<p>How to select one out of Grinnell and Macalaster for an Economics major program? Which one of these is better for getting into graduate studies in top universities later. Please advise pros and cons of these two fine colleges.</p>
<p>Have you been admitted to both? If so, is there a significant cost difference? Especially since they are so similar, it would make sense to choose based on cost.</p>
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<p>Questions like this often come up on CC. They are nearly impossible to answer when we are talking about two peer liberal arts colleges. In most of these cases there is no significant difference that is nearly as important as your own individual performance in college. The exception might be if there is a particularly famous professor in the field of interest whose recommendation would count for a lot. I do not know that to be the case here.</p>
<p>Probably the most important difference between these schools is that Mac is urban, Grinnell is rural. If that difference does not matter to you, I’d lean toward Grinnell. It’s a richer, slightly more selective school.</p>
<p>Hello again Muscutp. TK2167 nailed it. We also visited Macalester (in addition to Grinnell, where son is now). Again, can’t speak to the rigor of economics at Macalester but can make a few other observations.</p>
<p>1) Grinnell has a lot more money in its endowment than Macalester which means a lot of new state-of-the-art facilities, and a lot of free resources on campus for students. Macalester couldn’t compete in that respect. Their buildings were older, less attractive and more cramped. </p>
<p>2) Macalester, because it’s an urban school, is less inwardly focused, for better or worse, meaning the school culture isn’t quite is dominating. Even housing on campus isn’t guaranteed for 4 years, I believe. It appeared that a lot of seniors were living off campus, because that option was easily available. They were still close by, but it is a different experience. Our impression was also that students tend to head into the city for entertainment on a regular basis-especially the juniors and seniors-whereas students at Grinnell tend to stay on campus more and participate more in ECs because there is no city nearby. (Des Moines and Iowa City are about an hour away). </p>
<p>3) Grinnell has a reputation for greater academic rigor, but I suspect there is more variation between majors and students than between the schools.</p>
<p>4) Both schools use their endowment to bring international students to campus. I believe both student bodies are at 12%-among the highest for top LACs. No difference there. And both schools exude that unpretentious, self-deprecating, quirky mid-western vibe that we love.</p>
<p>M’s Mom, are you from the East Coast? It looks like your S looked at some of the LACs here, too, and I’m curious about your decision-making process in choosing Grinnell. My S is admitted, and on paper, Grinnell has always seemed a perfect fit, but he does have good choices that he wouldn’t have to fly to. We are going to visit Grinnell this month. I’m particularly interested if you – or anyone else – have a sense of how Grinnell would compare to Bates and Bard in terms of overall intellectual discourse in and out of the classroom, interest in politics and world news, and a sense of involvement and fun that comes from activities other than partying.</p>
<p>whoops, sorry I just realized I hijacked this thread, but hopefully it will still be helpful for OP</p>
<p>Take a look at the department staff, course catalogs and major requirements for econ at both colleges. Check on IPEDS to see how many majors graduate from each school. You can get an idea of how strong the program is at each school. Are there a lot of elective courses? More course offerings, more staff, and more students graduating generally indicate a stronger program.</p>
<p>Hello SDonCC. </p>
<p>We have lived on the east coast for years and are now living in California. We looked at schools all over. </p>
<p>First let me say that my son was looking for a very intellectual college, but one that was not infused with a snotty or pretentious atmosphere. He likes the arts and sports and wanted a school that was small enough to have a tight knit community feel. </p>
<p>We visited lots of schools and considered many, but when it came down to it, Grinnell was the best fit for him. The kids are very intellectual, but in a non threatening, rather helpful way. They are humble, but quirky at the same time. </p>
<p>They have tons of fun dances and activities on campus thanks to their incredible endowment. Some kids drink and many don’t. He said there was no pressure to drink when he did his overnight and he observed that the kids who were students could not care if the others were or weren’t drinking. </p>
<p>Grinnell is known to have a large number of students interested in politics and world news. Many get involved in community service. </p>
<p>The facilities are top notch(Again thanks to having one of the largest endowments in the country per capita). </p>
<p>The campus is beautiful, yet compact which is great in the dead of winter. </p>
<p>My son is going to be attending in the fall. Congrats on you S’s admittance. </p>
<p>BTW, congrats on Bates and Bard as well. You really need to go and visit Grinnell and do an overnight if at all possible.</p>
<p>Hi Muscutp,</p>
<p>Posted this on the other thread too. I thought this might help to answer your question regarding future Ph.d’s. Grinnell has an amazing Economics program. In fact, it’s one of the best in the country for preparing students to go on to the graduate and Ph.d level. Hope this helps.</p>
<p><a href=“http://web.grinnell.edu/institutionalresearch/webdocs/PhDProd_F06.pdf[/url]”>http://web.grinnell.edu/institutionalresearch/webdocs/PhDProd_F06.pdf</a></p>