I go to what is technically classified as a medium-sized school, with just under 5,000 undergraduate students. It’s by no means as small as colleges with 1,000 or less students, but compared to my friends that go to Big Ten schools with more than 30,000 students, it’s tiny.
Since starting at Butler, I’ve heard a variety of statements (most of them false) about smaller schools from friends who don’t go to small universities. I’m not bashing big universities, because they do seem like a great place, but I do think there are a lot of amazing benefits to going to a small school that often go unrecognized. I’ve decided to set the record straight, and clarify how untrue some of the myths are about small schools.
Myth #1: There are, like, no majors at small colleges. My university offers a ton of different majors that spread across different colleges. However, some smaller colleges don’t offer as many majors or minors. That being said, smaller schools often have academic advising that is much more one-on-one than bigger schools. This gives you the chance to have a personal relationship with your mentor, express your concerns and potentially design your own major. A lot of big schools lack this personal mentoring. Even if you can’t create your own major, your adviser will be able to help you find a solution because they most likely know you on a personal level and are willing to take that extra step.
Myth #2: I would never be able to skip class because my professor would notice. Yup, they notice. But, this is very beneficial if you need a little extra motivation to show up. Very few professors will seek you out to confront you about missing class, though, so it’s not the end of the world.
On the plus side, professors know your name and want to help you succeed. I go to my professors for help with just about anything because I know they’ll be there for me.
Myth #3: There aren’t any good sports teams at small colleges. My school’s basketball team has appeared in the NCAA tournament 13 times, and been to the Final Four twice. I chose Butler partially because I wanted the option to attend an exciting sporting event, but I understand that a lot of small colleges don’t have that. If you know that’s something that’s important to you, you can pick a small school that has a good football or basketball team. They do exist, so just do your research. But even if a small school doesn’t have a huge sports scene chances are it still has a much closer-knit community.
Myth #4: There aren’t as many fun extra-curriculars. It’s true that there will be less extra-curriculars…but that’s only because the student body is smaller. If you see something lacking on campus that you would like to be apart of, it’s a lot easier to get it started yourself at a small school versus a big one.
Myth #5: You never meet anyone new. Firstly, transfer students and incoming Freshmen are arriving at least every semester. Secondly, I see people every day that I swear I have never seen before in my life. I meet new people on a daily basis. No matter how many friends I have, I know there will always be opportunities to meet new friends and get to know my peers better.
Myth #6: It’s boring. In the past year and a half I have met people from all over the country, spent a month studying overseas (and I’m only a Sophomore), been challenged to push myself academically, watched my school compete in March Madness as a number six seed, joined a sorority, and had a ton of fun. Just because it doesn’t take me 90 minutes to walk across campus doesn’t mean my college life isn’t interesting. There are a lot of adjectives I would use to describe my school, but ‘boring’ is not one of them.
