<p>Hello everyone!
I'm a student from China and I'll be attend a US uni or college in the year of 2012.
I got an oppotunity to interview with some of the LACs that will come to China just next month. Unfortunately I can only interview with two of them.......So could any one of you give me any advice on what college to choose? Here are my choices:
Carleton; Colby; Davidson; Grinnell; Kenyon; Oberlin.
I've searched some websites but most are just about figures and facts. The websites always say this is a school where you meet academically outstanding professors and nothing more. Could you please give me any advice or information other than that? What do you think are the strong points and weak points of these colleges? How do you feel about studying and living in the school? Thanks!
Here is some of my information. I think I am quite ambitious and want to receive education from the best. Im one of the top students in the class and haven't decided what to major in. I want to join a college that has reasonable academic load that can push me forward, but will not restrict my social activities and interaction.</p>
<p>Academic interests? What do you enjoy doing with your free time?</p>
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<p>I’m sure that all of these LACs would meet that requirement.</p>
<p>I suggest looking at not just the college websites, but the reviews by 3rd parties, especially those by students. CC doesn’t allow us to post the names of competitive websites, but just google for college reviews or college guides or similar search terms.</p>
<p>All of those schools are well-regarded, selective LACs. I think Davidson is the most selective of the bunch. I think the biggest differences are in location and fit. Davidson is in the south and is more conservative/preppy. Grinnell and Oberlin are known to be very liberal and counter-culture. Oberlin has a well-regarded music conservatory. There are weather differences - can you handle a Minnesota winter (Carleton)? </p>
<p>I also suggest that you look up the percentage of international students at each school, and lean towards the more diverse schools.</p>
<p>Here on College Confidential, and elsewhere on the Internet, there is a lot of information about these schools that goes well beyond facts and figures. Check out some threads for each college under the “Colleges” section of this site. Look at princetonreview.com and other college sites. Then come back and post more specific questions as they arise.</p>
<p>These are all good, respected LACs. Carleton & Davidson are a little more selective than others. There are more or less subtle differences in social atmosphere. I believe they are all in fairly rural (or small town) locations. They all offer a similar academic program.</p>
<p>What are you planning to study? What are you interested in doing professionally? </p>
<p>As tk21769 says, there are subtle cultural differences, and more extreme weather differences, but they are more alike than different. Carleton, Colby, Oberlin and Grinnell were all on my son’s list of potential schools and we visited all of them. He ultimately choose Grinnell - for many reasons - but all of them will provide an excellent education and social environment with a strong sense of community. </p>
<p>For more information on Grinnell, see <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/grinnell-college/438138-why-grinnell.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/grinnell-college/438138-why-grinnell.html</a></p>
<p>I remember from visiting that Grinnell had a decent number of international students. Also, I know this isn’t on your list, but a similar school to the schools on your list is Macalester. They have a number of international students as well. All of the schools you are looking at are very good and quite similar. I would second reading student reviews. There is a good book that I have called “Students Guide to Colleges” that gives a better perspective of all of the schools you’re looking at.</p>
<p>A few student’s thoughts from the book…</p>
<p>Carleton- politically left, lower diversity, intellectual atmosphere, rural location (but in nice town), noncompetitive academic atmosphere, good undergrad teaching, three ten-week terms, friendly Midwest-feel, quirky students, students have unique interests</p>
<p>Colby- politically split, lower diversity, “party hard, work hard”, rural location, strong feeling of community, Jan Plan (students take one class for a month or go on school trip or internship)</p>
<p>Davidson- politically split, lower diversity, intellectual atmosphere, suburban location, students are competitive with each other academically, near nice town, average student is upper-middle class</p>
<p>Grinnell- politically left, medium diversity, intellectual atmosphere (football guys who talk about titrations and chem class), summer research with professors, compact campus, nice facilities, very good campus community</p>
<p>Kenyon- politically left, lower diversity, intellectual atmosphere, the school for poet-scholars, very good English department, friendly professors, rural location, collaborative academic atmosphere</p>
<p>Oberlin- politically left, medium diversity, intellectual atmosphere, political activism, counterculture, Conservatory and College of Arts and Sciences, rural location</p>
<p>Macalester- politically left, medium diversity, intellectual atmosphere, global student body (I think Macalester stands out from these schools in this area, even though the other schools aren’t terrible in this regard), relaxed social climate, urban location, pretty campus, political activism</p>
<p>If I were you, I’d narrow it down to Grinnell, Oberlin, Macalester, and Carleton. Then apply to 2 of those. Compare Grinnell vs. Oberlin and apply to one of them. Then compare Macelester and Carleton and apply to one of them. Also, FYI Grinnell is good with aid. Not sure about the other schools. If I had to say two for you, I’d say Grinnell College and Macalester College. Two very good schools.</p>
<p>Davidson is my favorite LAC on the list, with Carleton a close second. It has a very attractive campus, nice weather, and great sports for a LAC (especially basketball). It also has a reputation for community service and the arts, particularly theatre. </p>
<p>The facilities are extremely nice, and the science labs were definitely the cleanest and best-equipped of the LACs I toured. All of the professors and students were remarkably friendly, and the honor code was great (exams taken anytime and anywhere? yes, please!). As a bonus, they’ll do your laundry for free.</p>
<p>Davidson is a rather small but pleasant town, and it meshes well with the college…relatively few colleges have people in the neighboring community who bake cookies for students during finals week. Charlotte is a larger city, and downtown is about 20 minutes away. The Lake Norman / Huntersville area is rapidly growing, and there is quite a bit to do in the Davidson area. Davidson also has a lake campus where students can sail, water ski, etc.</p>
<p>An anecdote I frequently tell deals with my Chicago interviewer a couple years ago. I was applying EA for the University of Chicago, and my alum interviewer was a professor at Davidson. Although ostensibly interviewing me for Chicago, he spent much of the time pushing me to consider Davidson - a school he considered to have equivalent academics with a better social life. He was fond of Swarthmore as well, as I recall.</p>
<p>bbarty’s summary is a pretty good one. Grinnell has 11-12% international students by the way - more than the rest on your list - and many of them are from China. </p>
<p>Also, of the 10 LACs we visited (including Colby, Oberlin, and Carleton), Grinnell’s facilities were easily the nicest. Their huge endowment has been translated into gorgeous buildings, exceptionally small classes, scholarships for international students, generous financial aid and student activities including research.</p>
<p>Grinnell has a similar relationship with its town that warblersrule described for Davidson. I think the firefighters cook pancakes during finals…you can get a church group to send birthday cake, etc…(or the town bakery…). At Grinnell, their is a host family program for internationals (the other schools might have the same, IDK0></p>
<p>All great schools. </p>
<p>IMO, Kenyon felt very isolated – yes even more so than Grinnell, which is two blocks from the downtown center. (I haven’t visited Colby or Davidson).</p>
<p>Colby will likely be the most outdoorsy.</p>
<p>If you haven’t already go to the international student affairs office page, and at least click on the Host Family program and Mosaic, to get a sense of what being an international at Grinnell is all about.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.grinnell.edu/offices/studentaffairs/oisa[/url]”>http://www.grinnell.edu/offices/studentaffairs/oisa</a></p>
<p>Grinnell is also increasing its diversity every year. Class of 2014 is 13% international. </p>
<p>My S goes to Grinnell, hence all my info on that school…</p>