so 5 classes give or take was the norm. Often lacs are 4 classes per term. This isn't just about counting, it means the courses are set up differently. The professors and students know the constraints everyone is working under and budget accordingly.

Fewer courses per term means higher work load per course, and broader reach in the topics (including personalized research). As a parent coming from a state school, my approach had been to max out on credits, more is better, get something for free. That worked because none of my courses were particularly demanding or at least had very regimented predictable demands. In a smaller setting, the way you get extra is the prep put in to the individual course. Complete the reading/problem sets and push the discussion beyond the bounds of the course.

The transcripts look different but the outcome is the same. It was helpful as a parent to understand this early in the process and lay off bad advice. The students understand, of course, because they do what everyone at their school does, but they can't necessarily explain the distinction to a parent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From parents who attended SLAC’s whose kids are going to state schools (opposite perspective but hope this helps):

1. More people, more students
2. More name recognition (not having to explain your kid’s college)
3. Cheaper tuition
4. Greek life
5. Not getting into certain classes as easily
6. Your kid has to move into an apartment after the first year
7. Easier to find rides home for vacations if you’re in-state
8. Easier to find others in your immediate circle whose kids have attended or are attending the same college

I would add:

9. Far more majors and depth of courses to choose from.

I would also add:
10. More likely to have large lectures rather than small seminars.

I went to a SLAC where it was typical to have 5 person classes. Kid is now at a large public and the difference is astonishing.

This is the part that’s a hard sell for me. I find no utility in going to a 200+ person lecture. Just read the lecture notes and go to exams. It’s a waste of time for everyone to pretend that you’re actually learning from that.

DP.

100% this.

I went to a SLAC undergrad, then on to a T10 public u law school.

Took me about 3 weeks as a 1-L to stop attending the large lecture classes. Just a horrible educational experience/model.

Different people are different, I guess.

I also went to a SLAC undergrad, then on to a T10 public u law school.

I attended every lecture for all three years. I find it much, much easier to learn from a lecture, taking my own notes, than to learn from lecture notes alone.

The fact that an educational model doesn’t work for you does not make it a horrible model for everyone.

True, but I was making a different comparison.

Small <25 student discussion-based classes (SLAC) vs. 100+ student lecture-based classes (public u law school).

I’d wager that 90% of students will learn more in the former than the latter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Didn't read the bickering.

One thing that can be helpful for a parent to understand the difference in institutions, is looking at the expected credit load. Look at credit required to graduate and divide by number of terms, e.g. 8 semesters if that's the setup. At my state school this was something like 15 units per term, so 5 classes give or take was the norm. Often lacs are 4 classes per term. This isn't just about counting, it means the courses are set up differently. The professors and students know the constraints everyone is working under and budget accordingly.

Fewer courses per term means higher work load per course, and broader reach in the topics (including personalized research). As a parent coming from a state school, my approach had been to max out on credits, more is better, get something for free. That worked because none of my courses were particularly demanding or at least had very regimented predictable demands. In a smaller setting, the way you get extra is the prep put in to the individual course. Complete the reading/problem sets and push the discussion beyond the bounds of the course.

The transcripts look different but the outcome is the same. It was helpful as a parent to understand this early in the process and lay off bad advice. The students understand, of course, because they do what everyone at their school does, but they can't necessarily explain the distinction to a parent.

Excellent point. I was a little surprised to see my SLAC-bound kid only has to take four courses each semester. A different model, yes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:LACs/SLACs place one in a small community. Might work for some, but, as another posted, be careful what you say & do as it will become social gossip.

The nastiness/snarkiness of LAC/SLAC supporters gets tiresome.

I think what you are trying to say is “the honest responses of LAC/SLAC supporters to nonsensical comments from university bigots” is difficult for me because it upsets my carefully crafted but unsupported opinions and hurts my feelings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:LACs/SLACs place one in a small community. Might work for some, but, as another posted, be careful what you say & do as it will become social gossip.

The nastiness/snarkiness of LAC/SLAC supporters gets tiresome.

I think what you are trying to say is “the honest responses of LAC/SLAC supporters to nonsensical comments from university bigots” is difficult for me because it upsets my carefully crafted but unsupported opinions and hurts my feelings.

Lol I don’t think anyone who says things like “nonsensical comments from university bigots” should be talking about other people getting their feelings hurt.