Decision time! Picking between a small LAC and a 60,000+ person University. Help!

College Search & Selection
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Hey everyone, first time posting here but CC has been invaluable in my college application process. I am a highschool graduate completing a gap year program in China. Currently I have narrowed down my options to Lewis & Clark college, or University of British Columbia. At both schools, I would be entering an entrepreneurship program. I got a massive scholarship to L&C, so it would be only ~20,000 a year to go there vs 40,000 at UBC

About me: I’m very outgoing, super liberal, outdoorsy, and crazy hyperactive. I LOVE discussion, and can almost be overbearing turning classes into 1-1 conversations. However, I have a lot of difficulty with motivation, and learning in a lecture based environment would be new and much more challenging for me, since I’m used to tiny classes. Also, I did very little work in high school and made up for it with 1st percentile test scores on my application, so I’m very worried about buckling down and really studying.

Essentially, I am picking between two extremes, and I have absolutely no idea which one would be better. I feel like L&C is the “easy” choice, as I know I could excel in a small classroom environment. However, I worry it could be socially stifling (I am really active socially and love to network/make connections/meet new and interesting people). I also worry I would be way too close to my own demographic (white middle class outdoorsy liberal).

UBC has a more esteemed business school, however the classes are massive, and I’m super worried I’ll burn out/skip class often etc. However I feel it could be socially more stimulating and challenging (I would need to make my own connections rather than being part of a highschool esque community)

As far as after college prospects, I’m not as worried. UBC is much better, but I would be comfortable graduating with a less esteemed degree and a better, more rounded education. I’m positive I have what it takes to be successful in life regardless.

Currently, I am leaning a little towards L&C based on price (I have ~35000 in a college fund, maybe more from relatives etc) however were price not a problem I think I might go with UBC.

Finally, I was thinking about going to L&C for a year or two and then transferring, to get that formative first year liberal arts experience and then a more in depth/better focused in major elsewhere. Is this an option, and would L&C’s high transfer rate make this more difficult?

If anyone has any experience with both, please chime in. Thanks!

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Oh, I am also on the waitlist at Reed, and if I get in I will likely go regardless of price.

3

Are you in at the business school at UBC?

I assume you meant you got 99th percentile test scores (i.e. top 1%).

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yes I got into Sauder. And yes thats what I meant, whoops! I just put that in to give a better picture of what kind of student I was in high school- I have the potential to do well but I understand test scores mean nothing without motivation at a college level

5

Are you Canadian? I’m trying to figure out where the idea that UBC is “much better” comes from . . .).

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Lewis and Clark. I cannot see any reason for the massive price difference and potential pittfalls for UBC.

You’d have to look at UBC’s transfer requirements to see if that is an option, no one here can tell you. If it is possible I’d suspect it’s likely to add time as many credits may or may not transfer.

I also am not getting the after college prospect comment. What makes you think or say that?

Within PNW both are highly regarded.

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Thanks for the replies! I guess I was under the impression L&C was not a great school due to its high acceptance rate, and I’ve heard poor things about their job placement programs. I got the impression that UBC is more internationally recognized (especially Sauder). I worry that Lewis and Clark is viewed as being in Reed’s shadow, kind of like a Bently<Babson deal. Can anyone recommend good resources for further research other than the schools websites and CC/Google? Also, not Canadian hence the price.

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Does being more “internationally recognized” matter? Where are you authorized to work?

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hahaha well I’m only 19, so just the US presently, however I’m quite certain I would like to go into international business later in life if possible. I recognize that my aspirations could and likely will change in the next four years. No harm in keeping all options open though, and international recognition seems like it could facilitate a number of possible career paths down the road

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People won’t care where you went to school after your first few years working when neither of these are Ivy/equivalent tier.

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Noted! Thanks

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L&C

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L&C.

UBC can indeed be daunting for US students who are not used to the ‘hands off’ approach to education.
While as an International student you will have better access to advising, UBC has a reputation of one of a school that is relatively easy to gain admission into, but fairly challenging to remain in, particularly during the first two years. While I am not as familiar with the Sauder curriculum, I do know that the math and sciences at UBC have some pretty daunting weeder classes.

If you determine the need to transfer out of L&C to a larger schools after a year or two, at the very least you’ll be well prepared.

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L&C. This seems like a no brainer to me. You can’t stay in college without the academic fit. You can always expand beyond the college for social fit.

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thanks for the response! I just went back over my financial aid and I didn’t realize L&C factored every day life costs at $12,000, I actually got all but $9,000 a year given to me. At this point it seems like a no brainer :slight_smile:

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Concerns for your social life are unwarranted since you’ll be near Portland, so if the college feels small just go out to town - plus, there’s study abroad in many places from Vietnam to Senegal, Italy, Ecuador, and Australia. :slight_smile:

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Also, since you are so social and worried about buckling down and studying, form study groups, use office hours, or just sign up for tutoring for every class. You might not need it academically since you seem to be able to test very well, but at the very least, study groups and tutoring will force you to sit with the material regularly but not be alone in it. Studying can be a social experience too. This is a much better problem to have than being anti-social and unmotivated. Good luck!

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thanks redpoodles, I didn’t even consider that but you’re so right forming a study group is definitely something Ill do! Is tutoring more for people who need hands on/extra help? I’m not really concerned to that extent, I just worry that it will be another school Ill breeze through half learning everything. In the end it comes down to my own motivation, and you’re right adding a social aspect would make it wayyy more appealing

19

There are a couple hundred LACs in the USA. Most are not all that selective, but most of them offer pretty much the same academic programs, the same small classes, and the same undergraduate focus. At least among the top ~100, many professors will have degrees from top graduate programs. For example, I just looked at the L&C history department faculty. I see doctorates from Columbia, UVa, JHU, Berkeley, UChicago, Yale, WUSTL, Harvard, and Texas.

I’m not familiar with UBC, but here in the USA you could go to a respected state university and, esp. for the first 2 years, you’d often be taught by (or your papers would be graded by) graduate students. Or … you could go to a place like L&C and be taught in smaller classes by similar people after they’ve already completed their PhDs, gotten winnowed through the hiring process, and gained several years of teaching experience. And you say you can get that experience for half the price of UBC?

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Tutoring tends to include a lot of B/B+ students looking for an A- as well as struggling students.
I can’t imagine you’ll breeze through Pomona. Get ready to get your butt kicked :slight_smile: