<p>I know this question has been asked before, but after a discussion (rather, an argument) with my parents - who believe LACs are only for the "liberal arts" (i.e Literature, Arts, etc), I have myself asking the question:</p>
<p>Which would give a student more of a preparation for medical school: LACs (Davidson College) or big research Universities (UNC-Chapel Hill)? I mean, how am I supposed to participate in a research project with a professor in a LAC without a research department?</p>
<p>Btw, I am a high school senior, and I absolutely love the LAC atmosphere and its principles. It's warming to hear about students actually getting to know their professors and peers - unlike the 20,000+ who attend Chapel Hill.</p>
<p>This depends on the person. For me, I didn't apply to a single LAC. I love big schools. I love meeting new people every day. I love being able to show up half awake with a hangover and just chilling in the back of a big lecture. Most people, however, learn better in a small class setting. In this respect, LAC's probably offer a better undergrad education, not to mention better opps for recommendation letters. </p>
<p>Research opportunities might be an issue. Research is conducted at LAC's but obviously not on the same scale and with the same resources as they are at big research institutions.</p>
<p>Med school acceptance rates from LACs like Davidson are good, so research experience likely isn't a major problem. I wouldn't use this criteria to determine where you'll go. Perhaps apply to Davidson, UNC, and others and see what happens.</p>
<p>Thanks guys, but the problem really is convincing my parents about Davidson, who strongly believes that LACs have almost no influence with science and research. And since they are both Chinese and attended Chinese universities, and because of how colleges work in China, my parents really have no support for me to go to a LAC.</p>
<p>Also, the question about ED/EA or not is a big one. If I ED at Davidson, I most likely will HAVE to go there. And if I RD, it'll be a little more difficult to be accepted because you will need to show "commitment." Also, I'm not sure if I can ED at Davidson while having EA (or Early Notification) at UNC.</p>
<p>You could EA at both, I believe. Davidson has a no-loans policy now, if that helps. The difference in cost may end up making Davidson a favorable option. If you really want to prove Davidson's merit to your parents, request medical school placement data from Career Services and compare it with UNC.</p>
<p>I'm going to be starting at Davidson next fall (I'm deferring my enrollment for a year) and I'm planning to major in a science field, possibly going to med school, possibly going to go for a masters or PhD in something. I chose Davidson partially because I will be able to do research. UNC will probably have huge scale, really cool research projects going on, but as an undegrad it's really tough to get any sort of leading position in research at a huge school that has graduate programs. It's mostly the grad students who get the good lab jobs and who get to propose research topics of their own. At Davidson, you can do your OWN research, leading projects with a faculty advisor, or working directly with one of the faculty on their project. They have fantastic facilities - the best at any of the small colleges I visited by far, so I don't think you'll be missing out much in terms of the level of research you can do.</p>
<p>Go to Davidson's website, I'm sure they've got something there about undergraduate research. The great thing is that they'll fund your ideas, so you really have control and an ability to explore what you're interested in. And I'm sure that tons of students from Davidson do summer internships at bigger, entirely science based places.</p>
<p>I've always wanted to do science, and in the college admissions process, I ONLY looked at LACs because I believe they're the best places to be for the research that I want to do.</p>
<p>And Davidson has the most amazing financial aid ever. Their package was a million times better than all of my other offers - and it's ALL grant money! It ended up being $20,000 a YEAR cheaper than the other school I was deciding between - Haverford.</p>
<p>Sorry for the rant, but I love Davidson and I really believe it's a great place for science, or else I wouldn't be going there!</p>
<p>I graduated from Davidson a few months ago and I am presently in medical school-as are many of my classmates; Davidson's reputation for getting it's students into medical school is well-known to those who are in the business. research opportunities are abundant as well as an overseas, summer medical experience in Africa(two different ones) that medical schools adcoms just love. You will not find this at a megaversity.</p>
<p>1.) Hey, we've just added a medical student to our rolls. Congrats. Our total is up to four.</p>
<p>2.) "Liberal arts" is simply meant to contrast against "vocational" majors -- that is, engineering, nursing, business, etc. In that sense of the word, biology, economics, chemistry, English, and psychology are all "liberal arts".</p>
<p>Of course, "liberal arts" means different things in different contexts. Sometimes it only means English and Art History when being contrasted with the "sciences", but that's not what it means here. I promise.</p>
