Pros and Cons of Top 10 SLAC vs State Flagship Honors Program

[Anonymous]

Wondering about the long term outcomes of selecting a top 10 SLAC vs going to a highly regarded State Flagship Honors program.

I see benefits to both. My perception is on the SLAC side you have access to a social-economic networks and on the State Flagship side I see kids that are regarded as smart and hard working that likely didn't have the funds for the SLAC or the financials at the state school were too compelling.

In my life experience, both have the potential to be excellent employees although I will admit that the SLAC grad likely has an easier time getting his resume onto my desk.

From a life perspective, I wonder if the State school grad is not better grounded having not viewed the world from such a lofty perch and perhaps has developed more empathy.

I realize I am making generalizations and that all students are different but I do wonder about what is best for the student from both a career perspective but also from a life perspective.

This is not meant to be incendiary - just trying to think thru the pros-cons of both.

Please share your thoughts.

[Anonymous]

For me, range of course offerings, number of different faculty in a given field, and presence of grad students are all big pluses in favor of public flagships.

[Anonymous]

My family is a science and math family, so we would side with the Honors College at Flagship State University. There are some science and math colleges that are smaller, one of our children is at one of those over HC @ FSU, but otherwise the rest have gone to Highly Ranked Big State University for engineering mainly. This is us, we have friends who are more LAC and SLAC oriented, so they would side with the SLAC.

It really depends on the student and what their interests and preferences are.

[Anonymous]

There is at least one Chemistry Nobel prize winner who sides with the SLACs.

http://www.thecollegesolution.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/cech_article2.pdf

[Anonymous]

Most employers wouldn't know the difference between honors from the regular college. Now, if it's in a STEM field, school may not make a difference just because STEM people are in demand. For example, in engineering, state schools may have advantage simply because most slacs don't offer engineering.

That said, slacs are not vocational or preprofessional schools. These are liberal arts schools whose function is to educate its students. So OP's presupposition may be wrong. If a student wants to be a nurse, slacs or Ivys including MIT/Cal Tech would be an overkill. A community college might be a better choice under certain circumstances.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most employers wouldn't know the difference between honors from the regular college. Now, if it's in a STEM field, school may not make a difference just because STEM people are in demand. For example, in engineering, state schools may have advantage simply because most slacs don't offer engineering.

That said, slacs are not vocational or preprofessional schools. These are liberal arts schools whose function is to educate its students. So OP's presupposition may be wrong. If a student wants to be a nurse, slacs or Ivys including MIT/Cal Tech would be an overkill. A community college might be a better choice under certain circumstances.

New to the college process and beginning to even understand terms like "SLAC". Isn't educating students the whole purpose of all colleges? Why do you point that out as something specific to SLACs (thereby implicitly stating that non-SLACs don't do that)?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most employers wouldn't know the difference between honors from the regular college. Now, if it's in a STEM field, school may not make a difference just because STEM people are in demand. For example, in engineering, state schools may have advantage simply because most slacs don't offer engineering.

That said, slacs are not vocational or preprofessional schools. These are liberal arts schools whose function is to educate its students. So OP's presupposition may be wrong. If a student wants to be a nurse, slacs or Ivys including MIT/Cal Tech would be an overkill. A community college might be a better choice under certain circumstances.

New to the college process and beginning to even understand terms like "SLAC". Isn't educating students the whole purpose of all colleges? Why do you point that out as something specific to SLACs (thereby implicitly stating that non-SLACs don't do that)?

I think PP means giving students a well-rounded education for its own sake versus allowing students to be more focused on a particular major/program for direct career training.

[Anonymous]

I think it entirely depends not the LAC. And not all LACs are SLACS. There are really only a handful that are really nationally known and highly regarded. There are quite a few private schools that are not SLACS that are Universities instead (Duke, Lehigh come to mind) and you don't seem to include that as an option. And there are lots of wanna-be SLACs that are really just LACs. So once you really identify if you are talking the very few true SLACs (Amherst, Williams, Vassar) versus Universities (NYU, Lehigh) versus LACs (e.g. Denison or Union), then you can make a solid decision about the value of one versus the other. So in a head to head, Amherst v Maryland Honors --probably Amherst for liberal arts but probably Maryland for Engineering. Lehigh versus Maryland for any subject is Lehigh. Maryland versus Denison for every subject is Maryland.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it entirely depends not the LAC. And not all LACs are SLACS. There are really only a handful that are really nationally known and highly regarded. There are quite a few private schools that are not SLACS that are Universities instead (Duke, Lehigh come to mind) and you don't seem to include that as an option. And there are lots of wanna-be SLACs that are really just LACs. So once you really identify if you are talking the very few true SLACs (Amherst, Williams, Vassar) versus Universities (NYU, Lehigh) versus LACs (e.g. Denison or Union), then you can make a solid decision about the value of one versus the other. So in a head to head, Amherst v Maryland Honors --probably Amherst for liberal arts but probably Maryland for Engineering. Lehigh versus Maryland for any subject is Lehigh. Maryland versus Denison for every subject is Maryland.

