My son really liked St. Mike’s after visiting and was impressed by the school and Science program. He also really likes Clarkson. Both schools have a lot to offer. Anyone have experience with both for science?
Hate to start any kind of death spiral talk.
But read an article about st mikes dwindling enrollment as an “existential crisis”.
2017 saw the freshman class go down by 10 percent. The smallest ever.
It may have improved last year, however, a lot of it driven by reduced fees and tuition.
That’s not a good long term combination.
Small schools are struggling a bit and the demographics a few years down the road are not promising.
I would choose clarkson for my son if it was the choice. And pretty good hockey program to follow and enjoy. Not that’s why to choose clarkson of course ! It’s a solid school.
I saw that article and was surprised. I honestly sent him to accepted students day because the school is close to family thinking for sure he’d still want to go with Clarkson. Wasn’t expecting him to like it as much as he did and of course they sold the science program etc.Great Scholarships but there’s something about Clarkson that I love for him.
Good luck. It will all be great in the end!
I am surprised how Vermont colleges are having problems but than again they have more colleges than needed… Green Mountain college closing… both college of St Joseph and South Vermont college accreditation problems… enrollment decline at a few if not most of their colleges…
I’d go with Clarkson especially with their engineering school which attracts great employers
Clarkson.
To give a different perspective from the above, St Michael’s environment is much better than Clarkson’s. Burlington is a terrific town and most things college students would want to access are readily accessible on foot.
I don’t know the curriculum compare - I know St Michael’s changed theirs a couple years ago to be in sync with the times while keeping their general mission.
Look at availability of courses for your major, email professors to ask their opinion about the major and their points of pride (starting with ‘Dear professor z’).
That’s exaclty it. @MYOS1634 the Burlington area has so much more to offer, and is only 20 minutes from my parents. We’re in lower NY. Not loving the isolation of Clarkson in comparison but like the school. Tough call.
I have heard the same things Privatebanker said. St. Mikes may be one of those struggling small schools. But then again, they may give you some great merit money due to that fact! Clarkson can’t be beat in terms of reputation. I have a family member there right now and he says while it is cold, the people can’t be beat! I know a young lady there too - she also loves it. Both smart kids with great personalities.
@privatebanker - I read that article as well. For further perspective, check out this article - https://www.sevendaysvt.com/vermont/survival-of-the-smartest-vermonts-colleges-must-adapt-as-pool-of-potential-students-declines/Content?oid=19763327
The new president (its first woman leader) at St. Mike’s has brought energy and vision. She has introduced two new niche programs in Health Science and Public Health to complement an already strong science program. https://www.vermontcatholic.org/schools/new-majors-at-st-michaels-college/
Add in the student Fire and Rescue squad which offers students with med school aspirations the unique opportunity to be an EMT, an awesome college town with UVM and Champlain College nearby, and a warm service oriented campus community - St. Mike’s is still worth a hard look.
Here’s an article from a St. Michael’s alumni publication that caught my eye (yes, I am a proud Purple Knight alum) -
“Pre-med experiences just what the doctor ordered”
Scrubbing up and observing a middle-of-the night C-section alongside her academic internship mentor-physician marked a turning point for Eliza McDonald ’17. The Saint Michael’s College rising senior intensified her medical school aspirations after the experience and now is spending the summer in Boston at Massachusetts General Hospital assisting a leading blood-cancer researcher.
“This is a great skill set for an undergraduate,” was the assessment of that researcher, Dr. Timothy Graubert, when he saw McDonald’s resume and she described for him such advanced lab skills as DNA-extracting that she has practiced repeatedly as a St. Mike’s Honors Program biology major with a minor in chemistry. McDonald, a native of Quincy, MA, also is active with the College’s Campus Ministry retreats and liturgies and says she might add a minor in religious studies.
The Alvin T. and Viola D. Fuller Junior Research Fellowship through the American Cancer Society is funding McDonald’s summer 2016 experience at Mass General. She already has an idea what to expect because she also worked at a paid internship at Boston Children’s Hospital the previous summer.