<p>3.) Liberal arts colleges actually seem to place pretty well. Maybe HG can give you more detailed information. In particular, Davidson has a very impressive GPA among medical school admits. (Low is better, and theirs is the lowest I've ever seen.)</p>
<p>4.) Hm... Davidson is small but UNC has more research... how about a compromise to a still-small but research-strong institution? I know a good compromise in North Carolina...</p>
<p>5.) Actually the sad truth is that public schools in general do pretty poorly for themselves in the admissions process, even when raw measures of student quality (i.e. SAT) are the same.</p>
<p>(UC Berkeley mean SAT in 2004: 1370 (1). Davidson mean SAT in 2006: 1343 (2). But if Davidson doesn't crush Berkeley, I'll be shocked.)</p>
<p>I'm totally for LAC's, and will probably be applying to them mostly when the time comes. Intimate classes, personalized attention, independant research...bliss for a science person like me! Not to mention that most LAC's have awesomely beautiful campuses...but that's beyond the point. It all depends on the person.</p>
<p>P.S.: I wanna get into medical research, so yeah.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot for your responses, and I really appreciate actual (future and present) Davidson students responding!</p>
<p>Mike: I've always dreamed of that school you were talking about (Duke), but I just don't think my grades are up to par (4.6 GPA - top 10%, 2150/1420 SAT, 13 APs, 720 Math 2C, 690 Biology) for such a superior school.</p>
<p>As for the financial standpoint... UNC is 14k for me, while I need to pay 40k for Davidson. And since my parents will not pay for my college education, this is a huge part of my decision.</p>
<p>And as for EA/ED.. do I have to go to Davidson if I apply ED and get accepted, despite the financial situation?</p>
<p>With most schools, if you apply ED and got in, you must attend. The only way you can back out is if the FA isn't enough.</p>
<p>I went to undergrad at a university eons ago. Both of my kids are now attending LAC's.</p>
<p>You should have your parents visit a LAC. Go on a tour and sit in on the information session. They don't have enough information or they are reacting to misinformation. As long as they are open minded, exposing them to some first hand information would help.</p>
<p>If you apply ED the implication is that you have to go there, better read the fine print on any college that you plan to apply ED(not EA) to. I do not believe that Davidson offers EA, just ED 1 and ED 2.</p>
<p>RH: Try a chances thread on the Duke board. I applied like six years ago so I'm a little far removed from the process, but you don't sound absurdly out of range, especially if you're an NC resident (which helps).</p>
<p>And what do you mean if the FA isn't enough? What is enough and what is not enough? I mean, I certainly can't pay for the tuition if it's even discounted to 10k...</p>
<p>So a question for all you Davidson grads and students: How much did you (or are you) going to pay for a year of stay at Davidson?</p>
<p>"So a question for all you Davidson grads and students: How much did you (or are you) going to pay for a year of stay at Davidson"</p>
<p>Dear Old Dad paid $40K a year, cash(that included airfare trips back home to Texas for holidays etc.); he feels he is getting off cheap for medical school(only $30K/year in Texas). However, we did not apply for financial aid(as it was not needed); Davidson is quite generous for those who do need it. The problem comes when your parents 'refuse to pay' when FAFSA indicates that they can pay at least something. Colleges assume that parents are supportive.</p>
<p>So, there it is. You have your acceptance letter from your dream school in your hand. You’re set to enroll. All that’s left to do is to fill out your paperwork, pack your bags, and you’re good to go, right? Hmmm, not so fast there! Have you gotten any information about how much financial aid you’re going to receive? It sure would be a bummer to find out you may not be able to pay the bill.</p>
<p>So what's the catch?
Probably the most apparent problem of applying under the Early Decision (ED) option is that if you are accepted, you will get one — and only one — financial aid offer. If it isn’t what you need, this is the only condition under which you can decline admission. (Remember that little line you signed when you applied? You’re committed unless the financial gurus don’t come through for you.) Do you really want to wait until late spring and then find out you may have to scratch your big plans?</p>
<p>According to the last bit of information I got (which could change because I have to resubmit FAFSA and everything for next year since I'm not starting until then) I'll be paying $25,000 a year. This compares to the $46,000 Haverford expected me to pay (they gave me a bunch of loans) or the $17,000 my super huge state school, University of Wasington, wanted me to pay. To me, Davidson was wellll worth the extra $8,000 a year over UW honors.</p>
<p>Thanks for the insight, but that's what I'm worried about. If I apply ED anywhere, the pro is that it will probably be easier for me to be accepted, but the HUGE con is that there is a good possibility I will not have the money to pay for it.</p>