<p>I want to apply early decision to one of these five colleges...</p>
<p>Carleton: the most prestigious of the five, amazing academics, midwestern hospitality, may be difficult to double major, weather sounds bad</p>
<p>Grinnell: great in social sciences and academics, midwestern hospitality, cornfields sound appealing, inferiority complex to Carleton?</p>
<p>Colorado: beautiful locale, environmentally aware, great weather, block plan sounds interesting, may lack academics that other schools have</p>
<p>Whitman: environmentally aware, good combination of academics (but not like Carleton or Grinnell) + outdoor recreation, weather sounds bad</p>
<p>New College of Florida: BEAUTIFUL weather, small undergraduate class (which is good for me), cheap, near my grandparents, may lack academics and prestige other schools have</p>
<p>These are just some of the impressions I have about the colleges. Bear in mind that I want to double major in English and Psychology. What do you all think about these colleges? Any suggestions or input? Thank you for any contributions. :)</p>
<p>All the colleges you have listed are uniquely attractive. Their academics is amongst the best in nation. Grinnell has very good English program. I don’t know much abt Psychology, sorry :(</p>
<p>Three of your colleges offer ED programs only (Carleton, Grinnell, and Whitman).</p>
<p>Colorado College offers EA (and ED). New College does not offer EA or ED, which should have been readily apparent from a 30 second perusal of their admissions website.</p>
<p>EA at Colorado College seems to be the best option, which provides a non-binding response by mid-December. If you’re undecided this late in the game, I think it would be very foolish to apply ED anywhere.</p>
<p>Don’t know anything about New College, but the other four are all great schools. Son, a likely English major, visited and looked closely at the other four, and chose Carleton. One thing he’s learned that might not be emphasized enough is that Carleton is HARD. Both the amount and difficulty of the work is staggering. And this is from a kid who worked non-stop during high school. Loves it nonetheless. I’ve heard Grinnell is also academically rigorous.</p>
<p>Agree that if you’re this torn this late, EA at Colorado would be a great option; you can apply RD to the others and take a closer look before making a final choice.</p>
<p>Grinnell is need blind for US citizens! EA at Colorado sounds to be really good option. New College seems to be little bit behind amongst those five.</p>
<p>*I want to apply early decision to one of these five colleges…</p>
<p>… Any suggestions or input?*"</p>
<p>None of them. IMHO, ED should be used only at that one dream school above all other. It’s a looooong time from November to September to make such a commitment to a school that you only “like” at the moment; there’s plenty of time to regret the decision. Decide in late April instead.</p>
<p>i agree with vossron, and it sounds like you haven’t even visited these schools. you are basing them on things that sound good on paper, but the fit is something you’ll know only by visiting.</p>
<p>Apply to all 5 then see how things shake out with admissions and aid. They do span a fairly wide range of selectivity. Still, unless you are a Florida resident, you may need at least one other school as an admission/financial safety. I agree with others who advise you not to apply ED if you are not sure this late in the process.</p>
<p>I’m fairly familiar with Carleton (lived in Northfield one year and had friends there), and have a son at Colorado College who loves it. They are all interesting schools, similar to each other in some respects but each with their own special characteristics. Yes, Carleton is hard, but don’t underestimate the challenges at any of the others. Although you will not find many prize-winning, world famous faculty at any of these schools, the professors will get to know you, they will keep you working, and you won’t be able to hide in the back of a 200-student lecture hall.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t pick Carlton over Grinnel because it is supposedly more prestigious.</p>
<p>They are roughly equivalent.</p>
<p>Don’t just pick a school because it is somewhat higher ranked. Pick the school that best fits your personality.</p>
<p>I would pick Grinnell over Carlton if you are looking for kind of a left wing, hippie, political protest type of school (which is the reason my son is NOT applying to Grinnell)</p>
<p>Also, picking a school based on whether it is environmentally aware or not in my view is not a very good reason.</p>
<p>With all due respect, you are being too PC. Would you really take a pass on Harvard if you found out it was NOT environmentally aware?</p>
<p>It is my understanding that New College does not have grades.</p>
<p>It is not very well known nationally, and I am shallow enough I guess that I wouldn’t want my son to go there because no one has ever heard of it, not even IN Florida. </p>
<p>But supposedly, everyone gets into good graduate schools from there.</p>
<p>Also, Sarasota, while a beautiful city, is not really a city for a young person, and New College is very small, so your social life may be very limited.</p>
<p>If you are in-state, tuition is a major bargain however.</p>
<p>Also, New College is BECOMING more well known.</p>
<p>If you don’t care about prestige, then that is different.</p>
<p>IMO, Carleton and Grinnell are the best schools on that list. Of course, being a Grinnell student, I’d point you that way, but you should visit the campus and see if you fit in before deciding on it.</p>
<p>One thing I’d like to add to your list of advantages for Grinnell is the sciences. Grinnell has one of the largest endowments of any LAC, and they’ve spent a ton of money to make sure any students studying engineering, chemistry, or the like there have as many resources and opportunities as those at larger universities. Especially for engineering students, Grinnell is great, since you can do a 3+2 program with CalTech.</p>
<p>S visited both Carleton and Grinnell and ED’d at Grinnell. It’s all about personal fit. Nor is the school ‘left wing, hippie, political protest type of school’ (“not that there’s anything wrong with that” - Seinfeld) It’s more quirky and individualistic, with a strong work ethic and a liberal social justice orientation. Amazing sciences, palatial facilities, no distribution requirements, generous merit aid, and incredible faculty mentoring and advising. </p>
<p>My daughter applied to Carleton and Grinnell and did overnight stays at both. I’ll echo that Carleton is TOUGH. We talked to a couple random students at lunch about the school, and they both said they were surprised at the rigor. Everyone I talked to who has gone there has underestimated the workload. But they also play a lot, even in the cold. My thin-blooded daughter played broomball for an hour on the outdoor ice that night in -8 degrees. Carleton students aren’t normal, but they’re smart and fun.</p>
<p>The overnight stay is what changed my daughter’s mind about Grinnell. She was a little overwhelmed by the sex and drugs atmosphere of the campus – that’s almost all she heard the whole time she was there. Most LAC’s are politically liberal, but Grinnell is about as far left as you can get. They’re not all partiers, but because the partying population is so much more evident than the nerdy contingent, the school sometimes comes across like a four-year party. Grinnell was the top school on her list until the overnight stay, then it fell out of consideration.</p>
<p>Also consider the different schedules the schools use. Most LAC’s are on a semester schedule where you’ll take four or five classes at a time. Carleton is on trimesters – three ten-week terms in which you take three classes at a time (3-3-3). At Colorado College you take one class at a time for six weeks. Depending on your learning style, some of these schedules might be better for you.</p>
<p>Since no one here has commented much on Whitman, I will. First of all, the weather is better than you may think. Walla Walla, like Colorado Springs, gets 300 days of sun a year. Not humid, rarely windy, 4 seasons and lots of gorgeous scenery with an active outdoorsy population to take advantage of it. Academics are rigorous. Students are a good mix. I’ve been enormously impressed with the friends my d has brought home - top notch, aware kids doing all kinds of interesting things in the world. This school’s a gem for a myriad of solid reasons.</p>
<p>Ditto on not applying ED to one of FIVE schools, not a good idea.
I think Whitman tends to be underrated. Walla Walla is actually a really cute town with a lot to offer. Whitman has some unique programs, e.g.“Semester in the West” and a very friendly, laid back student body.
I think there is a cultural difference between the students at Whitman and say, Grinnel or Carleton, I would check that out for fit.</p>