<p>Personally, I think it’s time to retire the phrase. Not even the elite prep schools are preppy anymore. Originally preppy referred to clothing – Izod Lacoste, Brooks Brothers, the old J.Crew. Kids still wear polo shirts, oxford shirts and khaki shorts – but it’s less because they are socially upwardly mobile and more because they just don’t care much about clothes. T-Shirts, sweatshirts and jeans are simple, cheap and effortless. </p>
<p>All of the schools on your list lean left. Some are more in-your-face activist. Some are more apathetic. </p>
<p>I agree that Williams would offer quite a few of the items on your wish-list – especially the music and theater component. The shopping requirement would be a major obstacle however. There’s always the internet or the occasional Boston or New York fix.</p>
<p>Williams/Amherst/Middlebury have a lot of overlap in culture. Oberlin is a VERY different personality type. If you like the first three you might consider Hamilton, Conn College, Skidmore, Kenyon. I’d also leave Wesleyan on the list because although it’s artsy and political it still attracts a lot of middle road kids.</p>
<p>Is there a reason that you won’t be able to visit before applying? A few hours on campus will help to clearly differentiate the different characters/environments and LACs appreciate the demonstrated interest.</p>
<p>I agree with those who suggest looking beyond the northeast (for safety/match school if not for top choices).</p>
<p>You sound like my S (liberal but not crunchy, musical, outdoorsy.) Originally his top choices included some of the NESCAC schools. He settled on Colorado College. This is one of the most (if not THE most) outdoorsy colleges. Nice music scene. Beautiful new arts center includes performance spaces. Seems to have an excellent anthro department. The block plan system is an advantage for scheduling field work into your program, and the location is relatively close to ancient Native American sites. Selective (~26% acceptance rate, ~25% of accepted students in top 1% of class) but an easier admit than the top NESCAC schools. Not as severe winters as Middlebury or Bowdoin (plenty of snow but also 300 days of sunshine.) Division I ice hockey, otherwise very athletic but reputedly much more laid back than some NESCACs. Does award merit scholarships (unlike most top northeastern schools.) #10 “happiest students” according to Princeton Review (not sure how they conclude this, by surveys I think; it seems to ring pretty true in this case though I would not put such a laughably precise number on it.)</p>
<p>S also liked Whitman. Oberlin sounds great for you too.</p>
<p>There is no rub between full-pay and finaid students at schools because there’s a broad range of incomes. There’s the kid on basically 100% aid, the middle class kid on 60% aid, the upper middle class kid getting 15% aid, the son of a pediatrician just barely not getting aid, and the kid whose dad is a “legendary” CEO/Banker/Entrepreneur/Senator.</p>
<p>I might be able to visit some schools before applying later this fall, but since my top ones are scattered, I probably won’t get to see them all (although I will most likely visit all that I’m accepted to before choosing one.)</p>
<p>Another few questions, regarding classes. I’ve generally been looking for schools that have small class sizes without teaching assistants. Are classes like this all that they’re cracked up to be? I would definitely think so–but I’ve had only bad experiences with TA’s in high school. Generally, the way i learn is by sitting through a teacher’s lecture, then going to him afterwards with all my questions. So, which schools have classes taught exclusively by professors? Or is it not as big of a deal as I think to have a large class, or a TA?</p>
<p>When I visited Wesleyan, I sat in on a smaller (25) discussion class which was taught by a TA. The prof had given the lecture earlier in the day to a class of maybe 100 students.</p>
<p>I don’t think you werent sitting in on a class. TAs are sometimes used in the larger science classes to go over homework in smaller homework/help sessions (in addition to professor office hours). was it an intro physics, biology, or chemistry class? those are really the only ones that have ~100 students</p>
<p>It was a graduate student teaching the discussion part of a 1960s American history class–definitely a class. The part taught by the professor was only lecture; all going over of homework and intimate discussion was in a smaller group, taught by a (I believe Yale) grad student.</p>
<p>I don’t know exactly how many students attended the lecture at a time; 100 was an estimate but may be too high.</p>
<p>the Yale graduate student makes sense, as Wes only has graduate programs in the sciences and ethnomusicology. The only other class that has a really high enrollment (100+) is President Roth’s film class. I’m guessing the history class had ~50 students… but what you saw is definitely an exception</p>
<p>I can only speak for Wesleyan, but, generally speaking, if a history class, or an English class or any non-science class is large (and, by large, we’re talking ~50 people), it’s because either the professor is popular for some reason or it’s a popular survey course (as opposed to Organic Chemistry which everyone takes because it’s a pre-med requirement.) So, no, it’s not necessarily a bad thing, especially if the alternative is not being in the class at all because enrollment was limited. Some people prefer listening and taking notes in a good lecture course. And, usually the professor will let the class know when and if they will accept questions (usually toward the end of the class.) You can always see the prof during office hours.</p>
<p>a couple of experiences I’ve had: in a 150 person biology class, the professor knew everyone’s name (I’m not exaggerating), and you could raise your hand at any time to ask a question. I was also in a 75 person English class, where the professor knew everyone’s name and the whole class was actually a discussion class, not a lecture. with 75 people. it as great</p>