“It’s a lot like high school but different.” This is the answer I got when I asked my fellow classmates what it’s like going to a small college. Though vague, there is a lot of truth to this answer. Going to a small college has many undeniable advantages and disadvantages. Here are a few of them:
Advantages:
1. You seem to know a little bit about everyone
Whether or not you know someone personally, if you attend a small college the chances are pretty high that, at some point, you have seen or heard something about almost every single person there. This is a good thing, because people are selective with whom they want to spend their time. Generally, you don’t have to spend time getting to know someone you won't like.
2. Small colleges are one big community
As I mentioned before, nearly everyone knows something about everyone else. One of the advantages to this is it can bring people together. Even if you're not friends with someone, you can respect them. Respect brings people together. It's a beautiful thing when students rally together and stand up for themselves as students, and it's one more advantage of attending a smaller school.
3. Creativity hits an all-time high
Finding something to do in a small college town can be one of the hardest things to do. I hear about people getting bored with these types of situations all of the time. However, going to school in a small college town helps people become more creative about how to keep themselves entertained. It helps them to try new things they may never have tried if they were surrounded by the same, comfortable activities that they have done their entire lives.
Disadvantages:
1. You seem to know a little bit about everyone
Déjà vu? That’s right, this is both a positive and a negative about going to a small college. One of the biggest things that make a small college feel like high school all over again is rumors. Knowing a little bit about everybody, or thinking you do at least, is the easiest way for a rumor to start and this happens constantly in a small college where everybody talks.
2. You don’t get to meet as many people
One thing I love most about visiting my friends at bigger universities is the variety of people I have the opportunity talk to and meet. Whether it at a friend’s house or downtown at the college hangouts, there is always somebody new to meet. I rarely run into the same people every single time, as I do in at a smaller college.
3. Fewer opportunities
The cold hard truth about going to a small college is that there are fewer opportunities than there are at a bigger school. Their largest disadvantages are the fewer entertainment opportunities, classes and degrees. Smaller schools don’t have the funding or resources to present students with the same opportunities as larger schools.
There are countless advantages and disadvantages to attending a small college. Whether you attend a small or big college, there are pros and cons for both! No matter your choice, you are filled with pride and fight about the school you chose. With that said, let’s hear it for all the small school kids!
