(BLACK PR WIRE/FAMU-TALLAHASSEE) – Most black students have attended grade school where they were outnumbered by white students and some of them have never experienced a black instructor. So when it’s time to attend college or university, they are wondering whether to choose an HBCU or attempt to get accepted to a predominantly white institution, or some may call them “Ivy League” schools.

The fact of the matter is that for some odd reason white institutions are perceived as more prestigious than HBCUs, and to be considered for admission a black student must be a “genius.” Although both institutions offer some of the same degree programs, students feel obligated to pursue a degree at a college with a more diverse atmosphere and that is viewed as the “real world.” However, the real world contains a more diverse population that requires interaction with various ethnic groups; black students build more confidence and self-worth at an HBCU.

Many African Americans have pessimistic feelings when attending HBCUs because of the financial disparities that exist between both types of schools. Students seem to feel more accomplished if they graduate from a white institution. A traditionally black university gives students the opportunity to experience a well-rounded education. Once you get past the registration, the work starts.

An education is a combination of the instruction that an individual can acquire in class and the interaction with their peers. At an HBCU, students get the experience of seeing African American authority figures that are instructors and the peer groups that can build longer lasting relationships. Classes at a black university are an unabridged, unedited display of the black condition without the carefulness that most white instructors have to make.

Students learn that African Americans have made major contributions to the world, more than the peanut and sports. This is a shock and incentive for a black student to work hard and set career goals that may not seem attainable in a majority white society. The fraternities and sororities are the formal groups that provide a brotherhood and sisterhood that will last a lifetime.