Hello CC! I’m a senior in high school and my family is having some difficulty choosing between two LACs, Colby College and Washington & Lee, and we’d love to get some input from you guys.
For some background, I’m looking to major in economics and minor or double major (probably depending on how I deal with the workload) in philosophy or political science. After graduation I think I would like to attend law school or get my master’s in econ, though I’m not entirely sure about this. As such I’m looking for a school with strong economics/pre-law extracurriculars like mock trial, debate team, etc…, though I’m also a pretty outdoorsy kind of guy and really enjoy hiking. With respect to financial aid, the offers I’ve gotten from both schools are fairly similar, so for this particular comparison I don’t think it has much significance.
Washington & Lee University
Pros:
Their econ program looks to be pretty strong, and there are some good activities for students interested in economics and finance to get involved with, like the Williams Investment Society and the Venture Club.
W&L has a very strong alumni network.
I really like both schools’ campuses, but W&L’s seems nicer to me.
Locationwise, the school seems to be in a better spot, it is closer to large urban areas with >100k people than Colby, and is also closer to places where I would be interested in interning, notably Washington DC.
Campus politics would probably be easier to navigate as I do consider myself to be somewhat politically and morally conservative.
The climate seems to be fairly temperate and not very different to what I’m used to.
Cons:
I don’t drink for cultural reasons, and the school has a well-known drinking culture.
I wouldn’t mind joining a fraternity, but it’s certainly not anywhere near the top of my college bucket list, and Greek life plays a huge role on campus. I think something like 3/4 of students go Greek.
I have never been to the part of Virginia or the general region of Appalachia where W&L is located.
Colby College:
Pros:
Colby’s economics program also seems to be quite strong, and from what I was able to gather also seems to be the stronger of the two schools with respect to producing economic research. Colby seems to be investing more into research in recent years overall, and if anyone knows more information about this I’d love to learn about it.
There seems to be more course diversity in the departments that I’m interested, but given the limited amount of classes I can take per semester I don’t know if having more courses to choose from is good or not.
I have been to Maine (where Colby is located), and I think it’s probably the most beautiful of the 50 states.
Colby does not allow fraternities. I think they do still have underground ones, but from what I’ve read they have declined in recent years.
Cons:
Colby is very remote, probably a bit too much for my own liking. There also seems to be less hiking opportunities in the immediate proximity of campus, as Waterville isn’t in a very mountainous place. Colby is of course still very good for the outdoors.
I don’t mind the cold and snow, but Colby seems to get pretty darn cold in the winter.
Culturally, the school might not be as good of a fit as W&L, and Colby does share some of W&L’s cultural cons as well like the prevalent drinking.
These are the pros and cons I was able to gather, but I’m sure that I got at least a few of these wrong, so please feel free to correct me or add your own input on these matters! I’m also generally interested in learning more about the economics programs programs at each school as I haven’t been able to gather much from the existing online resources. How good is each school with respect to placing graduates on Wall Street? Which one would be better for preparation for a graduate degree in economics? Is one college better than the other for pre-law?
We are currently leaning towards W&L, but would really like to hear what you guys have to say. Thank you!
W&L has the Washington Term which is seems like an incredible experience that sounds compatible with your interest.
Have you had an opportunity to sit in on classes at either school? I always think this is an excellent idea when looking at schools. Reach out to the admissions office to connect with a professor, and a student which may make the difference and put one over the top when you can’t visit. Best wishes to you!
Colby College has a new indoor athletic facility which should provide lots of non-drinking options.
Wash & Lee’s social life is built around frats & sororities. Might be a difficult environment for a non-drinker.
Drinking is prevalent at small, isolated, cold weather LACs, however, it is not the only social option.
Both are strong schools academically & both offer a strong social scene, but the social scenes tend to have alcohol present.
I cannot answer whether or not you will be socially ostracized for being a non-drinker, but you might be bored & you might be a bit lonely at times.
It just isn’t fun to stand around at a social event stone cold sober when others are getting light headed or drunk. You need to find activities that do not involve alcohol. Easier to do this at larger schools & at non-rural, non-isolated schools.
