<p>I am currently a high school Senior living in Minnesota, with a 3.98 GPA and in the top 5% of my class. I'm an Eagle Scout, I'm part of my school's National Honors Society, and I joined the Speech team my Junior year and had a very successful first year in it. I'm planning on majoring in Secondary Education, specifically mathematics education.</p>
<p>As I've been touring and visiting colleges across Minnesota, there was one college that really caught my attention. Winona State University was that college, having strong Education programs, easy access to the stores and parks of Winona, and reasonable class sizes. After the tour and admissions meeting, I was absolutely thrilled to potentially go there. However, it is kind of a low-ranking college compared to Minnesota private colleges. I've toured a whole bunch of private colleges in the state (specifically Gustavus, Carleton, Hamline, Saint Mary's in Winona, and Bethel), but all these colleges didn't even nearly appeal to me as much as Winona State did.</p>
<p>So here's my main question. With my high school credentials making me a good candidate for well-esteemed private colleges, should I go with a lower-ranking public college that I'm highly satisfied with or a private higher-rank college that doesn't appeal to me as much? As a potential teacher, I'm worried that I'll have more difficulty getting hired if I attend a low-rank rather than a high-rank college.</p>
<p>Have you considered UM-Morris? Much better academically than Winona.
Their math department is excellent. Faculty come from some excellent programs.</p>
<p>You may want to specifically look at how teachers are hired in the state you want to teach in, to see which universities and majors are the best preparation.</p>
<p>For teaching high school math, it may be better to major in math, or double major in math and education, rather than major in just education. But check how high school math teachers are qualified and hired in the state you want to teach in to be sure.</p>
<p>There’s nothing wrong with going to a college that you really like, and getting a 4.o gpa. It will set you up for grad school and/or a teaching job.</p>
<p>Many/most teachers went to “regular schools”…local state schools and the like.</p>
<p>There’s no point in taking on significant debt (or really any debt) if attending a state school is fine and you can afford it. Teachers often don’t get paid much in the early years, so paying back any debt would be a problem. </p>
<p>What are your test scores?</p>
<p>What is your budget? How much will your parents pay?</p>
<p>Here in rural Illinois, virtually all new teachers are products of our non-flagship public universities - Illinois State and the five “directionals.” I’ve covered a number of school districts for many years (I’m a reporter who reports mostly on public schools), and it’s very rare to find a private school grad getting hired. It may be different in the suburbs, however, where the pay scales (but also the cost of living) tend to he higher; but my sense is that few private colleges focus on training teachers any more, though there certainly are exceptions. </p>
<p>Don’t pick a single college until you know what kind of financial aid they’re going to offer you. I don’t know what your financial situation is, but it’s almost never worth paying $10,000 more per year to go to any college, and financial aid packages vary greatly between schools and between students.</p>
<p>Go where you want to go! If you might end up miserable at a private school, why go there? I got accepted into my “reach” schools, but I choose the lowest ranked “safety” on my list…because I felt the most comfortable there, and I still do now.</p>
<p>One thing to think about it whether you will need a Master’s degree for a teaching career. In many states, you need a Master’s degree within a few years after you are hired. In my state, it is common for teachers to major in something other than education and then go on to get a master’s in teaching. Take a look at the certification procedures for the state(s) you want to live in after you graduate.</p>
<p>Go wherever you want to go; rankings don’t really matter. Besides, most of my K-12 teachers attended not very prestigious local public schools, namely Chico State and Sacramento State University.</p>