By Henry Weitz
The decision between going to a large college and a smaller college is something high school students struggle with in their college application process. Students decide on their college by conducting research, visiting different schools, and ultimately deciding on a school that is the best fit for them. Some topics considered are major study selections, class size, campus environment, location, cost, extracurricular activities, sports culture, and an overall fit to personal learning style and goals. A large college can be any college with a student enrollment over fifteen thousand students, whereas a small college can be classified as any college under five thousand students.
In recent years large state colleges have seen a tremendous increase in applications.
Large colleges get a majority of applications from students in that particular state, such as the 87.5 percent of undergraduates at the University of Florida attended Florida high schools and 90 percent of undergraduates from the University of Texas attended school in Texas. Students have an increased chance of being accepted into schools in their respective state which causes a trend of students to apply to their big state college. High schoolers that go to large high schools often choose the next stage of their education based on the enjoyment of their high school experience. Some high schoolers decide to break this norm and try a small college like New College in Sarasota which only hosts 710 undergraduates this fall, making New Colleges entire student body just barely larger than the Ponte Vedra High School graduating class.
“I chose a big school because I wanted the opportunity to meet lots of people and join lots of clubs”.
Andrew walter (Student at university of georgia)
Some certainty is included in going to a large college consisting of a broadened variety of academic programs, more opportunity for extracurriculars or clubs, larger class size and flexibility. Not to mention a more diverse student body and vibrant social scene than available at small colleges. Big schools have hundreds of majors to choose from and allow space to explore different interests along with main studies, like the University of Central Florida (UCF) which has over two hundred and forty majors to choose from. UCF is the largest college in Florida, enrolling nearly 70,000 students in the fall. Whereas a school on the smaller side may only have the facilities to offer the singular major being studied and nothing else. Large colleges fit an extroverted lifestyle. Perfect for those who enjoy meeting new people, and trying new things. For sports, larger colleges tend to have more money at their disposal for sports programs. Bigger colleges often have better sports teams, facilities, and larger fan bases. The new name, image, and likeness rules in college sports just about allow a team to buy their players. Ohio State University led the way and spent $20 million dollars on their football roster this year, and for reference their enrollment is around 66,000. But on the other hand a smaller school might not allocate as many funds to their sports, like Creighton University who hosts nearly 8,000 students in Omaha, Nebraska who use their sports money mostly for mens and womens basketball, leaving the Bluejays with no football team.
Andrew Walter, junior at the University of Georgia Athens chose UGA “for the environment. Everybody is so happy and thankful to be at such a fun place, with good academics and good football”. UGA currently hosts 37,606 students at around a 37% acceptance rate. The Bulldogs also rank as the second best team in the country in football and the eighth ranked team in the preseason baseball rankings. Walter quotes “I chose a big school because I wanted the opportunity to meet lots of people and join lots of clubs”.
On the other hand, small colleges can be less overwhelming to students and some students prefer a quieter environment where they can focus on their studies. Some positives to attending a smaller school include individually designed majors, a strong sense of community, and more hands-on learning opportunities. Like the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), despite its size Caltech is considered one of the best applied sciences colleges in the world. In terms of academics Caltech is also considered to be on par with the Ivy schools such as Princeton and Harvard. Caltech even offers sports like baseball, basketball, and soccer at the Division III level. But possibly the best part of going to a small college is the opportunity to get to know the professors well and develop a personal relationship. Caltech has a student to faculty ratio of 3:1 while UCF has an astounding 29:1 student to faculty ratio. That is a reason small college and their easy going classes are more desired than a typical two hundred person lecture at a large state school where the professor may never meet most of their students face to face.
Graphic done by Henry Weitz
