<p>Lost of good reccs above (Kenyon, Reed, Vassar, Carleton, Hampshire, Bowdoin, Macalester) Add Bard and perhaps Middlebury to the list. Maybe Colgate or Hamilton too, but they aren’t “quirky”. How about Tufts?</p>
<p>By the way, if no one has mentioned, Davidson does the students laundry for them. LOVE this. My DS spent a summer there. Best thing going!</p>
<p>Ummm-- wow. So much talk of St. Ben’s, Carleton and Wesleyan, but not much information about Davidson in response to OP’s questions/concerns.
I spend a great deal of time on various campuses, and it seems that the OP and her daughter picked up a very important aspect of Davidson-- the sense of community and the sheer devotion to their students among the faculty is truly amazing. Yes, it can appear preppy, and yes, there is a lot of socializing focused on the Patterson Court scene, but it’s also Greek Lite-- nothing like the fraternity scenes at nearby Duke or UNC.
The perceived lack of intellectualism, to me, is actually a lack of pretense or elitism. The students at Davidson might be talking about soccer, YouTube clips and love interests when they come out of the classroom (instead of continuing their discussions of Heidegger, DeLillo or Buddhist sutas), but that’s one of the most refreshing elements of that school-- the kids all seem to have LIVES beyond the constant studying almost all of them do-- and they revel in their pursuits of silly and even summer campy fun. I have rarely been on a campus where so many students seem so happy.
I know several current students at Davidson, all young women. One chose the school because she says there’s no “typical” Davidson student. Another student-- extremely progressive and “quirky,” chose it over Haverford because she said she didn’t want to be surrounded by people who “think just like me.” That’s one of the beauties of the school-- the evangelicals can hang out with the fledgling Marxists and no one cares.
The “concern” about religion is a non-starter. Sure, there are religious students, of all stripes, but the flavor of the Presbyterian history is long subdued.
And the faculty is extraordinary. The English department is in transition, with several recent hires of young women from Yale, Princeton, etc. all dedicated to teaching well outside the canon. And the new Davidson president-- from Rice-- will probably be a rock star on the college adminstrators circuit before long-- she’s warm, tough and brilliant. I can think of no better role model and inspiration for all of those bright young women at the college.
If I were young again and looking for the “perfect” place to spend four years celebrating the life of the mind, I can think of few places, if any, that would win out over Daavidson</p>
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<p>Tufts has activisty and liberal, but also has a conventional preppie vibe from what I’ve seen on several visits to the campus and from friends/colleagues who are alums. </p>
<p>Also, while there is a community there, the campus does tend to go dead on the weekends because so many students go off to Cambridge and Boston for parties/social life.</p>
<p>^That’s not really my impression of Tufts - my kids’ friends all seem to be from public schools or internationals. I don’t feel like it’s very artsy though. More earnest save the world types than average. It does have a small Greek scene where most of the weekend partying happens.</p>
<p>Bennington…Bard, Sarah Lawrence, Skidmore, all come to mind. Oberlin, Kenyon, MacAlaster, Carleton, Pitzer, also.</p>
<p>I have a child at Bennington. Small (maybe 700/class), beautiful campus with red barn and white clapboard houses for dorms, mountain views, discussion classes, students design their own interdisciplinary “plan,” very artsy student body with emphasis on art, dance, theater, music, writing and academic classes that are intriguing, not the usual “psych. 101 etc.” Students are very mutually supportive.</p>
<p>Great post, NoEasyAnswers!
