Top Undergraduate Schools (By:-William Brister)

competition rising fiercely for admission into a good undergraduate school and the choice of subjects, school curriculum expanding with it, choosing the best undergraduate school can be confusing. There are large, small, public, private, urban and rural undergraduate schools to select from; while some are appealing because of their inviting locale in a countryside setting or in the midst of a cosmopolitan setting others lure the students with their state-of-the-art facilities and distinguished host of teachers.

The list of top 25 undergraduate schools listed below have many diverse traits and distinct characteristics, however the common thread running through them is that of the promise of the best education ever. The undergraduate school curriculum of these top 25 schools is unparalleled and makes them stand apart as the institutions of great learning.

Best Ivy undergraduate school

Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut Yale president Richard Levin is a leader and a visionary and has been tireless in his efforts to change ED admissions policies, making it a one of the many reasons for it being the vied for the number one position and topping the student's list for admissions. A big attraction of the undergraduate experience for students is the residential-college system. Students live in one of twelve colleges, each with its own distinct personality, under the guidance of a master and a dean.

Best School for Entrepreneurs

Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pa.

Six of the campus's 10 undergraduate schools offer entrepreneurship courses. The Smeal College of Business and the College of Engineering are the most natural partners, with joint programs to show engineers how to run businesses and to teach business students the latest technology. Hotel-management students operate two on-campus hotels and conference centres where they're involved in everything from food service to staffing the front desk while the College of Communications focuses on entrepreneurship in the Information Age.

Big 10 School - Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill

Comprising of six undergraduate schools, Northwestern University attracts students with diverse aspirations including budding actors, journalists, engineers and teachers as well as a host of liberal-arts students. Each school is world renown and attracts the best minds from across the globe. Set in Evanston at the edge of the bustling Cosmo polis of Chicago, Northwestern offers its students the best of both worlds.

Best Architectural School - Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts

President Charles Vest initiated an ambitious $1 billion construction program at MIT which includes the Steven Holl's Simmons Hall, a aluminium-clad dormitory as well as the Fumihiko Maki's expansion of the Media Lab. The more famous building is that of the Stata Center, a computer-science landmark by Frank Gehry containing labs for the "intelligence sciences" and connected corridors and public spaces to encourage spontaneous collaboration. MIT calls it an "intellectual village."

Best school of for Arts - Juilliard School, New York, N.Y.

With a history of more than a hundred years, Julliard is known as one the most famous undergraduate school of arts and can boast of an impressive alumni list the likes of the actor Kevin Kline, violinist Itzhak Perlman and choreographer Lar Lubovitch. To celebrate this glory, the school has introduced new choreography, productions and performances. Only a few select students comprising of musicians, dancers and actors get chosen every year to showcase their talent in the Juilliard Theatre right next to Lincoln Centre. That's the best inspiration for any aspiring star.

Best Library- Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Harvard's library system ranks with the best of any kind in the country, even as compared to the Library of Congress. The collection which includes more than 15 million volumes, 5.5 million microforms, 6.5 million manuscripts and 5 million other research materials such as photographs, maps and recordings is the largest in the world. Harvard's digital collection is particularly strong, and is hugely beneficial for students who want access to any existing online journal

Best Riding School - Hollins University, Roanoke, Virginia

Situated in the breathtaking locale of Virginia's horse country, Hollins undergraduate school is known for its exceptional training for equestriennes. The school is a regular winner of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference championship, and the Hollins team has won ten times in the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association. Although many Hollins students work with horses after graduation as trainers, riders or veterinarians, the school also offers a strong liberal-arts program and a highly regarded creative-writing curriculum. It is famous for its celebrity alumni the likes of Margaret Wise Brown, Annie Dillard and Lee Smith.

Best undergraduate school for diversity-Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut

Dean of Admissions Nancy Meislahn believes that only a large cross section of society from across the globe can contribute to the intellectual diversity of an educational system. Wesleyan's student population comprises of one third coloured people and 7% international students. An additional 15% are the first in their family to attend a four-year college. It offers a huge diversity of shared learning and wide range of perspective to the classroom.

