Since the program is almost the same and the depth to which things are studied is the same, what would you be able to get away with in an average school that you can't in a top school?
2007-03-02 15:09:27 · 9 answers · asked by inquisitive 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Higher Education (University +)
The difference can be as much as 20,000 a year in educational costs, and 200,000 a year in income after graduation.
It's all about perception. There are great teachers at good schools, and average teachers at great schools (not many). With a top school, you get more prospective employers seeking you whereas you find yourself doing more looking for work when graduating from other schools. You, of course must do well too.
2007-03-02 15:25:36 · answer #1 · answered by mark 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
A great deal depends on the field of study and ones plans beyond college. If you hope to enter a highly competitive field it makes sense to give yourself every advantage you can. If you can get into a more selective school AND you can achieve a high ranking there as you would at an average school you will be ahead of the pack. OTOH if you are only middle of the pack at a top flight school vs being the top graduate from an average school the advantage is less clear.
Generally it is NOT just a question of depth or "getting away with" but the whole experience. In a highly competitive school the experiences and opportunities are amped up compared to an average school. Employers know this and recruit accordingly. Similarly if one wishes to pursue an advanced degree the quality of what you have done adn WHERE you have done it are both factors in determing your liklihood of success.
Unfortunately there are few hard and fast rules. Studies have shown that among professionals with post undergraduate education requirements (medicine, law) those who go on to be well regarded by clients and peers come equally from all parts of their respective classes and school.
2007-03-02 15:48:03 · answer #2 · answered by DokterScience 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
For a while I taught a course at a 3rd tier school and a good friend taught the same course at a nearby Ivy League school. We both used the same book, but my students could only read about one chapter a week. I had to explain every detail of every concept to them, often more than once. My friend assigned the kids 2 or 3 chapters a week plus supplementary reading. At the end of the term my kids had read 10 chapters and his kids had read the whole book cover to cover, over 30 chapters.
Most of the things in the text he never specifically talked about or explained in class - instead they spent most of their class time talking about politicial, social or ethical implications of the concepts between all the members of the class who were all smart and well informed. They could talk about the implications of the concepts because all the kids in the class had read the assignment, understood it and were interested in it.
I had about 120 students. Because I had so many students I had to give multiple choice tests with a few short essays. We rarely had class discussions because most of the kids were too uninformed to even have an opinion about what the implications might be. It was very frustrating for the best students, many of whom transferred to better schools after a year or two. My friend had only 17 students (and about 20 students in another class) so he was able to have multiple individual conferences with his students and they did beautiful projects that involved true creative research. His school had a huge library and beautiful labs. We had a little dinky library and almost no labs.
At the end of the course his kids and my kids both got an entry on their transcript that said they had taken Science XYZ. This is the reason why kids graduating from top 100 schools get more respect than kids graduating from 2nd or 3rd tier schools.
That's the difference. What is sad is that my kids were paying about 3/4th as much as his kids, so some of my kids though they were getting a good deal! :(
2007-03-03 02:15:27 · answer #3 · answered by matt 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
What do you mean by a top school? One with a great big sports program? Why do you want to get away with anything? If you party your way through your program no matter where you go, it can and will come back to haunt you in the real world junior; like bullshittin' your way into a good paying job only to find out you are not equipped to handle it? Your boss will know, and you are still stuck with paying back all that easy money that put you through the program that you drank your way through. Wherever you go you better take it serious.
Haven't you noticed that the graduating class is always a lot smaller than the freshman class? Well START noticing.
2007-03-10 09:27:04 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The courses may seem the same, but top schools often have better teachers and cover more material at a higher level. So if you go to an average school, you'll likely have worse teachers and not cover the material as in-depth as you would at a top school. Which can definitely hurt you if you plan on attending grad school.
2007-03-02 15:14:07 · answer #5 · answered by eri 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
the grading. in top schools the grading is a bit harder.
in a average school you might get 75 and get an "A" and in a top school you might get 75 and get a "B". But hey... you learn the same thing right
2007-03-10 06:16:21 · answer #6 · answered by Myself 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
some schools an A is a B
2007-03-02 15:13:10 · answer #7 · answered by matthew 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Student teach ratio.
Guest speakers
2007-03-09 12:57:57 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
nothing, just the fact u kno that no god collges are gunna accept u
2007-03-02 15:12:04 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