Pathways to University, Success in Life and What Do We Mean By ‘Best Fit’?
A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of hosting an onstage armchair conversation and interview with Dr Barry Craig, President of Huron University, the founding institution of Western, one of Canada’s oldest universities. We covered topics ranging from best fit university choices, the different learning experiences between universities, the value of Canadian education, the truth about university rankings, and from the perspective of an illustrious 30 year career in university education, what Dr Craig thinks best prepares students for success whilst at university and life beyond.
The messages from our dialogue at the event with Mulgrave parents is summarised below. To be clear, these represent my own interpretations of parts of our conversation which I have used to flesh out personal opinions and therefore please do not cite anything below as the stated beliefs of Dr Craig or Huron University.
Undergraduate Liberal Arts or Liberal Science Colleges
We spent a lot of time discussing the quality of undergraduate education and the differences between institutions that generate undergraduate ‘economies of scale’ to help fund a research focus, versus institutions that exclusively focus on an undergraduate experience with an emphasis on great teaching and student life.
This aspect of university choice is too often neglected when students and families draw up comparative lists of options they may have. The learning experience at Mulgrave is intimate and personalised so every student has to consider the impact of joining a much larger university setting with lectures comprised of hundreds of students being largely taught by teaching assistants or sessional lecturers where the experience is very, very different from Grade 11 or 12. To paraphrase a former Mulgrave student who transferred out of her large prestigious undergraduate campus to a smaller, liberal arts college: “I assumed university would be an extension of the best of Mulgrave, where I could grab coffee with my professor, extend discussions with my seminar groups into the evening, and where the community experience would be strong…instead, I feel like I am being shunted from one very impersonal large lecture hall to a supermarket-sized bookstore and I never see the professors I was ‘sold’ on the website.”
Rankings and what is disguised by these numbers
In many North American universities, this reality is driven by a ranking system skewed in favour of research reputation, whereby very large undergraduate cohorts effectively fund ‘celebrity’ academics who work closely with small graduate and post graduate student researchers. Teaching assistants deal with first and second year university courses. Instead of relying on rankings, we must focus on what institution has the best learning environment that is supportive and community based, which has the best courses for students’ passions, the best indicators that they will make friends, and the greatest chance that they will thrive. You can then hone in on research reputation for graduate study where students might actually get a chance to work with the professors who contribute to that university’s ranking order.
Data that really matters
Dr Craig shared multiple recent studies that indicate the quality of friendships and social connectivity at university is one of the biggest indicators of future employment success and life satisfaction. Furthermore, a comprehensive interational Fortune 500 study of CEOs found the vast majority studied at universities or colleges with relatively low rankings. The implications of this research suggests that thriving in environments that best fit students’ true academic profile (and are not ruthlessly competitive) allows young people to flourish and make wider, more authentic connections.
More discerning students are now demanding other metrics to help inform their university choices. How authentically committed is an institution to meaningful sustainability practices and climate action? How do the courses I take as an undergraduate enable me to translate theory into practice? What do other students like me or with my profile say about their actual experience as an undergraduate?
Making ‘team Ivy’ doesn’t always work
Interestingly, many parents (myself included) often believe that US or Canadian ‘Ivies’ or UK ‘Russell Group’ campuses (or other selector categories out there) confer lifelong advantages because of the alumni network. This is a dangerous perception because the strength of lifelong alumni connections or social networks has to be based on deep and authentic relationships. Universities are not simply private members clubs where simply gaining access gives you the keys to the treasure. The strength of the relationships CEOs made while working hard in their ‘average’ universities by starting clubs, getting involved in numerous opportunities, and feeling very confident about themselves and their courses, enabled them to thrive later. Alternatively, painful research shows that over-supported students who are pushed and cajoled into universities that are not a good fit for them at all gain less satisfaction and more stress during their experience which totally negates any advantage conferred by reputation or ranking.
Please ask your university counsellor at Mulgrave for access to the many different ways you can evaluate institutions beyond traditional metrics and rankings.