<p>Please include your experience with what you think is a "College that changes Lives". Please be specific, type of students, class size, competitive or not and of course whether they provide merit scholarships.</p>
<p>Um, Montana State University changed my life. Noncompetitive, scholarships are available.</p>
<p>I don’t think the question is a reasonable one since the college experience and education, which can happen at any college including the lowest tier ones, will usually ‘change lives’. It’s a time of growth for most people attending regardless if it’s Harvard, Podunk State University, or ITT Tech. </p>
<p>I think you need to be more specific as to what you’re really looking for in a college.</p>
<p>What he said ↑</p>
<p>this was a suggestion from another thread, and I thought it was a good one-- but it would mean people would have to be specific about just what was meaningful to them or their kids at one or another college. It’s a thread that has popped up before as “hidden gems” or such, and if it’s just a list it’s not terribly helpful. How did…Kalamazoo…or Hartt or Roanoke make a real difference for you? I know the school I went to had a very cold, “sophisticated” (or perhaps intellectually snobbish) feel that really did not help me, and I wouldn’t send anyone there (not naming it as this was 25 yrs ago). But what in the atmosphere or the teaching or the group dynamics made a difference, and why? For instance I’d love to know what bigtrees studied at Montana, if it was that department or the counseling system or the cohesiveness of the student body or…what made the difference?</p>
<p>Ok, it was a suggestion from another thread about not relying on the book Colleges That Change Lives- trying to find out information about the other great small-med LACs that people don’t hear a lot about. Unfortunately on CC there are not a lot of posts on the smaller colleges.<br>
I personally, am specifically interested in merit aid and CA schools, FL</p>
<p>You can have the CTCL type of experience if you choose the right major. Lots of people got lost at my college in big popular departments, but I knew every professor by name and they knew me. I worked closely with two of them on my senior thesis. I did an independent study with another prof.</p>
<p>A more positive example, after I thought about it-- Grad school definitely changed my life-- a small, excellent, program in a big flagship U-- smart, creative people, a familylike atmosphere, in a big midwestern college town that was safe and full of life. Again, it was too long ago to matter now-- but these are the things that make a difference and are really worth telling.</p>
<p>Personally I feel the CTCL-like experience is kept to small programs or schools, academic environments, help & support, and unique opportunities. I really did consider two heavily (Goucher & Knox.) But I don’t know I could deem any particular place to fit that description without having been there- though I did choose my college in part for similar standards/smallness. </p>
<p>Funnily enough I think when it comes to CTCL’s and their kin, the types of things that ‘make’ it or break it is unique quirks and perks. Perhaps a nearby elementary would make a great community for education majors. A cafeteria with ‘language’ tables or a multi-cultural dorm for those interested in cultures and speaking. Funded internships, programs of study that enhance majors, specialty housing that aligns with a student’s interests, or hands on research. Perhaps a college owned forest area for science nerds, or a small but welcoming department in an area of interest. </p>
<p>I would argue many or most LACs and even plenty of Unis have these qualities, but it’s all dependent on what part of the community the student wants to be a part of. </p>
<p>I liked Goucher and Knox, but we already know they’re CTCLs. I chose Connecticut College, because it had similar traits- friendly people, great resources in areas that fascinate me (funding for internships, other neat 'things), and so on. But they’re need-aid based. I think the claremont colleges could arguably make for a great CTCL depending on a student’s interests. My mother and I were very impressed by Harvey Mudd, but neither of us are math oriented. Honestly, I’m sure most schools could meet this requirement for someone- Stanford or UChicago or Kenyon or Oberlin, etc. </p>
<p>I think though, that ‘type of student’ is sort of…a false qualification? No group of students are all the same.</p>