Why Choose a Private College?

Private colleges can be more expensive than publicmany of them are also heavily endowed, so the
universities, and can have a more limited curriculumpossibility of receiving sometimes substantial financial
than the biggest government-funded schools. So whyassistance can be high.
choose a private college, particularly a small one, overAnyone who remembers walking into a college
a state-run university?freshman class and seeing an auditorium with more
Of course, opting for Harvard or Yale makes perfectthan a hundred students will appreciate this: Smaller
sense; anyone with a degree and a solid academiccolleges can also offer smaller class sizes and more
record is assured of entrée into the rarefiedpersonal attention. McDaniel College, a private school in
atmosphere of high finance, government administration,Maryland, boasts an average class size of 17 students;
or politics. But what of the smaller colleges tuckedits actual student to teacher ratio is even better: 12:1, an
away around the country?amazing statistic that is evidence of opportunities for
Many private colleges are founded based on theindividualized learning and meaningful mentorship
particular philosophy, whether educational, social,relationships with the teaching staff.
religious, or otherwise, so students who identify withLarge public universities certainly offer a quality
that philosophy can often find the perfect haven foreducation and a huge range of educational
their college years. Other colleges focus on particularopportunities. But for an education with a specific focus
subject matters, and may be the leading colleges inand for the opportunity to experience a unique college
their field. And while the small private colleges can beeducation, private colleges are often a perfect fit.
more expensive than their state-run counterparts,