Which is better a small school or a big school? Many people say that a small school allows the teachers to know everyones name. The students know eachother and the overall school has a more "home" feeling. But doesn't the small school also lack the athletic skill that bigger schools have? (Well not always but this is usually the case) Small schools also lack the diversity that larger schools have. Larger schools force you to get to know everyone and to get along with everyone. So which is better the teacher knowing your name or not? The sports team losing every game or winning? Or the lack of diversity... is it good or bad?
Sure there are other factors that must come in to play when picking a school. Which school has the better major? Which is more expensive? Which is closer to home? All these questions can come into play but what is two schools had all these things in common and one school had 2,000 kids total where the other school at 18,000 total. Which one would you choose if you had to pick between the two? Would you rather feel important in the small school or un-noticed in the big school?
Small schools don't necessarily lack "athletic skill" but funding. That's where they suffer the most.
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Mind Control is Easier Than You Think
...Small.
My sister currently goes to Hope College in Holland, Michigan, with an enrollment of 4000 students or maybe a little less. If you're talking sciences, Hope is amazing. The reason is because Hope has had a reputation for undergraduate sciences, and even though they don't have ALL the equipment of a much bigger school, they work with many others, such as Notre Dame, MSU, and the like. My sister started doing research on campus after her freshman year, which she never would have gotten a chance to do at a bigger school. She hasn't even graduated yet, but her name has already been thrown around her field because of all the work she has done at Hope as well as many other schools. While the research at, say, Notre Dame is extremely competitive, she's gotten a free shot at working with the professors there because Hope sent her down for a project. When she does graduate, she'll have no problem finding a shool for her master's, because so many schools already know who she is.
Now, considering that, Hope is extraordinary. It's not like the normal small school, in that Hope already has a great reputation in many areas. But there are some common things about small schools that Hope shares as well.
I disagree about the social situation. I think that it would be harder to get along with people at small schools. At big schools, it's easier to fall through the cracks. If there's someone you really do like, chances are you'll be able to completely avoid them on a big campus. Even if you share a class, chances are the class is big enough that you'll never have to work with that person.
At a small school, however, if you don't like someone, it's much harder to avoid them. If you're in the same field, then you REALLY have to learn to settle your differences, becuase you probably have all the same classes. You might not be exposed to so many different people, but you'll have to learn to get along with people who drive you insane.
Now, if you're considering sports as a proffession, then bigger is better. Athletic accomplishments at a big school are more impressive because you have to win over more people (which can be applied to other accomplishments as well). So, unless you want to play in that Hope vs. Calvin basketball game (Voted one of the top college rivalries by ESPN) you should go big for athletics.
The teachers at small schools are also better. While at big schools, you might see some pretty famous names, you have to pay for those famous names. Also, the classrooms at big schools tend to be heirarchies. The teacher is the King, while you're the lowly peasant. You'll never be able to get the support you need from a teacher, and four ourt of five of your classes won't even be with a professor at all. At small schools, you get teachers who care about their students, who'll be much more available for any help that you need, and who can see our struggles and challenge you personally so you can overcome those obstacles.
All in all, it really depends. If you're a genius, and some big school offers you a nice scholarship and tells you you'll start out more privileged than the other students, then maybe a big school is for ya. If not, I'd stick with a small shool with a good reputation, and save the biggie for graduate work :)
"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man."
- George Bernard Shaw
........
If it's a choice of my education or a winning sports team, it's my education.
I could care less if my sports teams are good.
Mine is; our football team is #1 in our division and I'll brag about that all day long, but I wouldn't like my school any less if it lost every game of every sport.
My teachers know me by name and every once in a while I get e-mails checking on how I'm doing. It's grand.
I'd hate to sit in a room with more than 30 people. Three hundred is just preposterous to me.
My small school is my cup of tea, but I think it really depends on the individual.
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Your Tongue is a Rudder; It Steers the Whole Ship, Sends Your Words Past Your Lips or Keeps Them Safe Behind Your Teeth... [Brand New]
At a larger university, you're far from forced to get to know everyone and get along with them. Quite the opposite... at a larger school, you can avoid people you don't like, and focus on the people you do like. You're far more likely to run into someone you don't like at a smaller school, thus forcing you to be at least nice with everyone.
I personally love smaller schools. I hate being a number, and love the fact that one of my professors knew every person in our class by the third week. I love the fact that I can walks around and more often than not see a familiar face.
And our sports program is not bad. We don't have a football team, because we lack the funding for one, but we have a pretty good basketball team, and our women's softball team is pretty good as well. We're working on getting a women's soccer team together, and it looks like they'll be pretty good as well.
Our chemistry department is amazing, even if we don't have famous professors at our school. Our biology department (which I graduated from) is a little lacking, but we still have some very good professors. Our history department is pretty good as well, from what I've seen. And many of my professors will stop me in the hall and start talking to me, or will set aside their work to listen to me when I stop by their office.
I applied for medical school this past year and didn't get in. The professors I know well have promised me to do whatever they can to help me get in when I reapply in a couple years. I know they'll write me amazing recommendation letters, because they know me as more than a face in the crowd. They know what I'm capable of in the classroom, and some of what I do out of it. They know my personality. I couldn't have that at a large university.
~C
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I totally agree with you.
My professors may not be world-renowned whatever, but they're featured in journals and documentaries on the history/discovery channel. They write textbooks and novels and they're amazing, too.
And they know me. Like you said, their recommendations count because they know who I am and what I am capable of.
When one of them tells me I'm going to be a great teacher, it means a lot more to me then someone who doesn't know me.
Yay small schools! (Even though mine is sort of medium-sized. haha)
www.plu.edu
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Your Tongue is a Rudder; It Steers the Whole Ship, Sends Your Words Past Your Lips or Keeps Them Safe Behind Your Teeth... [Brand New]
I've been to both, and I liked the larger school better. I still got to know professors, do research, and much more. I felt like it was a better deal because there were more opportunities and benefits than the smaller school for not much more cost. I still saw someone I knew every day when walking to class, the union, or anywhere. I liked it much better.
I love abortion. Read more here:
http://progressiveu.org/044921-i-love-abortion-even-if-it-murder