<p>I am looking at a lot of LACs because of my undecided major :/ I've been researching many schools, but I can't tell what sets each school apart. For example, I know that every school is in a different location, class size is diff etc., but in terms of academics all of them seems to have similar curriculums. All have those "liberal" courses which is required and the students pick on major.</p>
<p>I simply can't pick out which ones to apply to. I'm deciding by ranking and that must not be good -_-</p>
<p>There may be slight differences in strengths (Middlebury for languages, environmental studies; Bowdoin which is on the ocean for marine biology) but, you’re right that you probably won’t decide based on a particular department. So rankings becomes a big factor and among the ones in the general category your stats fit into you might be looking at location, connections to other colleges (like Amherst and the Pomona colleges which have consortiums), how it fits you in the preppy vs. funky sense (because they do differ). Just because you’re undecided doesn’t mean you have to go the liberal arts college route; most people do it because of the class sizes/attention from professors and close-knit community. Look at some of the X vs. Y threads and you’ll get some ideas (i.e. Vassar vs. Williams vs. Hamilton etc.)</p>
<p>Some schools are more picky about required courses; others have a looser curriculum. A few offer specialty majors like engineering. Some require 3 semesters of foreign language; others only 2. Some are quarter system; others are semester system; others have a mini session in between two semesters. Some have religious affiliation. Haverford is Quaker, for example and Davidson is Presbyterian, I believe, and Brandeis is Jewish. Weather and area of the country can also be differences.</p>
<p>Wesleyan has an entirely open curriculum. No required core courses… only what your major requires. No more than 16 classes in any one area, so many double or even triple major, more still minor or get certificiates in many areas. Wesleyan also has graduate research programs which is different for most LAC. Wes also has a new President who has breathed new life into the school and is raising the bar across the campus in every area.</p>
<p>A few LAC’s-Holy Cross, Colgate, Lafayette-have Division1 sports programs that compete against the Ivies. The presence of D1 sports gives the campus a bigger-time atmosphere. For example Holy Cross-Harvard football series is over 100 years old and Lehigh-Lafayette is one of college football’s oldest rivalries.</p>
<p>Careful here. Davidson is still Presbyterian, but Haverford and Brandeis have no religious affiliation. Haverford was founded by Quakers but no longer has institutional ties to the Society of Friends, though it does still celebrate the core Quaker values of personal integrity, sincerity, tolerance, non-violence, and the relentless pursuit of truth. Brandeis was founded shortly after World War II by prominent Jewish leaders, in part to create more educational opportunities for bright Jewish kids who at the time faced stringent quotas limiting their enrollment in the Ivies and other elite northeastern colleges and universities; but Brandeis was non-denominational and non-sectarian from day one.</p>
<p>I can think of lots of things that distinguish them. some have a strong or dominant greek system and others have none at all. the party scene and social norms are quite different between those two types. some have a large number of students who smoke cigarettes, others have almost none. some have dorms that are coed by floor, others by room. some are balanced between genders nearly 50/50, but many are quite lopsided toward women. some have large numbers of international and minority students, other have predominantly white Americans. in some the popular introductory class sizes can be surprisingly large (even approaching 100), and in others even first year biology (generally among the most popular classes) is more like 35 per section. some have a normal semester calendar and others have a January term or even a block plan. some have a reputation for sending many people to non-profit and volunteer jobs and others are known for putting out working bankers and scientists. The relative successes of schools at getting their grads into graduate school programs varies widely. some have a core curriculum so confining that it’s difficult to double major, others have no core at all.</p>
<p>They are all selling pretty much the same educational product (with a few differences as noted above). In my opinion, as you march down the college rankings, the changes are less marked among LACs than they are among universities. They become less selective, of course, but they still offer small classes. The overall size, the curriculum, and the focus on undergraduates generally stay very similar.</p>