Best Tech Savvy School - Dartmouth College, Hanover, N.H

This undergraduate school has been in the forefront of technological revolution ever since professors John Kemeny and Thomas Kurtz, forty years ago, not only realized the importance of computers but were responsible for creating the computer language BASIC. It is known to have the first e-mail programs and an early campus computer network. Dartmouth was also the first Ivy to install WiFi on campus. The school offers free software to students so they can turn their laptops into telephones using the school's WiFi.

Best Fitness School - University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia

Following the adage of Thomas Jefferson, the founder of UVA, who advocated that a strong body makes the mind strong, UVA offers both varsity competitors and weekend warriors some of the best fitness facilities in the country. Students benefit hugely from the four indoor recreation centres, which together make up 300,000 square feet of pools, running tracks, weight rooms and classrooms for yoga and kickboxing. The school also maintains a 23-acre park for outdoor field sports and jogging.

Best Honor Code - Haverford College, Haverford, Pa.

The honor code is central to the college's values and includes every aspect of academic and social life. Rob Killion, Director of Admissions says that the founder, Haverford expects people to learn from one another, debate and argue with one another--but to do so respectfully. It is an academically rigorous liberal-arts college that advocates take-home and non-supervised exams as well as students living in dorms, without resident advisers

Best school for studying abroad - Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts

The mission at Tufts is simple - to teach students to be world citizens. Tufts likes students who want to study abroad which translates into a strong language requirement, and a chance to learn a new culture in one of Tufts's own centres in countries like Germany, Chile, China or Ghana. About 40% of Tufts juniors are travelling across the world during the academic year.

Best School for Politics - George Washington University, Washington, D.C

With a campus close to the World Bank and a stone's throw away from the White House, GWU is a dream college for every Political Science major. Many of the professors are consultants to top government officials thus bringing a real, practical and intelligent perspective to the classroom. The school also encourages internships at government agencies, think tanks and advocacy organizations.

Best school for Double Majors - Rice University, Houston, Texas

Rice allows its students to explore their passions and requires them to commit to their majors only in the Junior Year unlike most schools who ask for it in the Sophomore Year. With an ambitious student body, many of them go for double majors. The most common combination is science and humanities. The school is best known for its engineering and science curriculum, but the social sciences are also becoming strong.

Best school for Greeks with brains- University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Mich

Michigan is known for its multi-disciplinary approach including everything from music to medicine. A good eclectic mix of academics and a lively social life, it offers its students everything. About 15% of undergrads go Greek, which students say helps them find a friendlier community within the vast student population. Fraternities and sororities are especially popular with the many out-of-state students.

Best school for Hot and Dry - Pomona College, Claremont, Calif.

Pomona is one of five colleges of the Claremont University where students experience the best of both worlds - the academically challenging environment of a small New England liberal-arts college with year-round California sunshine. A combination that is attractive and motivating, the applications are up by almost 30% in the last few years. Students also can explore the academic and social resources of the other Claremont colleges, including Pitzer, Harvey Mudd and Scripps. But none of the colleges will be tapping a keg during "dry week," a tradition at the start of the year during wherein no alcohol is allowed on campus.

Best State University - University of Texas at Austin

Although University of Texas Austin has attained the distinction of a laid-back campus, it is no place for slackers. With 50,000 students (more than any other school in the country), UT boasts some of the nation's best business, law and engineering schools. Besides football, it has 900 student organizations that should keep you going.

Best school for landing a job - Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pa

Practical approach and hands-on experience is the most important part of life at Carnegie Mellon. The school has 12 programs including computer science, engineering and drama which are very famous. The school takes pride in being on the cutting edge in every field and encourages students to think about applying what they learn to the real world. About 70 percent of Carnegie Mellon students have a job offer when they graduate.

Best school for Health Careers - University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, N.C.

One of the top public universities in the US, UNC-Chapel Hill offers students a choice of more than 50 majors. But the main attraction for future doctors, nurses and other health professionals is the opportunity to study at a campus with all health disciplines in one place. The School of Nursing and the School of Public Health both have undergraduate programs. At the School of Medicine, undergrads can earn degrees in radiology science or clinical laboratory practice.

