<p>Are there any really good small public colleges. I would prefer around 4000 undergrad. I know about a few but most of them are not particularly good. I'd like one that is on at least the level of UNC-CH or another fairly respected public school. William and Mary is the only one I can find. Academic level is very important. I've looked at schools like College of Charleston or UNC-Asheville and they are just not the level I want.</p>
<p>How do you propose to define “on the level?”</p>
<p>St. Mary’s College of Maryland is a public LAC. It’s good, but I wouldn’t consider it an academic peer of W&M or Chapel Hill.</p>
<p>Are you looking for an LAC or a small university? W & M is not an LAC, they have a law school, MBA program, and quite a few PhD programs. They are a small research university.</p>
<p>Maybe look into SUNY Geneseo & TCNJ</p>
<p>I’d like either a LAC or a small university. What I really don’t want a >10,000 population school. I’d really like one that offers a top-notch education, preferably with a strong focus on undergrad. I’d like a school similar to Amherst or Davidson without the ridiculous cost.</p>
<p>But if you’re looking at out-of-state publics, they may not be much cheaper than private LACs. Especially if you’re a candidate for need-based financial aid, or close enough to the top of a college’s applicant pool to be offered significant merit aid.</p>
<p>New College of Florida?</p>
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<p>You can get a top-notch education at almost any college, if you set your mind to that as your primary objective and take full advantage of the opportunities available. What state do you live in?</p>
<p>I’m from South Carolina. We have USC and Clemson but they are bigger than I’d like. There’s college of Charleston but it does not have a particularly good reputation except for being pretty because its old and in Charleston.</p>
<p>I would suggest that you look at LACs ranked in the 25-50 range. The education will be superb and you could get some merit aid to bring the cost down.</p>
<p>In the south, look at Sewanee, Centre, and Rhodes.</p>
<p>All the way out west is The Evergreen State College - noted for their 'interdisciplinary approach, student designed majors and an exceptionally high level of interaction/involvement between students, peers and faculty/admin - This LAC is one of only two public institutions that made Lauren Pope’s book ‘Colleges That Change Lives’ (web site at: [Colleges</a> That Change Lives | Changing Lives. One Student at a Time.](<a href=“http://www.CTCL.org%5DColleges”>http://www.CTCL.org)</p>
<p>At TESC, roughly 40% of the approx. 4300 undergrads are out of state. The campus is on over 1000 mostly natural acres of land, with a fair bit of protected shoreline on Puget Sound. As a truly undergrad focused school, Evergreen attracts a lot of those who intend to move on to graduate schools.</p>
<p>good luck and enjoy!</p>
<p>To give you an idea of how much high quality “Public LACs” cost, here is information about costs to out-of-state students at three of them:</p>
<p>SUNY Geneseo is $28,500. The College of New Jersey is $35,500. St. Mary’s of Maryland is $38,900. The amounts cited are direct costs (tuition, fees, room & board).</p>
<p>As Sikorsky has noted, private LACS and small research universities might be able to match or offer you a better discounted price depending on your need and/or academic accomplishments.</p>
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<p>Truman State University is $21,000 (less if you’re from a Midwest Exchange state).</p>
<p>I don’t know what you mean by ‘academic level’ but look into U Minnesota - Morris. Very affordable from out-of-state, as well.</p>
<p>UNC-Asheville is a good, small, public LAC in an excellent location.</p>
<p>William & Mary</p>
<p>The education of Amherst, prestige of Georgetown, history of Harvard, price of Va Tech. There is no other school in America like it.</p>
<p>William & Mary</p>
<p>Great school. But very pricey for OOS applicants. When my daughter applied 4 years ago the cost-of-attendance was about $32,000 per year and if that’s where she had wanted to go we would have found the means to scrounge up the money.</p>
<p>Today, at nearly $45,000 per year for OOS students I’d have to tell her to look elsewhere. If you have $200,000 saved for college W&M could be a great place to spend 4 years, but OOS students who require financial aid could do better elsewhere.</p>
<p>As Haystack pointed out above, W&M is defined as a small research university rather than a public LAC. It does have much in common with LACs - a strong core curriculum, and a particularly strong commitment to undergrad education. 6,000 undergrad students is more than the 4,000 optimum mentioned in the OP, though.</p>
<p>I agree with hudsonvalley that the finaid at W&M is not its strongest suit. I’d suggest that interested OOS students run the finaid calculator and keep the school on their lists if it’s possible, because it’s truly a great school. And some OOS students get excellent finaid packages, depending on individual circumstances. If finances are an issue, it’s best to have backups.</p>
<p>I love W&M. The 6000 is large than I would prefer but it is still not too big for me. The biggest problem with it for me is the poor OOS financial aid. I feel like it would probably cost the same to attend a private college.</p>