I haven’t met the new one, but I met and liked the old one. My tour guide casually mentioned that he frequently walked around campus and tried to get to know students, and it wasn’t at all uncommon to see him working out at the gym or doing something else on campus to interact with students. I was a bit floored at the time, and it has remained memorable given how inaccessible most university presidents are. Granted, this may be a LAC thing as opposed to something uniquely Davidson.</p>
<p>The benefits of the honor code (bikes left around campus for student use, unproctored exams taken on your own time, etc.) seemed quite nice. Davidson takes its honor code a bit more seriously than most colleges do. Davidson also has one of the closest town-gown relations I’ve seen; there are relatively few places where locals bake students cookies during finals week.</p>
<p>I’m not impressed when people say that students have LIVES outside of studying and that’s why they don’t discuss intellectual matters outside of class. For intellectuals, intellectual discussion ARE an important part of life. I’m quite sure that there are students at Davidson who discuss intellectual matters outside of class. I’m also quite sure that there is a higher percentage of such students at the U of C.</p>
<p>Was thinking the same thing, Consolation–lives outside of class and thinking outside of class are not mutually exclusive.</p>
<p>And either way, the OP’s daughter is looking for a place where people DO keep up the discussion outside of class, so telling he why she shouldn’t might not be germaine here.</p>
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<p>To be fair, the poster was just stating an opinion. Equating intellectualism with pretense and elitism does get my hackles up, however. I think that this view has a lot to do with one’s politics as well, which is germaine to the OP’s concerns. Pretension and elitism are labels that are often given to those with left leaning tendencies, which is somewhat surprising given the history of such notable conservatives as WF Buckley and others. In any case, while one might not agree with this poster’s view of the world, his or her comments are actually revealing and may be quite helpful to the OP.</p>
<p>Oh my! I rarely spend time on CC, but the way this particular discussion is going fascinates, and astonishes me.
I think I am, by all considerations, a left-of-left thinker, so to infer that my comments about intellectualism and elitism imply that I am a right-winger is ludicrous. I’ve read these last responses three times, and I think that’s what’s being said-- but I’m still confused by the leap in logic!
I never meant to imply (and this is mainly for the OP) that I believe most Davidson students immediately default to conversational fluff when they cross the threshold of a classroom. I assume the mother and daughter sat in on just a couple of classes-- and how much eavesdropping can actually go on in that situation?
I have sat in the Union at Davidson, and in the local favorite coffee shop, and I’ve heard plenty of “intellectual” discussion. But my goodness, lots of these students are 18 and 19 years old! Why wouldn’t they slip quickly into talking about other parts of their lives, when they are walking out of class?
Finally, I have a good friend who teaches philosophy at one of the top flagship publics, and he says their grad department always salivates over Davidson applicants because they are “thinkers of the highest order.” His words precisely. Maybe you can wear that label without being intellectually inclined, but it seems unlikely.</p>
<p>I guess I am confused as to why you would state that to you, a perceived lack of intellectualism is actually a lack of pretense or elitism. In what way is perceived intellectualism pretentious or elite? Maybe that’s not what you meant to say. </p>
<p>Whatever your politics, equating intellectualism with pretentiousness and elitism will get some people a little bit defensive- at least those who highly value intellectualism.</p>
<p>I think what is being described is Davidson is a Southern school which when you look at the top 15 or so LAC’s is nice that it gives you a little choice. It has also historiclly kept its ties to the Presbyterian Church which is something I don’t think anyone should be ashamed of.
At the momet I think its struggling with its identity and whether it wants to be more like its esteemed northern neighbors. Personally, I hope it remains true to its heritage as a really special Southern Presbyterian school.</p>
<p>Last post here-- I never imagined one could sucked in like this, but clearly it happens!
Yes, I must have expressed myself in a sloppy fashion because I never meant to make a direct and absolute correlate between intellectualism and pretentiousness. I have been in academic environments where the apparent need and desire to be “intellectual” 24/7 struck me as pretentious. And off-putting. But as one poster said, that’s just my opinion. I never meant to make sweeping political statements about intellectualism on American campuses.
Back to Davidson and the OP’s daughter’s interests: look at the website now (which I hadn’t done in a while) and check out the current exhibition at the art museum. A hundred students have written ekphrastic pieces on art works owned by Davidson. Sounds pretty artsy and Englishy. And even intellectual.
