@jyc1230
Your son’s scores like up nearly exactly like mine, as does his personality a bit. I toured all three of the mentioned schools this August, and will share my impressions. Keep in mind that all schools were out of session when I visited, so its likely that my impression of the student body isn’t spot on.
Bates: I toured here first, and liked most everything on campus, but got a really weird vibe from the town. It’s pretty run down, felt empty, and just not welcoming. There is a large north african (if I’m not mistaken) immigrant population, which I though was really awesome, but it didn’t feel like the rest of the town was connected to them. There were a few interesting restaurants, but it really didn’t feel like a place that I would look forward to exploring. It’s also not a place that one would want to explore without a car. The campus is in a not fancy, but not sketchy, residential area.
Colby: I toured here second, and absolutely fell in love. The evening my Nana and I arrived, there was a super cute festival going on downtown. It was packed with people, food vendors, arts vendors, and even a petting zoo. The town also had quite a few interesting restaurants, including an indian place (a top priority for me, haha) and is set on a river, like Bates. Everyone was very warm. The next day, we drove up to Colby in the morning, which is up the hill, about 10 minutes away from downtown. I love that the campus is in its own little utopian world up on the hill, yet very connected to the town. I loved that the college’s top two clubs are the outdoors club, and a club that pairs students with Waterville students to mentor for at least two years. The administration seems to have gone out of its way to make zipcars and bikes accessible to the students so that they can get to town and to hiking trails, ski slopes, etc, all around. I definitely got an outdoorsy vibe. Also, the food is all local, fresh, and delicious. I had salmon and quinoa and blueberry ice cream!!
Bowdoin: I really would’ve loved to have liked Bowdoin. It’s in the cutest town, and is the closest to the coast and to Portland. But from the minute I walked into the admissions office, I felt uncomfortable. Bowdoin is very similar to Ivy League schools, and feels like it. We were given information in a very regal, stuffy room by two very preppy, almost pretentious guys before we were led on our tour. My tour guide praised the accessibility of her professors, but also mentioned that she was glad to have the office on campus that will plan your time (hourly or whatever) for you, so that you can stay on top of your workload. I for one, do not want to go to a college that gives me so much work that I cannot organize my own time. I did not have nearly as warm or as personal of a visit as Bates or Colby. I even cancelled my interview, because I knew that I would not be able to fake an interest in the school. Still, my Nana and I ate on campus for lunch, and after we finished and began searching (we had to search for at least 5 minutes) for where to put our trays, not a single soul helped us, which just rubbed us the wrong way.
Best of luck to your son in his search!
P.S. These are the all of the schools to which I have applied, if that is any help:
Carleton, Clark, Colby, Colgate, Davidson, Grinnell, Macalester, Vassar, Wesleyan, Whitman.
