finding the best college for a major

[OhioMomof3]

How does one REALLY find the best college(s) for each major?  I know there are many lists on the internet and in college review books, but I don't know how to discern which information is accurate.  Of all the college and major information out there, with which details should I be concerned?  I believe that a recent post mentioned looking for colleges that offer major scholarships in the field of study.  What else would you suggest? 

[bugs]

:lurk5:

[creekland]

We've always liked asking people who are currently involved and/or hiring in the fields my guys have wanted.

 

There usually is no "one" best college for undergrad.  There are often several to choose from - then best fit comes into play.

 

I know with (Civil) engineering, the "best" schools (according to employers) are often regional schools for them.  We're in South Central PA and the vast majority of local engineers (esp new hires) graduated from Penn St or Va Tech.  When we were in FL, the vast majority were from FL or GA.  Employers often get a couple of schools they like and stick with them.  Again, this is for new hires.  Once one has experience, undergrad rarely matters.

[idnib]

You can start a search at the College Board's search site:

 

https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/college-search

 

The more specific you are the better but they list hundreds of majors. You can enter general search words and see the more specific majors they have. Depending on how common the major is, you may be able to narrow down the list quite a bit and then start from there.

[Bootsie]

Determining a list of the best colleges for a particular major is tricky--much more tricky than it sounds like it would be.  A number of methodologies are used by the suppliers of such lists.  Two common ways are (1) the rankings of the publications of the faculty and (2) voting by deans.  In my opinion, neither of these is necessarily meaningful for a particular undergraduate student.  I think it is best to start by asking what is important to a particular student and then carefully checking the methodology used by the list suppliers to see if they are important to you.

 

Certain areas within a major may be stronger than others.  For example, Texas A&M has a top-ranked economics program.  Its strength however, is in microeconomics, not macroeconomics.  An undergraduate will have the opportunity to get a first-class economics education (but could also drift around in large classes and not be exposed to the top-notch teachers if not careful).   Also, some top-notch researchers (who help boost ratings) are not necessarily the best teachers.  I would not recommend the school for someone wanting a masters in economics--because very few resources are put into masters level classes.  For someone seeking a PhD with a specialization in microeconomics--it is one of the best.  A top student wanted to focus on macroeconomics would probably do better going somewhere else.  

 

You must also consider that most majors are not islands into themselves.  Many of a student's classes will occur outside of the major; the quality of any supporting coursework is also important.  

[OhioMomof3]

Thanks for your helpful replies.

 

JDahlquist, can you elaborate on how you would find out the nitty-gritty about fields/majors at the university.  How would one discover, for example, that microeconomics (not macroeconomics) is the true strength of a top-rated economics department?  And, how would one find out that the undergraduate and PhD programs are superb, but that the Master's level is not?

[Bootsie]

To see what the faculty of the university is really interested in (and where their strengths are), you can look at their journal publications. Most schools will publish brief bios about the faculty.  Or, you can peruse some of the academic journals in the field and see what names and schools tend to keep popping up.  I find that most faculty members (not necessarily administrators) will be quite open and honest about their school's strengths and weaknesses; asking questions about the strength of the department will usually result in direct answers.  

 

At the undergraduate level, however, I usually discourage people from focusing too heavily on a particular major or department when choosing a school.  First, most high school students do not know what their ultimate major will be.  Second, I have known students who have chosen a particular school based on studying under a faculty member, and then that professor has left the university.  Or, professors take a leave-of-absence or sabbatical and the student never gets to study under the professor.  

 

I encourage my own children to pick a school that appears strong in the general areas in which they think they want to major.  I encourage them to consider how to get a great education so that they can keep as many options available as possible, whether they ultimately decide to enter the work force after graduation or go to graduate or professional school.  

[creekland]

Thanks for your helpful replies.

 

JDahlquist, can you elaborate on how you would find out the nitty-gritty about fields/majors at the university.  How would one discover, for example, that microeconomics (not macroeconomics) is the true strength of a top-rated economics department?  And, how would one find out that the undergraduate and PhD programs are superb, but that the Master's level is not?

 

When my guy was looking at research Us, he used the websites and professor bios to see what they were researching in order to be certain there were multiple options of things he liked.  He crossed a couple of schools off his application list that way.  They were good schools, just not doing much in what he was attracted to.

[OhioMomof3]

Thanks for the specifics.  I didn't know to look at the academic journals and to consider the research being done by the professors at the university.  This was very helpful!

[Handmaiden]

One thing we consider re: research is how accessible are the opportunities for undergrads? Some schools kick out amazing research but they're reserved primarily for grad students. This may not be important for students who are not interested in undergrad research, but crucial for others who are.

Another thing we consider in making our list - where do top employers in the field go to recruit?
 

[Anacharsis]

"Best" is generally whichever school produced a graduate that is closest to your own personal ideals; to answer that question, we would need to know what you expect a college degree in that major to do for the person holding it. If someone said that they went to college and majored in X, what would you assume about them? Who would you expect them to know? How would you expect others to treat them? Where would you see them working? What would you see them doing? How would you expect them to act?