by Art Schneider

Created on: September 13, 2009   Last Updated: September 18, 2009

My first reaction is the private colleges or universities are better than public schools. Having attended a very good public university and then an Ivy League graduate school, I'd say there is no comparison.

Where do I start? First, class sizes in private schools are significantly smaller, meaning a more intimate learning experience. Professors are better and almost immediately available, especially compared to competing with the throngs of students (these days) in most public schools, where sometimes professors are not available at all, being replaced by the inimitable TA.

I was amazed by some of my graduate experiences, one of which was a class in advanced syntax (grammar) which I shared with nine other students from several other countries. While I learned amazing things from the professor, I also learned so much by listening to the other students. When students come from other countries to study in the US private schools they are usually very motivated, and can provide perspectives and knowledge that is very hard to find in public school settings. To learn in such an environment is wonderful, almost magical.

Many public universities in the US have been increasingly sacrificing quality for tuition over the last 30 years, especially driven by the economic crisis of the late 80s and the one we are currently experiencing (beginning in 08). Once even public schools could afford to have all sorts of smaller programs and specialized classes, but this is mostly history now.

In corporate America organizations are viewed from within as being composed of two kinds of peoplethose who make money and those who spend money. Following on this corporate model means that while some less lucrative programs, like linguistics, still exist, public universities are focused on the 'cash cow' programs like business or computer engineering. Although programs vary as to their earning potential students are the only entities that always add to the bottom line, whereas only some professors bring enough grant money to pay their own way while also bringing in scores of students to take their popular classes. So, students have been courted more and more in the last 20 years as colleges will invest in larger classrooms which generate money, but don't require more professors.

Put these forces in play and my undergraduate university where I had maybe 25 students in an average class (about 1980) now has an average of 150 sitting in auditoriums with a single professor (some classes maybe

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