Don’t mean to be snarky, but I’ve discovered there’s a lot on this board to get one’s back up.</p>
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That was my thought as well. Many people perfectly capable and willing of having intellectual conversations are not “on” all the time and talk about other things as well. Lunch conversations I’ve had this week included talking about the LA Zoo, the Book of Mormon (the musical), and what kind of pets we’d like to have some day. Fluff topics, and listening to us, you’d probably dismiss us as not academically engaged…and yet we’re all PhD students very devoted to our subjects and quite happy to delve into a serious or complex topic at the drop of a hat.</p>
<p>I’m always rather bemused by such comments. If you want an intellectual conversation, you could always, you know…start one. You’ll rarely be surrounded by so many smart minds at once again, and most students are willing to venture forth an opinion or argue vociferously. Yes, it’s undoubtedly true that students at some colleges are more intellectually focused than others, and students who love the “nerd camp” feel of TIP or CTY may be happier at a smaller range of colleges than most. Still, most top colleges are filled with inquisitive learners and quirky people. If you want, it’s easy to avoid the networking prospective bankers or resident beer pong champs and to join the folks down the hall dressing in suits of armor for SCA or running around on brooms playing quidditch. </p>
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What leaves a bitter taste in people’s mouths is being intellectual for the kick of feeling cool/superior/etc., something of which entirely too many people are fond. This is the intellectual equivalent of a hipster – someone who remarks on obscure authors they’ve read recently, sneers at pre-professional students, loudly comments on how much Russian he has to read for homework, etc. but is more concerned with impressing others than the subjects themselves. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to tell a poseur from a “real” intellectual. </p>
<p>I was in a coffee shop at Brown while visiting for a conference last year when I overheard some undergrads arguing loudly over the applications of pre-socratic philosophy to modern science; their vehemence was a admirable, but their grasp of the matter (or lack thereof, rather) sadly was not. Such conversations can come across as forced to a casual observer.</p>
<p>Oh, how I loved Davidson for my daughter, but she didn’t apply and we’ll never know. She IS utterly thrilled with Pomona, though, and it seems that might be worth a look (that or its artsy cousin Pitzer). If I had to generalize, Pomona seems to be a good middle ground between the angsty intellectualism of Swarthmore and the more wholesome, high achieving vibe of Davidson.</p>
<p>Just a note on the sports thing at Davidson: it is probably one of the smallest school populations that supports a division III program, which would explain the relatively large presence of sports. My D said no way would she want to be an athlete there, yet she plays a DIII sport very enthusiastically. The difference, I guess, is the intensity, and the extent to which athletes end up segregated.</p>
<p>^ Davidson is a Division I school</p>
<p>my recommendation is to see where you get in before going through this exercise and I do not mean that in a snide manner at all. Apples and Oranges are both wonderful fruits and each have great merit.
Both of our sons changed their minds entirely after making final April visits and attended colleges they initially did not have crushes on. 18.5 years of age can be very different than 17.5…weird how much they get to know their own needs in that short year.<br>
Davidson is a fabulous fabulous college with the most wonderful reputation for sending ethical and hard working students out in the world. No education means much without perseverance and hard work habits and you will develop hard work habits at Davidson but in a community that follows you throughout life, and in a community of faculty and students that truly want the best for you.<br>
I know a student there who could not be happier. The eating clubs for women at Davidson are a strong suit in my view…very democratic and cozy without the onerous aspects of greek life. Our son was very keen on Davidson but made a different decision finally…however he will never enjoy the best of a liberal arts education because he chose a school of 6000 undergrads with many grad schools on campus. He decided he needed a larger more impersonal campus and a bigger venue because he had been raised in a quiet place.<br>
He made the right decision for himself but frankly “who knew” till March and April? Admission to Davidson can be quite difficult and unpredictable. Their financial need aid is exceptional and can be a deal breaker for some.<br>
good luck in your final sorting out and may open doors be there for all</p>
<p>Faline2, you are the voice of reason and I agree entirely with what you said.
To parents and students in a quandary (and this is for next year since the application deadlines have passed this year): apply and see where you get in. But certainly apply to schools that feel right, then visit your top choices (that you’ve gotten into) on their accepted student weekends–schools put their best feet forward at such times and it’s good to know what they consider their best!</p>
<p>In our northern non-Presbyterian slightly left-of-center family we think Davidson is wonderful. We miss our drives down there to visit our now-graduated Davidsonian and we still enjoy following Davidson’s triumphs, from its hiring of a charismatic new president to its ongoing basketball prowess.</p>
<p>thanks mattmom. I have never met a Davidson graduate that I would not be grateful to work with professionally or be grateful to call a friend. Seriously. Exceptional place with great qualities that cannot be measured in long term impact on those who are lucky enough to call Davidson their alma mater.</p>