Best school for Individualists - Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio

Oberlin comprises of the College of Arts and Sciences and the Conservatory of Music. It has a unique approach to life and learning and the undergraduate school curriculum offers innovative subject matter like - Death and the Art of Dying, American Mixed Blood, and Destination: L.A. The student-run Experimental College lets undergraduates teach courses of their own creation, like Making Your Own Mobile or Mythology and Epic Storytelling in "Lord of the Rings." This eccentricity is very rewarding and Oberlin graduates have more Ph.D.s than alumni of any other liberal-arts college.

Best school for city haters - Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y.

Cornell's rural, upstate New York campus is bounded by deep gorges, spectacular scenery and a beautiful rural setting. However, it has one of the most rigorous and challenging curriculum that draws only the best minds. The school's greatest attraction is its academic diversity, with top-ranked undergraduate schools of engineering, arts and sciences, architecture, hotel administration, industrial and labour relations, agriculture and human ecology.

Best school for city lovers - New York University, New York, N.Y.

With the Olsen twins Mary-Kate and Ashley lending NYU some of its fame, it is a school loved by the urban and the hip. Despite the 9/11 catastrophe, it continues to draw crowds of talented students. One of the top attractions is the Tisch School of the Arts, which nurtures future actors, dancers and screenwriters. The business school is also highly rated, and students can take advantage of internships on Wall Street. The campus of NYU is not structured in the strictest sense; in fact buildings scattered throughout the Greenwich Village, most students like to believe that they have the whole city as the campus to explore.

Best Military School - U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md.

The four-year undergraduate curriculum at Annapolis is tough and technically oriented, with core requirements in engineering, natural sciences, humanities and social sciences. Traditions play a huge part in campus life. "When you first show up for classes in the fall, students begin counting down the number of days until the Army-Navy game," says Cmdr. Tim Disher, admissions officer. Graduates become commissioned officers in the Navy or the Marine Corps.

Best undergraduate school for scholarships - Berea College, Berea, Ky.
The 1,500 students at Berea come from families with average household incomes of only $30,000, and 80% have grown up in southern Appalachia, a region that spans nine states with some of the most remote and poor rural communities in the country. Berea's mission is unique in that it believes in promoting education by giving scholarships to the poor but deserving. All students get full-tuition scholarships, although they do have to pay for their room, board and books. However, scholarships are available for those as well. Students are required to work--many of them at jobs on campus that help to keep Berea's costs down.

Best Surf and Ski School - University of California, Santa Barbara

It is known to be the most beautiful campus located at the edge of the Pacific. UCSB also boasts Nobel Prize winners on its faculty, top research centres in science and technology and an extensive study-abroad program. Aside from the top academics, the various recreation programs offered attract many of the students. The campus has its own beaches where students can surf, and the Big Bear ski resort is just a few hours' drive away.

Top Photography Schools in the US by ( Dmitry Fedosev )

The photography industry is one of the most lucrative industries. Many people have decided to enroll in a photography school in order to get hired as soon as they graduated. Enrolling in a top photography school increases the possibility that you will be paid with a higher salary. There are several top photography schools in the United States including American Intercontinental University, Boston University, Harrington College of Design, Brooks Institute of Photography and New York Institute of Photography.

The American Intercontinental University has one of the top photography schools in the United States. It has several campuses across different states. It offers both traditional and online courses. The lecturers are successful photographers who hold a day time job. The photographers will educate the students on different photography topics such as fashion, advertising, and etc,

Boston University offers photography courses at the Center for Digital Imaging Arts. The certificate programs will teach students basic skills about taking photograph. Students will also learn about the business management skills.

Harrington College of Design offers an associate degree for applied science in digital photography. Students who enroll in this course will be prepared for the future workplace. Student will learn about photojournalism and how to conduct a photography business. Under the guidance of the lecturers, they will be able to develop unique artistic styles in photography.

Brooks Institute of Photography offers four types of undergraduate programs. Some of the undergraduate programs offered by Brooks Institute of Photograph include Visual Communication, and Professional Photography.

The New York Institute of Photography is a famous photography school in the New York City. It was established since many decades ago. It has a large campus and is rank as one of the world's largest photography school. Over twenty thousand students from different countries in the world are enrolled in this famous institution.

