<p>(Adding to johnwesley’s fine explanation …)
Long before Sputnik, there was an earlier shock from the “second industrial revolution” (the wave of railroad, telegraph, and other infrastructure-building after the Civil War) and westward expansion. This is when America’s first public land-grant colleges were established. It is also when a few new private schools (MIT, Hopkins, Chicago, Stanford) were founded, more or less on the model of German research universities, often by newly-rich industrial tycoons. One goal of these knowledge factories was to develop the scientific and technical knowledge necessary for industrial growth. They varied in relative emphasis on industrial arts applications versus pure theory. </p>
<p>Older colleges were rooted (in some cases since colonial times) in the need to educate leaders (ministers, lawyers, politicians, doctors) for traditional civic life. They had to adjust to competition from the new breed of university. Some embraced change and evolved into universities well before WWII. Others (today’s LACs) remained focused on undergraduate education. However, virtually all the older private schools (whether they added graduate programs or not) continued to emphasize the liberal arts and sciences. Some added engineering programs but very few added the undergraduate agriculture, business, or nursing programs offered at many state universities (disparaged by some liberal arts purists as “cow colleges” before the post-war era). </p>
<p>These distinctions continued even as new, post-war research funding increased the prestige of public universities. Today the undergraduate curriculum at most selective private schools, whether they offer graduate programs or not, is very similar. Virtually all of them offer majors in traditional arts and science fields (English, History, Math, Physics, Biology) but not in agriculture, business, or nursing. A few LACs, and many private universities, have engineering programs. More private universities also offer degrees in architecture or journalism. Big state universities typically offer undergraduate programs in all these areas (both liberal arts and pre-professional majors) as well as graduate and professional programs.</p>
<p>In addition to curriculum differences and similarities, you need to understand demographic differences. Selective private LACs and universities are expensive schools that attract many affluent students from all over the country. This is likely to affect a school’s atmosphere in ways you may or may not welcome.</p>