<p>Hey CC! Going into my senior year, I realize I've been being closed minded about my college list, keeping it limited to small, private schools. However, I've recently been considering some larger institutions (namely UCSD and UT Austin). I love what big schools have to offer in terms of resources and such, but the idea of hundreds of students all in one lecture class freaks me out. I am an active student and like to ask a lot of questions, get to know my teachers, etc etc. </p>
<p>Does anyone with a similar learning style have any advice on how to survive these classes? How did you make yourself standout or be involved in such a large group?
Thank You!</p>
<p>Most big lecture classes will also have smaller discussion sessions, led by TAs. Also, professors have office hours, and you can go there and ask questions. They like this, and lots of students don’t do it.</p>
<p>If you really want small classes for all of college, you probably have you have to go to really really small schools. Of course, as you already know, the downside is that there are far less opportunities at smaller colleges.</p>
<p>A large university has a lot more variety. Most upper division courses have fewer people, especially in certain majors (though there are some exceptions). Most classes also have discussions, tutorials, labs, etc.</p>
<p>The idea of hundreds of hundred of students in one large lecture is really not that bad. I actually think it’s great. College classes are a lot different than high school classes. For each class, I only have 3 hours of lectures per week. This doesn’t leave a lot of time for students to ask questions, especially in STEM courses.</p>
<p>I honestly think you should go to a large school instead of a small one. Its offers a lot more variety. Sometimes, people go into smaller schools thinking it is something they want, but find it too specific and overwhelming, and end up hating it. Larger schools, in my opinion, makes it easier to find one’s niche.</p>
<p>Think about this. Big schools literally have hundreds of clubs. Smaller schools might not. I think it’s way easier to be involved in larger schools.</p>
<p>I think UT Austin and UCSD are great options. Don’t worry about large lectures, that really should be the least of your worries. It’s easy to stand out. Just ask a couple of questions in lecture and go your prof’s office hours. Really, its that simple. Hardly anybody goes to office hours, lol.</p>
<p>Also, what state do you live in and what do you plan to study?</p>
<p>@arghwhy Im thinking i want to go into Economics or something in the business field, maybe Economics and Management…
Also, my state does not have a good public education system and no real private schools either, so in-state isnt really an option. </p>
<p>I don’t know much about economics or business, but many large schools do have business schools for undergraduates. (Schools like ASU, for example).</p>
<p>I think you’ll really like larger schools and they’re probably better than smaller schools if you consider yourself outgoing.</p>
<p>@mom2collegekids
I’m fairly confident in my ability to get into at least one of them. My test scores fall in about the 80th percentile for both schools, my GPA is a 3.9 UW, and I have several strong EC’s with high leadership positions.</p>
<p>My parents are willing to finance my undergrad education wherever I go, but Im looking at top public schools to try and reduce costs. </p>
<p>The main public school in my state is not bad, per say, but it’s only strong programs are medicine and anthropology so I’m looking elsewhere.</p>
<p>Top public schools OOS are going to be more expensive than most privates because most publics will offer OOS students no aid of any kind, so Austin is likely to cost you 50K and UCSD 53K. There are exceptions, but most likely you can look to privates for more help with aid. If your family is full pay and you want to cut costs, look for schools that would offer you some merit aid.</p>
<p>A good, dynamic teacher can put on a pretty great class even if it’s in a large lecture hall. Two of my favorite classes in college were in large lecture halls, neither one in my major. One was Children’s Literature, believe it or not, taught by a woman in her 80’d who had literally been around the world and knew all manner of famous people. We had Margaret Hamilton (Wicked Witch of the West) speak to us along with Maurice Sendak. My freshman Economics class was quite good too, though not nearly as interesting. Try sitting in on a large class or two-ask about dynamic professors-see what you think.</p>