Family history informs McDonald’s intent focus on both medicine and faith. “When I was a senior in high school, my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer,” says McDonald, who knew even before her mother’s diagnosis that her maternal-side genetics carried a strong risk for that disease. “My mom had a surgeon during that time, the head of transplant at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, whom I ended up job-shadowing,” she says. “Now my mom is doing great – cancer-free for four years now – so that’s been a great triumph for my family.”
McDonald was glad to learn recently that a Saint Michael’s friend from both science classes and religious retreats, 2016 biochemistry graduate Ellen Murchie, has received a similar fellowship at nearby Brigham & Women’s this summer.
“It speaks well for our department,” says McDonald. “We’re educating our students with great lab technique, and you can take that anywhere.” Equally indispensable, she feels, are “the other skills you gain with classes in humanities – writing, critical thinking, and ability to read a text, then analyze and condense it – you take those anywhere too.”
A favorite class memory from this past semester was an extended deep discussion in her Honors Colloquium on the topic of meaningful work. “We decided meaningful work applies to all of us and involves maintaining that hard balance – making money, supporting family, serving others, personal contentment – they’re all in the mix,” she said.
Dr. Graubert, McDonald’s summer mentor at Mass General, is studying the molecular basis of blood cancers, particularly acute myeloid leukemia, she said. McDonald’s internship at Boston Children’s last year in oncology hematology stimulated her interest in cancer research, just as earlier experiences affirmed her interest in medicine.
After her first Saint Michael’s year she volunteered at two Boston area hospitals, South Shore and Dana Farber, and she has experienced more traditional college-student summer work too – at Trader Joe’s and a restaurant. “I’ve been trying to enrich my resume with experiences that would let me know what I’m truly interested in. Medicine is hard work, so I have to be sure and committed,” she said.
Her most solid career direction so far has come from the recent academic internship in South Burlington with Dr. Jenny Lowell, ob-gyn. “I decided I wasn’t going to study abroad as many students would in their junior year,” she said. “So Career Counseling at Saint Mike’s gave me a list for biology and health-related opportunities, and I just cast a wide net.”
When Dr. Lowell called, McDonald says, she knew she couldn’t pass up the rare chance for personal hands-on clinical experience, “which doesn’t come around often for an undergrad.” She says Lowell, who has won teaching awards at UVM medical school, “has incredible ability to teach,” and was able to fill any gaps since McDonald has no med school background.
McDonald says that coming from a small Catholic high school, Fontbonne Academy in Milton, she chose Saint Michael’s “for the community feel and small class size.” She’s co-president of the Honors Program, recently was inducted as president of the biology honors society Tri Beta, and is a Founders Society tour guide; she also has led LEAP and new-student retreats for Campus Ministry, and is a Eucharistic minister and lector.
To solidify her lab credentials, she has been doing lab prep for Professor Denise Martin in biology, and was part of an Academic Symposium project last year for Biology Professor Dagan Loisel’s Population and Evolutionary Genetics class, using many of the same techniques required in her coming summer research.
She says orientation for her summer internship will be together with all the fellows from 11 colleges across New England, including Brown, Tufts, Connecticut College and UVM. Then it’s into the lab. “Dr Graubert wants to be sure what I’m doing is something I’m really passionate about, so that will come as I get a little more integrated into the lab setting,” she anticipates. “The first weeks probably will be more about protocols and getting a sense of the work until something special sparks my interest.”
McDonald feels more than prepared for a demanding work schedule this summer, observing that during her work with Dr. Lowell last semester, she took two and a half classes while also completing the four-credit internship three days a week (MWF). Her “first surgery” – that middle-of the night C-section she attended – was especially memorable on many levels. “I got back to campus at 2:30 a.m. and couldn’t sleep, I was so ramped up,” she says. Most importantly, “the baby did great!”
Great info Chill Dad
@AParent012023 - Where did you son ultimately land for college?