<p>Hi, D2 is currently applying to colleges. Due to her super busy schedule the past 2 years, we haven't had great opportunities to visit as many schools as she would have liked. She did visit some small, prestigious schools in New England and of those loved Williams and Wesleyan. Unfortunately they don't give merit and we are middle class, unable to honestly afford $50k/year. SO far she is Natl merit semi, 4.0 UW gpa, 2190 sat, 5's on the 5 ap exams taken, some leadership, varsity sports, job etc. She applied to Centre but we haven't visited yet. Does anyone have experience with this school, Rhodes, or Hendrix? She wants a smaller school (up to 5k) with school spirit, very strong academics(likes science and math) and fun but not a "party" school. It should be safe around the school and we are wondering about how Rhodes fits this criteria. We ruled out Wake b/c D1's friend attends there and felt she "had" to join a sorority to fit in, elon b/c on D1's college tour it seemed too remote.
How do these three compare? Are we missing any that fit in the east and south that offer great merit, and if so, how would you rank all the choices knowing that science and math are her intersts? If you have visited, attended or have other personal knowledge of Centre, Rhodes, or Hendrix we would love to hear your impressions!<br>
Thanks!</p>
<p>A high percentage of Rhodes students join fraternities (41% of men) and sororities (54% of women). The percentages are fairly high at Centre, too (39% of men in fraternities, 37% of women in sororities). Hendrix apparently does not have fraternities or sororities.</p>
<p>What is your budget? If you need to get the COA down to $30K-$35K or so, you might have a realistic shot at enough merit aid from those 3 schools. Beloit or Lawrence might also work. Less than 10% of women are in sororities at these two schools.</p>
<p>If you can afford $40K-$45K or so, you might have a shot at enough merit aid from more selective LACs in the South or Midwest (such as Colorado College, Grinnell, Macalester, or Oberlin). </p>
<p>It’s hard to say just how much any of these schools might offer. However, there should be quite a few possibilities for merit aid from LACs in the South or Midwest for a student with your daughter’s qualifications.
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It should be noted that they’re nonresidential and therefore a lot more low-key than numbers would suggest. </p>
<p>As for safety, the campus of Rhodes is extremely safe. The surrounding area is safe by day, less so by night for someone wandering around by himself/herself. The Midtown area is one of the nicest and safest parts of Memphis. Things get decidedly more hairy to the north of campus, but students don’t have any reason to head there. </p>
<p>Someone who takes any sort of precaution whatsoever would get much more out of Rhodes’ location than Hendrix’s, and Rhodes is the better school for the sciences. I don’t know enough about Centre to be able to compare.</p>
<p>You might also want to check out Sewanee. It offers merit aid, and the full sticker price is comparatively low (almost the same as Centre’s). This school has some distinctive features (such as a tradition of dressing up for class) that may or may not appeal.</p>
<p>I visited Rhodes this summer and loved it! The college felt very safe and was beautiful. I also loved how close it was to St.Jude Children’s Research Hospital :). They have a Greek system, but it is nonresidential. The only part I was iffy about was that it was a little small for my taste, even though I want a small school.</p>
<p>I am in Arkansas and we are so proud that our “hidden gem” - Hendrix- has caught on slowly as a great fit for many students outside the state. I am sure your daughter’s chances for merit would be significant either there or at Rhodes.</p>
<p>Hendrix is a great school all-around. That said, I would lean a little more towards Rhodes for the sciences, esp b.c. of its proximity to major medical centers such as St. Judes. That’s my two cents.</p>
<p>all great schools…
hendrix is greek free, to me that puts it over the top! so hendrix is numero uno!</p>
<p>Speaking as a current Rhodes student, I can offer my advice on your questions about Rhodes.
On school spirit, Rhodes definitely has plenty of that. We have an active on campus program called the Pack that offers incentives and prizes for big turnouts at sporting events, such as giving out t-shirts, rally flags, or other random gifts. For example our field hockey team this saturday played in the finals of their conference tournament, and the school had Central BBQ bring their foodtruck and give out free food to the student body at the game. Every saturday in which our football team plays you’ll the majority of the campus out and about usually dressed in our school colors, as we take gameday pretty serious here.