P.S. Have you read student input on Unigo & Niche & Reddit ? I am an adult poster; it might be more helpful to get current student input regarding alternative activities which do not involve alcohol.
Does either school offer substance free housing ? If so, then you should have an instant group of like-minded friends.
Yes, I have read some student reviews, testimonials, etc… on Niche and Unigo, and also checked out the subreddits for each school, so but unfortunately (probably due to their size) I wasn’t able to extract a whole ton of information from these sources, hence why I posted on CC.
Both colleges do have substance-free housing, which is great, and its a resource I certainly think I will consider taking advantage of should I commit to either school.
I think you understand the pros and cons of both schools. Definitely Colby is better situated for outdoorsy activities. There are quite a few kids who do not drink. There are more who do. There is plenty to do with other sober people. There are a lot of opportunities for research, etc. in the economics department. It is one of the more popular majors so it is perhaps a bit less nurturing and personal than some others. It’s also easy to study abroad as an econ major.
Both great schools. Really a matter of what you want…
Just a quick question, why do you believe that Colby is better situated for outing? Lexington, VA seems to be a little closer to large hiking areas (George Washington National Forest, for example) than Waterville, ME.
@moosefan93 , no matter where you go in Maine, you’re near an unspoilt place. It s a relatively wild state. The Belgrade lakes are very close (the school’s boathouse is on one). The outing club is very active and does trips all over Maine, and there is great hiking, skiing, climbing, camping, shore, – all of a quality that people travel for for vacation – relatively close. The outing club also makes equipment available.
I’m probably betraying my biases, but if I were going on a “great outdoors” vacation, I would be more likely to head for “Vacationland” than Virginia. To each his own!
Btw, closer to Mt Blue from Colby than GW National forest from W&L. But I am partial to Acadia…
Very strong analysis @moosefan93 and better informed than many of the responses you received. To answer some of the open questions:
Both have strong pipelines to Wall Street - hard to pick a winner here
If grad school is your true aim, you may be better off at your state safety
Both will well prepare you in a “pre-law” program - the courses you choose, rather than the school you choose between those two, will determine which is better
To add another factor, Lexington is better than Waterville for off-campus ventures and for your visitors. I haven’t been to Waterville in a couple of years so I haven’t been able to gauge the impact of the student housing there. And, while Waterville has a wonderful coffee shop, Lexington is hands down better for dining.
Colby has fewer distribution requirements, although not by much. The primary distinction between them is W&L requires competency in a world language occupying as much as 1 class in 4 semester.
Colby’s new athletic facility is phenomenal and tops W&L’s despite the fact that W&L’s athletic facility just opened after a two year full renovation.
Climate can be an important factor. Colby enjoys snow from October through April. Lexington’s weather is generally consistent with, and just slightly warmer than, eastern PA.
W&L is far better for hiking while Colby is far better for cross country skiing.
W&L has its non-drinkers. You’ll find a growing percentage of independents who, as the name implies, do their own thing. Most on campus can find a fraternity that makes them comfortable. One, for example, has many members of the Williams investment Society - perhaps a majority of the male members belong to one fraternity.
You have (more than) two very fine choices. If you were my child, I’d advise you choose based on where you believe you’ll fit in better. Good luck.
As a parent of a W&L student, I will comment on W&L only.
I think an additional Pros specifically for your interests could include:
a minor that W&L offers called Law, justice & Society. Some of the course offerings are taught by the professors at the W&L Law School (and taken with the law students).
Mock Convention is an activity that builds over the years to predicting the next presidential candidate of the party running against the incumbent party. It is a big activity at W&L with various ways to be involved as little or as much as one would like.
As to the Cons you mentioned:
Greek life does play a huge roll. Our student is part of a frat and while it wasn’t on his bucket list either he has found it enjoyable. He also has friends who did not join any frats.
I doubt you will be ostracized at either school if you do not drink.
As an aspect that may be worth additional information, from an environmental perspective the Maine landscape cannot be regarded as unspoiled. Maine has been a huge timber state, with many of its forests under “management” as property. In terms of figures, over 98% of Maine’s forests have been cut at one time or the other, mostly some time after Thoreau wrote The Maine Woods, leaving under 2% of the state’s area as old-growth stands of trees.