<p>What do students do after they graduate from Connecticut College? Do a lot of students go to graduate school, Peace Corps, etc.?</p>
<p>As with any first tier liberal arts college Conn students go to graduate school, work at investment banks, and enter areas of public service (peace corps, teach for america, and americorp) with great frequency. Conn is one of the top producers of peace corps volunteers and has strong relationships with several banks. Conn has a strong presence in the publishing industry. Currently the publishers at both forbes magazine and the atlantic; senior editors at O magazine, national geographic, the atlantic, and the hill are alums.</p>
<p>According to the website, one year out of school 75% are working, and 25% are in grad school.
I’m 5 years out, and as of this fall, some of my friends are:
-in business school at Wharton, Indiana, UConn, Northwestern, and Yale
-working as a graphic designer
-working in fashion industry
-masters programs in architecture
-magazine editor
-doing their residencies after finishing med school
-finishing law school or practicing law from uconn, cornell, nyu law schools
-working as social workers
-teachers
-getting their phd in psychology from columbia and michigan
-working as a tv producer
-working as a film director</p>
<p>for example.
-working in finance</p>
<p>Nothing at all about this college excels. There are too many more distinguished choices within a short distance. The student body lacks diversity. The caliber of teaching is poor to modestly good; I went on to other schools which enabled me to find out what Connecticut College lacks. An education here is will cast you into a follower role in a Boston-NYC location. Outside that corridor no one has heard of it (and even within it the place is almost invisible). I’m mystified how this institution can continue to field as many applicants as it does.</p>
<p>I will reply to rweverest because it is unusual to see such subjective bashing of an institution.</p>
<p>Obviously, Conn is not on the level of Williams or Amherst, but for those who don’t have the grades for those institutions Conn continues to be a strong choice. Compared to its peers, the college excels in the arts (especially theater and dance), it attracts a bright student body, appeals to those desiring a less remote location than what is offered by most New England colleges, and offers a very beautiful campus. Are these reasons for choosing Conn over Colby or Bates? Maybe or maybe not. But in a college environment where strong liberal arts educations are had at most of the top 100 liberal arts colleges and universities, choice of school often comes down to “intangibles.”</p>
<p>I already remarked on Conn in the publishing industry; a Conn alum is currently CEO of AOL; as noted above, alums attend great graduate schools. Based on my experiences, I think rweverest should have better taken advantage of the opportunities offered by the college. I haven’t seen any evidence to suggest that alums are relegated to regional “follower positions.” In fact, Conn is in the top 30 of all liberal arts colleges in a ranking of alumni earning.</p>
<p>Lastly, most people have not heard of most liberal arts colleges. Schools like Wellesley and Amherst carry prestige but most people, both in the northeast and in the country have no idea what Hamilton and Trinity are, never the less a college with a name as generic as “Connecticut College.”</p>
<p>rweverest, feel free to provide some objective data, or even specifics on your views. In a difficult economic environment, justifying tuition becomes increasingly difficult and measured successes become increasingly important. Perhaps you can offer insight into the shortcomings of Conn that are not shared with other liberal arts colleges.</p>
<p>In answer to Connecticut College having no programs which stand out, there is the performing arts, as CamelMan pointed out. The same could be applied to many other LACs, (including those in Conn’s own league, like Colby, Bates, Trinity and Hamilton) that is, where are they prominent other than offering a generally strong liberal arts program?</p>
<p>Most consideration of liberal arts education is necessarily subjective. Where rankings are drawn, Connecticut College does fare less well than the institutions it aspires to be compared against. I found so little of lasting value from the BA degree that I no longer list it on my resume- it adds nothing. It became too tiresome to explain that I was not at the University of Connecticut, and I realized it wasn’t helping in any situations. There are times when it is necessary to obtain a transcript or something, but this is not a degree I would ever advertise. Graduate training ameliorated this, and the accomplishments I’ve enjoyed since then are despite the time at Connecticut College, not because of it. Not all liberal colleges are alike, and this one is undistinguished.</p>
<p>To a certain degree, I actually have to agree with you on this one. I received a great education and had a tremendous growing experience at Conn, but it carries no prestige. Some people from wealthy parts of New England know the college but, by and large, people mistake it for UConn or for a generic state school. Conn needs to work harder to improve its name recognition, and while I love the college I lament not graduating from a school with more name recognition for that prestige cushion.</p>
<p>Wow! As the mom of a current freshman rweverst’s comments were certinly not what I wanted to hear. I will admit that when people ask where my daughter is going to college it does prove to be difficult to respond when 9 out of 10 times you receive a blank stare, but having said that, I don’t feel that she should not have attended due to lack of name recognition.</p>
<p>As an alum, I will say that lack of name recognition can be annoying. However. The college has an excellent track record of sending people to top graduate schools, and just about all of my friends have good jobs (we are relatively recent alums). I am always impressed by the alumni magazine that details the many successes of our alumni.The college is often praise for its excellent career center, especially its internship program which greatly helps to prepare students for the real world.</p>
<p>I don’t think that the issues that rweverst raised differ greatly from any other liberal arts college- you’re not going to get much name recognition for the vast majority of the schools, and people need to be prepared for life after a liberal arts degree, for example, what do you plan on doing with that degree in, say, philosophy?</p>