 
[Professor Ely Janis] I think one thing that makes both of our programs
so unique is the fact that we actually are able to interact with our students. All of our classes are capped at 25
or less; upper level is usually in the range of 15 to 20.
So you have a chance every day to sort of see your students and get to know them really on a personal level,
which unfortunately at some larger universities and some larger schools,  you don't have that kind of chance to have that kind of interaction.
[Professor Samantha Pettey] And we have really close one-on-one advising sessions with all our students, so not only are we seeing in these small classrooms,
but we're getting to know them in the advising role, where we most of us try to focus on not
what courses you want to take, but
what do you want to do when you leave MCLA?
[Ely Janis] History is a major that regardless of whether or not you want to go on to be a teacher an educator,
if you want to go on to do
a variety of fields, it really kind of gives you that solid foundation, right, so the ability to
articulate your ideas, to take a lot of differing and sort of oftentimes contradictory opinions and come up with your own
interpretation and your own argument. Sort of you know the idea again--liberal arts
is not just about just straight academics, so we're giving you an opportunity to find things that you're passionate about.
[MCLA alum Corbin Apkin] I'd always been interested in history,
but when I started taking the courses here is when I really got interested in it. Getting that sort of in-depth
teaching really helped me a lot
and it opened my eyes to how much more interesting history was that I even originally thought it was.
A lot of the discussion based classes really helped,
I think, prepare me for the sort of communication skills that I would use in my job and in grad school, and
also, conducting research helped with a lot of assignments in grad school.
[MCLA student Madeleine McKeon] One of my favorite things about MCLA is actually kind of the
inherent interdisciplinary nature.
I've been able to take really interesting courses outside of my major
that have informed my work within my major. [Samantha Pettey] I think both of us try to bring in current events, so if you're
really focused and concerned about what's going on in the world, political science is a good place to go. If you're
not sure how you can affect the system and be the change you want to see in the world--pretty cliche,
but it is true--political science as a major that can really help you do that.
[MCLA student Charlie Weissfellner] This this community is wonderful. Every time I hear someone talk about how there is not enough to do in town,
I ask them, "have you really been in town?" For a small city in Massachusetts,
it doesn't feel like a small city. You're never wanting things to happen. There's always something to do.
[Madeleine McKeon] You have so many great
opportunities in the community, there's so many great resources and institutions that are local;
that's part of what makes MCLA a great option.
[Samantha Pettey] We have a lot of internships not only in the community,
but a lot over the summer, where students seek out or we help them get placed in Statehouse, Washington, D.C.,
same with political science--our research methods course, they have leeway to do whatever sort of research project they want.
But at the end of the day, it's student-driven, it's student-led, it's student-written, it's student-presented,
and we're just kind of there to help them along the way.
If someone's on the fence about being a major, they're undeclared, or they're not really sure,
feel free to come on take one of our courses and see if you like it.
