Reply to Okay, so where is DS/DD going to go to college next fall?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]So first my background--I have experienced the range of schools:  I attended a state school, went to a HYP for grad, and taught at a Top 25 liberal arts college.

I'm just curious...I went through this thread and I see a lot of people saying that they are going to stretch financially to send their kids to places like the place I used to teach.  Which is to say schools like Bates or Pomona.

And I guess I'm just curious and trying to understand why.  Based on my experience, these are places that are great and where a student will get a decent education and have a pleasant life for four years.  But very honestly, they are a similar price as HYP without offering the same level of name recognition, facilities, faculty, peers, etc.  You can get an equivalent education at the University of Maryland--maybe better if you are interested in doing undergraduate research--and typically go to the grad or professional school of your choice.  So what draws people to faraway expensive colleges?

The answers I came up with myself are that for some parents college is not just about education but about DS/DD finding a partner, or maybe the family is interested in a religious education (Catholic schools, BYU, etc.), or maybe they think that four years on an idyllic campus and what are hopefully lifelong friendships are worth the $240k price tag.  But I still honestly have some trouble wrapping my mind around that.  I'd be curious to hear people's responses.[/quote]

There are a myriad of reasons.

1. Some parents/students are strongly biased in favor of small colleges, where professors (not grad students, and definitely not other undergrads) are doing the teaching. Some dislike lecture classes and have a strong preference for small, seminar style classes. Some students particularly thrive in such environments and greatly benefit from close contact with professors.

2. It's an open question whether large research institutions offer better research opportunities for undergrads--OTOH, professors may be more likely to be engaged in cutting edge research but OTOH grad students usually get first crack at these opportunities.

3. These days, admission stats to flagship publics like UVA can be a crapshoot, so often the choice is not between UVA and, say, Colby or Bates, but between, say, JMU or CNU and Bates.

4. Many of the top SLACs are need blind and meet close to 100% of need, so for many families it's not actually more (or much more) expensive to go to Bates than it would be to go to UMD. Some of these SLACs have less daunting admissions odds than HYP, making them attractive additions to the college application list. Some kids actually prefer these SLACs to HYP, etc.

5. Some families have high enough incomes that full pay at Bates is no by deal.

6. Some students and their families are prestige conscious, and they would rather go to a school rated highly by USNWR, even if not HYP, then a UMD.

7. Some students are very interested in continuing to play a sport (or other EC), but aren't good enough to play at a big university or even in the Ivy League. Their special talent opens doors at SLACs, substantially increasing the odds of admission and even allowing access to a much more highly ranked school than they would otherwise be eligible for.

8. Some students who prefer smaller schools attend them for the same price (or close) as their in-state public because they are at the top of the applicant pool for the school and are offered substantial merit aid awards.

I'm sure there are many other reasons.[/quote]

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