<p>Small Liberal Arts Colleges are very well-known among people in academia for the quality of education they offer and for the number of their graduates that go on to prestigious graduate programs. Top LACs are quite competitive with the Ivy league in placing graduates in PHd and other programs. The average American (whoever that is) may not know a lot of things. But the fact that these schools are less well-known can be advantageous for international students.</p>
<p>My point was - that statistics don’t tell the whole story, and that individual international students may benefit from breaking with the pack mentality of all seeking admittance to the same globally-known universities. It just stands to reason that the chances for admittance for any one international student goes down as more and more international students apply for the limited spaces at the same list of universities. </p>
<p>Since I had never heard of Berea, but am well-versed on LACs, I was confused by its inclusion among other well-known and more prestigious schools.</p>
<p>I still don’t get your point. The numbers I know suggest that the admission rates of financial aid seeking international students are equally low at LACs as at “globally-known universities.” “Pack mentality” among aid-seeking international students is to apply to the best colleges and universities that offer need-based aid: that’s Harvard and Dartmouth as well as Williams and Vassar. If you want to ‘break with pack mentality’, you could look at second and third-tier American colleges and universities. Those receive much fewer applications from international students than Williams or Vassar or Berea. </p>
<p>Please notice that I keep saying “financial aid seeking” international student. The story looks very different for full-paying applicants. Few international students want to pay $60,000 a year for a degree from Haverford when they could get a degree from UCLA. </p>
<p>
LAC graduates go to grad school at high rates because they struggle on the job market. You apply for a regular job and people will ask if your alma mater is a community college. You apply to prestigious jobs and will be told that the company only hires from Princeton and Wharton; Haverford and Swarthmore degrees aren’t prestigious enough to please their clientele. </p>
<p>I am not even joking. As an undergrad I attended several events hosted by the Career Development Office at Haverford where the presenter represented a company that was very open about not hiring Haverford students for entry-level positions. I would estimate that half of my classmates who went to grad school made that decision solely because they were so discouraged by their prospects on the job market. </p>
<p>I don’t expect to change your views; they seem fixed. In my experience, graduates of LACs have more interesting and varied careers than people I know who graduated from larger and perhaps better known places. </p>
<p>The original poster on this thread wanted to go to law school. Going to a highly rated LAC would serve her well.</p>
<p>Berea’s mission historically is to serve students from Appalachia - perhaps that has something to do with low admit rates for international students. Thanks for the snide comment, it reflects well on you.</p>
<p>Hey @hunbun77, I’d be really interested to know which college you’ve got! I’m also a French student who intend to apply to American colleges, perhaps not as famous as the one you applied to since I’m far from being as good as you are. </p>