NACAC - Spring 2020 - 20

Close your eyes. When you think about college, do you picture a compact campus
where you run into friends between classes? Or do you envision big Saturday
afternoon football games, with thousands of fans cheering on your college's team?
Are you participating in small-group discussions or listening carefully to your
professor lecture in a large room?

At smaller colleges, particularly those with
no graduate programs, you may not run into as
many big-name research professors, but you
will likely have far more interaction with the
faculty. Many small colleges pride themselves
on fostering mentoring-type relationships
between professors and students.
EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES
Size can have a big impact on extracurricular
activities. In general, the larger the college,
the wider variety of activities offered. If you're
interested in a relatively obscure activity, you're
more likely to find it offered at larger colleges.
On the other hand, it can be more difficult to
break into popular activities on a larger campus.
After all, the more students there are, the
greater your competition.
At smaller colleges, students may find
it easier to get involved and stand out in
extracurricular activities. But small colleges
usually can't offer the variety of activities that
a large college can.

PHOTO © ROCHELLE NICOLE.

There are no right answers to these questions,
only what feels right to you. A college's size
affects many aspects of the college experience,
from your classes and extracurricular activities
to your social life.
CLASS SIZE
A college's size often affects the size of its
classes. In general, larger schools tend to have
larger classes, especially at the freshman level.
You may find yourself taking notes along with a
hundred other students in your introduction to
psychology class. If you prefer being somewhat
anonymous in class, large lecture courses are
the way to go.
At smaller colleges, you may find fewer
lecture courses and more courses that
emphasize class participation. These types of
classes facilitate closer contact with faculty

and other students, which is attractive to some
students, but not all.
Of course, smaller colleges may still have
some large classes, and large universities may
offer a variety of small classes (especially in
upper-level courses). But if you have a definite
preference for a particular style of learning,
look more closely at the colleges that offer
more classes in that style.

SOCIAL LIFE
Larger schools have a greater variety of social
options, and small colleges may have fewer
options but wider student participation in any
one event.
You may find that smaller colleges seem
friendlier, if only because you're likely to run
into the same people more often. On the
other hand, once you make a few friends,
even the largest campus begins to feel
like home.

INTERACTIONS WITH FACULTY
Who teaches your classes can also depend on
the college's size. Large universities often have
many professors who are considered senior-level
in their field of research. Undergraduates may not
have much contact with these professors; instead,
teaching assistants (graduate students) may do
the bulk of the teaching and grading, while the
professors only lecture.

FINDING THE RIGHT FIT
The best way to figure out what size of college
appeals to you is to visit a variety of colleges.
College is what you make of it no matter
what campus you choose. Keep in mind that
your personality, interests, and choices will
make your college experience different from
anyone else's. This is your journey, you decide
the way.

The Student Center column features articles from nacacfairs.org. This article may be reprinted with the following credit line:
Reprinted with permission from the National Association for College Admission Counseling.

THE JOURNAL OF

COLLEGE ADMISSION

[TEAR. COPY. SHARE.]

LARGE OR SMALL COLLEGE?

http://www.nacacfairs.org

NACAC - Spring 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NACAC - Spring 2020