<p>I've always known that my parents were anti-LAC--they're typical Asian parents who want big and urban with lots of resources, notwithstanding that I want small-town community--but now it's come to finances. My mother has stated that she will pay 20k (our EFC) for any of the USNWR top 50 national universities, but only the top 25 LACs. (This is an improvement over her thinking that AWS were matches.) My parents place a big emphasis on acceptance rate, prestige, rankings, and location (NE). They can't seem to understand why I don't want to attend a large university, why I prefer tiny no-name schools. I've done a lot of research and I can articulate clear reasons for my preference--but telling them, repeatedly, has done me little good. Any school also has to be "better" than UDel--my in-state flagship, a guaranteed admit, probably merit money to bring cost down to ~10k, and a terrible fit on many levels. I thought I could count on Beloit as a safety that I love, but to my parents, no prestige + Wisconsin = not worth 20k.</p>
<p>I've looked into merit aid previously and will be giving those schools another good, hard look. But this thread is for a different purpose: how do I convince my parents that LACs are at least equally worthy as universities?</p>
<p>you need to bring in your guidance counselor into this discussion, to help your parents understand that LAC's have in many cases more to offer UNDERGRADUATES than large U's. they also need to understand that as more Asian students apply only to U's,because of the USNews lemming mentality, the less an individual's Asian's chances of acceptance, simply because Big U's are looking to build a diverse class of students. LAC's on the other hand are often easier for Asian students to get into, again, because the offer "diversity" to what otherwise may be a homogeneous class.</p>
<p>You could also try making an end run around your parents by choosing to apply to a small program within a large university, and choosing a university that is not in a big city location.</p>
<p>For example, my daughter is a student at Cornell University, a big university in a small town. You would like the community, I think. You might also like the university provided that you chose one of its smaller undergraduate colleges -- Industrial and Labor Relations or Architecture, Art, and Planning, for example -- rather than the huge colleges of Arts and Sciences or Engineering. In the smaller schools, there is much personal attention, and people don't feel like numbers in a huge system. </p>
<p>Of course, this only makes sense if the smaller programs offer something you would like to study. But in general, you might be able to find the personalized environment you want within the larger universities your parents prefer if you choose a less-popular program rather than the standard huge mega-majors, such as business, biology, psychology, or economics.</p>
<p>I would also like to add that your parents may not be completely off-track (and I'm not Asian). I think that many Asian parents recognize that their kids, because of their language skills and comfort in two cultures, may end up in careers that involve much interaction with their families' countries of origin. In many Asian countries, the American educational institutions that get the most respect are the big research universities. Having the name of one of those universities on your resume would be an asset if you're doing business in Asia. If you are planning to end your education with a bachelor's degree and if you are planning a career that might involve interaction with organizations or companies in Asian countries, then your parents' thinking may be valid. But if you are planning to go on to graduate or professional school (in which case the name of the institution where you got your undergraduate diploma will be essentially meaningless) or if your career plans will not bring you into contact with Asian countries, then your parents' thinking may not be applicable to you.</p>
<p>I agree that high school counselor could be a help.
Don't know what your interest is- but LACs may have a greater percentage of their students attaining higher degrees, than universities. REED</a> COLLEGE PHD PRODUCTIVITY</p>
<p>Don't know anything about Udel, I admit- but often honors colleges at state universities are like a school within a school & worth considering.</p>
<p>I would also recommend putting off the conflict with your parents as long as possible. Would you go for a strategy for applications something like this ... Mom and Dad I'll apply to any 5 top 50 Universities you pick (hopefully with your help) and in return you'll let me apply to 5 LACs of my choice. This puts off the conflict until decision time in the spring of your senior year ... and gives you more time to provide information to help pursuade them that LACs are a terrific option. I'd also suggest killing them with kindness and information. Do not fight over this but seek to understand their concerns and answer them with info. If they think the only folks who get jobs go to Universities get info from comparable univerisities and LACs that shows job prospects are similar. If they think the only path to grad school is from a University collect data that shows both Universities and LACs are great paths to grad schools. Etc. You have quite while to address their concerns. Good luck!</p>
<p>PS - you do not need your parents permission to apply to LACs ... so by definition you have until decision time to work on broadening their view!</p>
<p>The silver lining to this is your ethnicity. Lots of Asian parents think like yours do, which means fewer Asians apply to LACs, which means you have an admissions boost. </p>
<p>I like 3togo's idea. If your parents imagine you attending a top grad school, show the great grad school attendance rates of LAC graduates.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I know some very smart kids from Philadelphia who go to the University of Delaware. It may not be perfect for you, but it's not likely to be the seventh circle of hell, either.</p></li>
<li><p>There may perfectly well be some LACs out there that are not a good value proposition compared to UDel for $10,000. So you can start by admitting that. Also, why don't you play along with your parents on the "better than UDel" standard? Make a list of qualities that you think are important -- all of them, not just the ones that favor Beloit -- and how you intend to measure them. Then do it. Make certain to include some ringers that will measure out as being inferior to UDel. Then take the list to your parents and say, "Here are the ___ colleges that are superior to UDelaware that I am going to apply to. I won't be applying to these, because they're not better than UDelaware." Make certain some are in the Northeast and the USNWR Top 25.</p></li>
<li><p>But, as advised above, save the fight for when you actually have to decide. Make them visit. Enlist the help of the admissions staff.</p></li>
<li><p>Give your parents credit for having come a decent part of the way to meet you already. I'm not going to give an unqualified endorsement of what they told you, but it's several giant steps away from the Asian-parent cliche. There's a fair amount of running room in the top 25 LACs, more if you could push it to 30 or 35.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Also, scrutinize that top 50 universities list carefully.</p>
<p>There are several schools on the list -- such as Tufts, Lehigh, and William and Mary -- that are on the smallish side and would probably feel much like a liberal arts college. They're not all mammoth megaversities.</p>
<p>I visited Cornell and was overwhelmed just LOOKING at the library with its rows upon rows of study carrels. Small class sizes are important to me, but I'm also in love with the idea of walking across campus and knowing half of the students around me by name or face. I attended small middle and high schools (~140, then ~250), and I enjoy the intimacy.</p>
<p>And I am a prospective English major (yes, again breaking the Asian mold), which is probably second to Psych in the popular majors race. In practical terms, I'm considering grad school and/or a practical double major such as CS, but language is my passion.</p>
<p>Thank you, everyone, for the advice. I definitely have some things to ponder and several ideas that I would never have thought of on my own (e.g. involving the school college counselor).</p>
<p>What are you interested in studying? Find LACs that are very strong in the fields you are interested in and show your parents evidence of the prestigious rankings in that area. For example, if you are pre-med, find LACs known for a strong science/pre-med orientation and data that show very strong acceptance rates to top-ranked med schools as a way of going where you want while achieving your parents' objective. Give your parents objective data that will ease them in to a comfort zone more congruent with yours.</p>
<p>I agree with Marian that mid-small sized Unis with undergrad focuses might be a good compromise (Brandeis, Brown, Dartmouth also come to mind). It’s not the same as an LAC, but it sounds like you’d be happier at those schools than at a really large uni. </p>
<p>Also, at least they are letting you look in the top 25 LACs, right? While that is really an arbitrary decision, there are tons of awesome schools on that list, so at least you should be able to find some LACs to apply to (or are you afraid you won’t get in?).</p>
<p>I also like everyone else’s advice about showing them stats on LAC PHD, Law school, MEd school etc production rates. For undergraduates, LACs can be just as good or better as Unis depending on the particular school and the person; it certainly sounds like LACs are the thing for you).</p>