I’m new here so forgive me if I’m in the wrong forum. My daughter is a rising junior and we’ve been advised to start looking at schools this summer. I’ve put together a preliminary list (we won’t get to them all this summer) and was looking to see if anyone has any other I should consider. We’d like her to see a wide range within her narrow vision of what she’s looking for.
Looking for:
Small to medium sized school - no (or minimal) greek life and party scene
Liberal arts focused
Friendly, down to earth, accepting, diverse student body. Sweeping generalization but she has an aversion to preppy (she doesn’t know any true preppy’s, just preppy "wanna-be"s)
From NJ but geographically open minded
A scholarship would be great, but won’t qualify for need based aid
Community service/involvement is important
Background:
Mid sized NJ upper middle class public high
GPA: through 3rd semester 94 in core courses
AP/Honors: History AP, Honors English, next year AP History and English, moving up to honors science
Clubs: Involved in language, theater, volunteer work (through school and outside of school)
Not a great standardized test taker
Born with mild physical disability that impacts walking and writing
Not outgoing at all, but enjoys being around people (once they reach out to her) and having fun. Not a social butterfly at all but also not a loner or comfortable with the quirky crowd.
Based on my research, list so far (with full understanding that some may be impossible for her to get into):
Dickinson
Clark
Macalaster
St. Olaf
Skidmore
Denison
Kenyon
American
William & Mary
Colorado College
Haverford
Denison -> Kenyon -> Wooster is a very doable visit though preferably not in one day. They’re about 45 minutes/ an hour apart from each other in that order.
Take a look at Elizabethtown. The most friendly campus I have been on, no Greek life, service-oriented clubs and theatre.
Her average/GPA is great, but I am concerned about her ability to get into some of the schools you mentioned, based on the rigor of her transcript. She may qualify for a scholarship at E-town too.
Mount Holyoke (try to get her to visit even if she isn’t sure about women’s colleges – lots of students think they don’t want a women’s college, but come away loving MHC). Diverse, strong academics, no Greek life, gorgeous campus, test optional.
What might she be interested in? Skidmore has an artsy/creative edge to it (D is there for STEM though), Dickinson was a bit preppier IMHO but similar in alot of ways. Ithica might be a good choice for communications-type interests, American for journalism and its amazing location for internships. I second that she should take a look at MHC. Both D and I really liked it there and it has a great reputation. Another school we really liked was University of Scranton if she is at all interested in the medical/science areas.
Appreciate all of the quick and thoughtful responses. Some really helpful information and schools I hadn’t considered. A bit more about my D if it’s helpful. She will definitely lean toward the social sciences - she’s not sure but something like English, Sociology, Psychology. She has mentioned Journalism so I think it would help to focus on some schools that offer that.
As far as her academic coursework, she’s progressed each year into harder classes. Math will unlikely ever be at the honors level given that in spite of As in math, she is never recommended due to her significant fine motor skill issues which make writing difficult - typing is a good alternative for other classes! She does fill her other slots with meaningful classes instead of a study hall. She’s taken anthropology, sociology, psychology, law and justice. While not the equivalent of taking AP science and math classes, hopefully shows she’s motivated! She’s in the highest levels she can be in English and History. No honors offered in foreign language but she should be in AP in senior year when it’s offered.
I should also add that while her writing skills are good, maybe not excellent, she gets high marks for how expressive, honest and thoughtful her writing is. I’m hoping that could make a difference in convincing someone she’s passionate about attending!
Will know more about standardized tests when she takes the PSAT in the fall. She took it this fall but didn’t have her accommodations in place so was only able to finish half of each section. I don’t think her bad score is representative but she doesn’t have a great history with standardized tests so I don’t have much hope here.
Also, not sure if the disability could for once in her life play to her advantage. She has to work much harder than other kids to do anything.
Some have already been mentioned or are already on your list, but she ounds like she should look at:
Goucher, Mt. Holyoke, Kenyon, Skidmore, Macalester, Grinnell, Clark, Lewis & Clark, Willamette.
Also MHC’s campus seemed very compact and easier to get around than many of the others we visited. Lots of connected buildings so that during winter you’ll be able to stay inside and go to many of your classes without venturing out on to icy sidewalks and steps.
You might to check websites of colleges you are considering and look for the Office of Disability Resources or similar if she will need accommodations.
^True. Also true of Skidmore. D generally doesn’t have to leave the outdoor covered corridors to get many places. Her dining hall is literally a few feet from said corridor.
Many of the suggestions above are CTCL schools. Read the book, go to their roadshow, look at their website. Note that there are many other schools that fit the CTCL model that are not members of their consortium. http://ctcl.org/
I’ll also throw in a plug for Beloit, Lawrence, and Knox. They are all small enough that someone with a walking disability might want to consider them. I know that Beloit manages the snow/ice on their walkways very effectively.
if you want to know the percentage of Greek at at school, checks it common data set. There is a section specifically on percent of students in sororities.
We visited Kenyon and DD was accepted. It’s quite preppy, small, not mid sized, and the Greek and drinking scene was pretty strong. It’s in the middle of nowhere, literally, and something to consider.
I’d consider Kenyon, Denison and William and Mary preppy. Probably Haverford too though it’s been ages since I’ve been there and it may have changed. W&M and Denison, especially, have a very strong Greek life.