Are small class sizes better at the University of Michigan or Brown University?

Brown University is the better bet if small classes are a big priority. Brown is a much smaller university overall, and that usually translates into more discussion-based courses, easier access to professors, and fewer situations where large introductory lectures dominate your schedule. Its Open Curriculum also gives students more flexibility to build class schedules around smaller seminars and niche offerings.

At Michigan, class size depends a lot more on the department. In many introductory courses, especially in popular areas like economics, psychology, biology, and computer science, it is common to encounter large lectures, at least early on. Michigan absolutely has small upper-level classes and strong faculty access, but you are more likely to have to work your way into those after the intro sequence.

Brown’s undergraduate focus matters here too. Even though it has graduate programs, the overall scale is smaller and the campus culture tends to feel more centered on undergraduates in the classroom. That often means a learning environment where seminar-style participation is easier to find across more fields, not just in the humanities.

Michigan’s size brings real advantages, like a huge course catalog and more departments, but that scale usually comes with more large classes, especially during the first year or two. If your main concern is avoiding huge lectures as much as possible, Brown has the clearer edge.