James Madison College (JMC) is a residential college located at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1967, James Madison College was established with the stated goal to "[create a] residential college merging the best attributes of a small college with an undergraduate education". James Madison College is specialized in the study of both politics and international relations with all four of the offered majors reflecting these disciplines.
Students enrolled at JMC both dorm and attend classes at Case Hall, nestled within Michigan State University's campus. Because of this proximity to their peers, students at JMC are often more tight-knit when compared to larger colleges.
History
The concept behind JMC was originally seen as an attempt to combine the benefits of small liberal arts colleges with the resources of a major research university. Attributes brought from the liberal arts style colleges would be small class sizes, a closely-knit community, and a more one-to-one, personalized teaching style between students and teachers; attributes from research university style colleges would be abundant research funds, advanced labs, comprehensive specialized programs, (such as the study-abroad programs) access to a large campus and numerous Big Ten conference teams.
Academics
JMC offers four majors and four minors all focused on a public affairs curriculum from. At the end of their freshman year, students select their course of study.
Unique among colleges at MSU, JMC requires students to participate in "field experience" either in the form of an internship or study abroad programs. Additionally, students are required to take a foreign language for at least two years in order to bolster global perspectives.
Despite JMC only representing roughly 4% of MSU graduates, they make up over 35% of the school's Phi Betta Kappa members.[citation needed]
Grading
JMC is known for its grade deflation, where a majority of their student population have grades other than A+ to A-.[1] JMC developed a notion where the desired intellectual rigor of the program should be reflected in it being difficult to achieve high marks.[1]
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