The International Academy of Design & Technology offers accredited photography degree. The photography degree course will teach the students how to use the industry standard cameras. Students will learn how to operate the software and lighting. In addition, the students will learn several career skills including wedding photography and portrait.

The Ohio Institute of Photography and Technology offer courses that allow the students to develop necessary skills for their career in photography. It offers several types of degree courses including professional and commercial courses.

The Story of American Schools by (Scott McQuarrie)

All right now, right off the bat: Does anyone remember the Sheridan play?

It was, among other things, a broadly witty send-up of the empty, misdirected, decadent and elitist attitudes of our blue-blooded betters. I say "our" figuratively, meaning all of us who don't have hereditary titles and diapers monogrammed with a crest and some really mean looking birds. I suppose you could say "our" literally if you are a 200-and-something-year-old working-class Cockney.

So anyway, for no better reason than the words "school" and "scandal" going together so nicely, and having a show-off-ish reference to an 18th century English play, you're through six sentences and nearly three paragraphs before you find out what so upsets me as to require such an elaborate warm-up: it's the government schools.

They're a scandal.

One size fits all?
Now let's agree up front that the only honest term for these sorry institutions is government schools or state schools; public schools, although it does claim the advantage of reminding one of public restrooms, seems to imply that the public at large actually has some influence on how affairs are conducted at these places or, as in a public restroom, can enter and exit freely. That would be a knee-slapper if it weren't a tear-jerker.

Fact is, so-called public schools are run by, well, the government! Of course, owing to the political realities of 21st century America, the state is in league with the unions, scores of them, as they cooperate in the micromanagement of our children's lives. Certainly there are many, many dedicated teachers and administrators (probably a few too many of the latter, frankly) who try to do their best for their schools and their charges. But isn't it quite clear, after fifty years of manic progressive education, that large chunks of several generations of students have exited the graduation ceremony with diplomas they could not read?

Dumb by design
And how could it not be by design? I don't mean to suggest a scheme from an episode of the "X-Files"; I do mean to suggest that not all of the experimentation done in the name of John Dewey to American schoolchildren in this century has had the aim of making them better informed and more critical thinkers. The mass dumbing-down of the last 50 years can't be blamed on Stalinist cliques and zealous cadres, however.

The movers and shakers in that long-term undertaking were intensely ideological individuals working through associations, conferences and both formal and informal networks. With like-thinking social engineers working in the schools, the teachers' colleges, the unions, the legislature and the media, we got cultural warfare long before we got the term for it.

This isn't crazy right-wing thinking anymore. In fact, come to think of it, since the fall of the Soviet Union a whole lot of things that used to be crazy right-wing thinking aren't crazy or even necessarily right-wing anymore. Like Alger Hiss being guilty. And the Rosenbergs. And the infiltration of Hollywood and the U.S. government through the 1930s, '40s and 50's (and...?). And, sadly, the Tuskegee experiments. The MK-Ultra programs. Waco and Ruby Ridge.

Here's a bumper sticker for you: CONSPIRACIES HAPPEN. I'm not a pack animal, so I don't subscribe to any single group's unified field theory of world domination, like the "insiders," the history of the hidden hand, the so-called protocols of some old robed conspirators, etc., etc. Neither do I discount everything these people have to say. (Don't many of us wonder about Korean Air Line Flight 007? And TWA 800? And then there's always Roswell for the folks who don't care about evidence at all.) Can't we simply agree that there will always be people around who are up to no good?

School choice
Over the past century, education has become a monstrous assault on the children of America. No more proof is needed that better educations are had at private schools, particularly faith-based ones. The verdict on education has been in for some time. But the vast power and resources of the federal and state governments, plus those of the teachers' unions, are arrayed against parents who fight in larger and larger numbers for choice in their children's education.

When schools are attended by willing students; when parents are full partners with teachers and administrators; when the marketplace inevitably supplies various kinds of institutions (religious, atheist, college-preparatory, trade-oriented, left-wing, right-wing and hot wing) for various constituencies (make that customers); when the one-size-fits-all mentality of the manic progressive educrats is consigned to the same dust bin that had plenty of room for that wasted old 74-year-old USSR, well, then the parents of this country can reclaim half the deed to their kids' minds and hearts.