You had me until this sentence. ^^^

Lehigh can’t compete with MD in STEM.

[Anonymous]

Most top SLACs don't have in-house engineering programs, except Swarthmore, Smith, and Harvey Mudd. Most top SLACs have science and math departments that can teach foundational level sciences and math. If a SLAC student wants to pursue engineering, they must supplement foundational sciences/math with engineering courses elsewhere. Sciences and math are taught in SLACs as a field of knowledge, much like literature, philosophy, and religion. So, they tend to be more theoretical, not practical. This, as I understand it, is the purpose of liberal arts education. This is the reason why in SLACs, you typically do not find business courses like finance and accounting.

That's not to say that state unis or community colleges do not educate their students. Their mission is different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it entirely depends not the LAC. And not all LACs are SLACS. There are really only a handful that are really nationally known and highly regarded. There are quite a few private schools that are not SLACS that are Universities instead (Duke, Lehigh come to mind) and you don't seem to include that as an option. And there are lots of wanna-be SLACs that are really just LACs. So once you really identify if you are talking the very few true SLACs (Amherst, Williams, Vassar) versus Universities (NYU, Lehigh) versus LACs (e.g. Denison or Union), then you can make a solid decision about the value of one versus the other. So in a head to head, Amherst v Maryland Honors --probably Amherst for liberal arts but probably Maryland for Engineering. Lehigh versus Maryland for any subject is Lehigh. Maryland versus Denison for every subject is Maryland.

You had me until this sentence. ^^^

Lehigh can’t compete with MD in STEM.

I don't think you really know what Lehigh is. For Engineering, I don't agree that it cannot compete. And it has been an engineering powerhouse for decades and decades and has a strong alumni network. If you look up the schools that tend to have the wealthiest grads, Lehigh is there. And I didn't say stem. I said Engineering.

[Anonymous]

Just checked the sentence you referenced again. I stand by it. I think Maryland is great but Lehigh is on the level of Duke. Are you saying Maryland versus Duke, you pick duke? No. I just think you don't now Lehigh.

[Anonymous]

After your first job, is anyone really saying "I graduated from State U Honors College?" A smaller LAC isn't for the kid who wants big state football and 20,000 + kids on campus. On the flip side of that, some kids want the smaller sized classroom instead of a 200 seat auditorium. There is not a what is best question. It's the atmosphere where the student feels most comfortable.

One of my kids graduated from a highly ranked SLAC. He would have succeeded anywhere, but this was best for him. Yes, it was small, but highly diverse compared to his high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it entirely depends not the LAC. And not all LACs are SLACS. There are really only a handful that are really nationally known and highly regarded. There are quite a few private schools that are not SLACS that are Universities instead (Duke, Lehigh come to mind) and you don't seem to include that as an option. And there are lots of wanna-be SLACs that are really just LACs. So once you really identify if you are talking the very few true SLACs (Amherst, Williams, Vassar) versus Universities (NYU, Lehigh) versus LACs (e.g. Denison or Union), then you can make a solid decision about the value of one versus the other. So in a head to head, Amherst v Maryland Honors --probably Amherst for liberal arts but probably Maryland for Engineering. Lehigh versus Maryland for any subject is Lehigh. Maryland versus Denison for every subject is Maryland.[b]

How is Denison, a liberal arts college with a student population of fewer than 2400, not a SLAC?

Your last statement is a matter of your opinion, not a matter of fact.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it entirely depends not the LAC. And not all LACs are SLACS. There are really only a handful that are really nationally known and highly regarded. There are quite a few private schools that are not SLACS that are Universities instead (Duke, Lehigh come to mind) and you don't seem to include that as an option. And there are lots of wanna-be SLACs that are really just LACs. So once you really identify if you are talking the very few true SLACs (Amherst, Williams, Vassar) versus Universities (NYU, Lehigh) versus LACs (e.g. Denison or Union), then you can make a solid decision about the value of one versus the other. So in a head to head, Amherst v Maryland Honors --probably Amherst for liberal arts but probably Maryland for Engineering. Lehigh versus Maryland for any subject is Lehigh. Maryland versus Denison for every subject is Maryland.

You had me until this sentence. ^^^

Lehigh can’t compete with MD in STEM.

I don't think you really know what Lehigh is. For Engineering, I don't agree that it cannot compete. And it has been an engineering powerhouse for decades and decades and has a strong alumni network. If you look up the schools that tend to have the wealthiest grads, Lehigh is there. And I didn't say stem. I said Engineering.

You said "any subject".