How to choose four year college?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the considerations for choosing a four-year college, particularly for a student transferring from a community college with a focus on majoring in physics. Participants explore the merits of public versus private institutions, class sizes, and the need for support in academic settings.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses a preference for smaller class sizes, similar to their experience at community college, and seeks advice on choosing a college.
  • Another participant shares their positive experience at UCLA, suggesting that public schools can be sufficient if the student is capable of independent study, but acknowledges that those needing more support might benefit from private schools.
  • A later reply humorously suggests that students at prestigious private schools may require more attention, which prompts a clarification that the original point was about the benefits of smaller class sizes for those who need extra help.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on whether public or private schools are definitively better; instead, they present differing views on the importance of class size and individual learning needs.

Contextual Notes

Participants express varying assumptions about the need for support in academic settings and the implications of class sizes, but these points remain unresolved.

kuahji
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Ok so I'm currently attending a community college, & am working on an associates in mathematics. But its time I need to start looking into a school to transfer too, & I'd like to major in physics. But which is better, a public school or a smaller private, not well known school? Personally I'd prefer a school with smaller classes, which is something I really like about the community college & classes. The courses I take there are rarely never more than ten students left by the end of the semester. So any advice on choosing a college? Any college I choose I'd have to get loans for, as I have absolutely no money.
 
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I went to UCLA (double math/physics) after transfer from Santa Monica CC, and it has done well for me. A lot will depend on whether you can relocate or not, and even then whether you have the ability to work on your own and understand the material decently without additional instructor help. If you can, a public school should suffice, but if you think you'd need a great deal of outside help, a private school, with smaller student to instructor ratio, might be better.
 
Hum

daveb said:
I went to UCLA (double math/physics) after transfer from Santa Monica CC, and it has done well for me. A lot will depend on whether you can relocate or not, and even then whether you have the ability to work on your own and understand the material decently without additional instructor help. If you can, a public school should suffice, but if you think you'd need a great deal of outside help, a private school, with smaller student to instructor ratio, might be better.

So people who go to private schools such as Duke or Harvard need more attention and smaller classes because they are slower than regular kids, right.? LOL
 
Please do not put words in my mouth. I never said that if you go to Duke, et al, that you need extra help. I said that if you need extra help, you may want to go to a school with smaller class sizes (which as I understand it are most private schools).
 

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