I would be an ecology and environmental science major at UMaine and a biology: ecology and evolution (or potentially environmental science) at Colby. I am a presidential scholar at Colby and in the honors college at UMaine. I would be an athlete at either school and am also interested in joining other clubs (outing club, dance, activism, etc). I would prefer a liberal arts education because I love exploring different subjects, and I’m considering a sociology double major. I would also like to be involved in research. I’m outdoorsy, not into greek life at all, and prefer a smaller student population. UMaine is free and Colby is ~20k. Any thoughts on the differences between the schools or pros/cons are appreciated
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Can your family afford Colby with no loans or hardships?
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If you plan on going on to graduate school, I’d say go wherever you get the best deal. You don’t want to come out in debt.
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Colby represents an excellent opportunity for your interests.
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If the cost were the same, Colby would easily come out on top. Their program is excellent and there are tons of well-resourced opportunities for students. It is also a place where it’s easy to explore and pursue interests. They provide great career services. In fact, $20,000/year is a bargain for what Colby offers.
Having said that, a brand new Ferrari for $50,000 is a bargain too, but you need to have $50,000. If you don’t, you can certainly get a new car for less. Which is all to say it really depends on how much of a hardship it would be to spend $20,000.
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Free is an AMAZING concept!
Just adding to the thread to say that my daughter loves UMaine (nursing) … lots of activities and opportunities. I know nothing about Colby except that we pass it on the way to Orono… so the two locations are not all that different if that’s an important factor!
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If paying the 20k a year is feasible I think you will love Colby. Small, non greek, and outdoorsy it is. My son graduates in the spring and has loved the whole experience. My dad attended University of Maine and loved the school as well. You have two great options. Can you attend accepted students days for both?
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Both are great options.
The reality check though - how do you or your family plan to pay for Colby - savings, loans? Coming out of college with no debt (with a career focus that does not always pay the highest salaries) will make a huge difference when you are considering jobs, grad school options, cost of living in different areas, car payments, etc…
$20,000 per year initially can increase based on changes in income and other factors. Talk to your parents about running the net price calculators and estimating for the additional years. As an example, for DD cost would have been 30,000 at a meets 100% need school for year one, slightly up the next year, and then full pay at $80,000 for the final two years between a sibling not longer in college and salary increases. So instead of $120,000, it would have been over $220,000.
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If your parents can afford Colby, go there.
The school is extremely well-resourced. You will get research opportunities, and they have an exellent career office and a solid alumni network. Take into account that number will go up after the first year. Tuition and room and board do go up.
If your parents can’t afford 20K a year, then don’t think twice and go to the UMaine (Orono, I’m assuming?)
I think UMaine can’t house it’s upperclassmen, so you may incur housing costs. Is your aid baked in to account for off-campus housing?
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My daughter is facing a similar choice (UMaine vs. LAC) though she did not get a free ride at Umaine. Are you attending the accepted students event on Saturday at UMaine for bio/ecology majors? We are hoping this experience will help her make the final decision. We visited the campus once already and were very impressed with the resources there, which she just won’t find at most LACs. They mentioned paid research opportunities for undergraduates in the presentation.
We also visited Colby and ultimately decided not to apply because they didn’t have the labs and research opportunities in her areas of interest. It is a beautiful place though!
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