For your question about safety, our campus exemplifies that quality. When you pull into any of our three entrances you’re greeted by one of our many campus safety officers who keep our campus safe, no matter what the hour. Each student is also given a fob key, which allows them entrance to any of the dorms on campus, and some of the classroom buildings after hours to study. Those fobs also allow students to enter campus through many of our walking gates situated throughout the external gate. If you don’t have one of these fobs, you can’t get into the dorms or into campus without having to go through campus safety. There’s never really a worry about not feeling safe at or around campus.
As you mentioned we do have fraternities and sororities but since no one actually lives in our houses, its not like most other schools you’re comparing it to. Everyone lives in the dorms or in a house off campus (after 2 years of required on campus living) so the non-greek students are by no means excluded or set apart from the greek ones. Most all of the on campus fraternity parties are open to the entire school at 11 oclock, so no one has to be in a fraternity or sorority to be able to go out and socialize.
On Academics, if she is interested in Science then there’s no better place to come. Someone else mentioned our connection with St. Jude, and being in a big city like Memphis, the opportunities for internships are plentiful because of the diverse amount of buisnesses here, whether it be a lab, a hospital, or somewhere else. Its that fact that sets us apart from schools like Hendrix and Centre which are a bit away from anything else ,they don’t have the same connections and relationships we have with Memphis. If you have any other questions, don’t be afraid to ask.</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply. It sounds like a really nice school and I’m glad you’re enjoying it! What’s your major and how many classes have you had in excess of 50 students? When students live in off campus housing after sophomore year, how is the area where most stay?</p>
<p>I’d love to hear more about Centre myself. :)</p>
<p>I’m an Economics major (technically I’m still undecided since I don’t have to declare until the end of my spring semester sophomore year). I haven’t had any classes with more than 50 students. My two largest classes I’ve had here were the 2nd level of a computer science course (28) and my calculus one course first semester of my freshman year (25ish?). The majority of my classes (I’m a sophomore) have been with 15-20 kids, with maybe only 2-3 having 10-15 (I’ve only taken 12 classes so far). Most of them live in houses within 4-5 blocks of Rhodes. Slightly south of campus attached to the Memphis Zoo is a place called Overton Park which has a big group of houses in it and a lot of students live there, or in the 3-4 blocks directly west of campus. Other than that, some students end up moving to Mud Island, which is a neighborhood on a island next to downtown memphis that has it’s own little community. It’s definitely a lot nicer than next to campus but there’s a 10-15 minute drive depending on traffic. Most upperclassmen who don’t move off campus live in East or West village, which are two groups of buildings we have on campus that are apartment style. East Village has roughly 50 units (4 students per), that comes with a kitchen, a bathroom and a den like area. West village have communal kitchens for each floor, and instead of 4 students per unit there are 8 (although there are a few 4 student rooms), and there are around 150 kids living there. So even if you’re an upperclassmen who doesn’t want to live in a dorm but doesn’t want to deal with renting a house, you still have plenty of options and opportunities. Oh and we also have 4 apartments called Spann townhouses on the east side of campus which are mini houses with two floors that have 6 kids per. Let me know if you have any other questions.</p>
<p>Looking at the most popular majors at each college, there’s noticeably less interest in science at Centre compared with Hendrix and Rhodes.</p>
<p>Centre
History, General 14%
Spanish Language and Literature 11%
English Language and Literature, General 9%
Biology/Biological Sciences, General 8%
Sociology and Anthropology 8%</p>
<p>Hendrix
Social Sciences 22%
Biological and Biomedical Sciences 15%
Psychology 12%
English Language and Literature/Letters 8%
Physical Sciences 5%</p>
<p>Rhodes
Social Sciences 24%
Biological and Biomedical Sciences 15%
Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services 11%
English Language and Literature/Letters 11%
Psychology 9%</p>