For many high school kids, the choice between academics and the party scene is a huge debate. Depending on the person, sports and the type of major are also influences on the places they will go. For me, I was always strong into the sciences and couldn’t stomach the thought of going to a large university. After growing up on Saint Francis University’s campus, I knew that this was where I belonged. For most of the people I grew up with, larger schools like Penn State and Indiana University of Pennsylvania were the ideal choice. While I sit in my room studying late at night, my high school friends are out partying and having a good time. I sit and smile at their pictures because I know I will have my chance to have a good time once I get my hours of lab work done.
Benefits:
The benefits to going to a small university are the small classes, close relationships with professors, and the bonds you form with people in your major. Auditorium classes? We don’t have those here. (THANK GOD because I love the front row). As a freshman, the thought of having a close relationship with my professors TERRIFIED me! As a junior, I’m sitting here texting my advisor about bugs..a totally normal conversation between us anymore. I actually wouldn’t have switched my concentration if it wasn’t for my adviser becoming close to me. At my university, we have a lounge for almost every major on campus. This allows all levels of the same major to get together in a common space and do their work or communicate. As a freshman, this also scared me so much. Our lounge was like a fish tank and everyone would watch you the whole time you were in there. Everyone is so comfortable with each other now! We all take a break from studying and talk about the most random things we can think of or nap in every corner we can find. We almost sound like homeless people but I swear we aren’t!
Downfalls:
Honestly I thought I couldn’t think of anything bad about my university..but I can! The small school is located in the middle of nowhere. The nearest Walmart and good restaurants are 10-15 minutes away. We only have two bars, a small store, and a small pizza shop. If I went to larger university, there is generally a city around it and that means more things to do and eat. Another bad thing would be the fact that bad news travels fast. If you got in trouble with a professor or campus police, EVERYONE knows within that day. If someone were to skip class and lie about it, they were sure to get caught by another professor. That being said, I couldn’t just skip chemistry class and go to ecology. If by chance you needed to skip a class because you were sick and you didn’t show up all week, you would have tons of people checking up on you to make sure you were alive.
I wouldn’t trade my university for any other school and I wouldn’t tell people they picked the wrong school for them either. Be confident in your choice and love every second of it because it sure does fly by!
