I’m extremely fortunate to have been accepted to my top choices: Bates and Colby. I was given presidential scholar designation at Colby as well. Now I am faced with a difficult decision because they are both great schools. I’m looking for input about rigor, likes, dislikes, school culture, administration, class selection, location, food, professors, reputation, job/internship placement, etc… If you went to either of these schools or know somebody who did why did they choose it? What makes these two schools different?? What have your interactions with each school been like? Just for reference I’m interested in english and science and want to go to grad school. Thanks so much!
I see you posted the same in the Colby forum, which is smart. Of course, you’re going to get Bates-biased opinions here:-) To be fair, if Colby is more affordable, that’s probably a wonderful choice. I’m going to tag @gardenstategal , who has a student at Colby, so you can get balanced viewpoints. As far as English, Science and grad school, both are going to be very strong in those disciplines and grad school acceptances. You’re talking about two schools that are probably more similar than they are different.
I’m the parent of a Bates junior. I can say unequivocally that Bates has been fantastic for her. I’m going to paste a link to what I posted in another thread here in the Bates forum. It will answer several of your questions. Read post #24. http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/bates-college/2125064-bates-college-rd-2023-p2.html
My D did not apply to Colby as she simply didn’t feel that the student body would be her kind of people. Her feeling was that Bates students were a little less preppy, maybe a little more quirky, or a little more urban, or a little more hippy, or a little more outdoorsy. That’s largely been true. I can’t say there is one type of Bates kid. There are preppy kids too, but I believe Colby is a little more preppy, if that matters to you. There is a fair amount of rivalry between the two, but the Maine NESCAC students are all best buddies once they’ve left college.
I think most would agree that Bates is known for excellent food. It consistently ranks very highly for college fare. There are really good choices for eating out in Lewiston too. What do I not like about Lewiston? Town officials and law enforcement can be a little petty and antagonistic towards the school, but I am pretty sure that has improved a lot since Clayton Spencer came in.
D and her friends also like the proximity to Portland and Boston. The Portland airport is very convenient. Portland is a hip small city. There are lots of nice places to go in the area. Lewiston is not just the depressed mill town that some make it out to be. It has noticeably improved in the three years our daughter has been there.
You don’t have a bad choice. Good luck!
@libarts123: It would help to know why Bates & Colby were/are your top choice colleges.
@libarts123 , my kid had the same two schools at the top of his list and the same choice. He chose Colby but honestly, you can’t go wrong at either. Both do terrific accepted students events, and feel can make a difference. Colby felt a little sportier to me.
Look at the course catalog for what interests you and evaluate the path toward your preferred major. There can be some differences there as well as in general requirements.
The presidential scholar thing can be pretty cool if it interests you. But truly, it’s about fit. These are 2 excellent schools.