Is there really even a difference? Absolutely!
Think of it like high school. Public high schools are funded by local property taxes (where you technically don’t have to pay for anything as a student because your parents already pay for it through their taxes). Private high schools are funded by students’ tuition fees, donations and endowments (hence why students pay annually to attend).
This system of public and private high schools is very similar to college.
Public universities are mainly funded by the state hence, why in-state tuition at public universities is somewhat affordable most of the time. While private universities mainly rely on students’ tuition fees, alumni donations and endowments (similar to private high schools).
Cost of attendance is the number one issue that arises when students decide what university to attend. College is expensive honey! And as stated in previous blogs, go where the money resides BUT there may be an exception to that rule depending on what you are looking for in a school.
As a transfer student that has attended both public and private universities, I like both for different reasons. I believe that private universities are better due to the fact that you essentially get what you're paying for and public universities do what they can for you with what they have.
Let’s start with financial aid:
Students that attend private universities get more scholarships/grants than those that attend public universities because they have more money to give to their students. Remember, public schools are funded by the state, so it’s a means to an end. While private schools are funded by endowments which is a compilation of funds given by many donors over time for specific purposes to better the university or fuel something they are passionate about within the university. The reason why many students sometimes shy away from private universities is because the money given in grants and scholarships is never enough to offset the cost of attendance.
Let’s discuss class size:
This is another thing to consider when deciding what school to attend. I had mentioned it in one of my previous blog posts that visiting the schools you are interested in is key because these are the types of questions you can ask on your tour that can not be answered through their website. The class size in public universities is much larger than that of private universities. Where public will have up to 500 students in a class, private will have up to 100 students in a class at most. As a student, smaller class sizes worked best for me because it allowed me to really get to know my professor(s) and for them to know me as well (it’s funny that I’m stressing this point now because in college I was the type that never really attended office hours). Knowing your professors will definitely help when you need a letter of recommendation later on in life from a professor that had you as a student for graduate career programs.
Lastly, let’s discuss demographic diversity:
If you end up deciding to attend college in-state, you will most likely be attending school with other students from different parts within your state. For example, I’m from Long Island, NY and I attended a public university in NY. Majority of my classmates and peers were from NY as well but were from places such as Albany, the Bronx, and Brooklyn to name a few. There is a lack of demographic diversity within public universities. It's not too often that you will meet an international student at a public university. Private universities naturally appeal to more students around the world due to their vast advertisement of the programs that they offer and money they are willing to give (think back to when you were in high school, you received more junk college mail from private institutions than public). The majority of students that attend private universities are out-of-state & international students.
Is one better than the other? Not at all, just make sure you go where you will get the most out of your investment in the long run!
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