<p>I've always been a fairly intelligent person - I blame my parents for that, as they inundated me with Shakespeare from birth - but I've never really enjoyed "book learning." Don't get me wrong, I like reading, I even like classes (as long as they have a lot of discussion), but I really prefer to learn by doing. </p>
<p>See, I'm homeschooled (yes, I do classes outside of the home. Shocking, I know). That's given me the opportunity to do a lot of internships and extracurricular activities like mock trial competitions, speech and debate, etc. I've found that learning is a lot more enjoyable for me when I, for example, learn about the law by practicing it in a mock trial as opposed to reading about the statues and legal system in a textbook. I'm good at picking things up as I go along and making connections, but listening to a lecture or reading a textbook usually doesn't do it for me and the lessons don't stick.</p>
<p>So with that in mind, I've been looking for colleges that have extensive opportunities for experiential learning - work/study programs, internships for credit, that sort of thing. Ideally, I'd like for the vast majority my college education to consist of /those/ kind of experiences, but I realize that such a program likely doesn't exist. Even so, however, I'm sure some colleges have more of these programs than others, and I'd like to take a look at the colleges on the "more" side.</p>
<p>Problem is, I haven't had much luck finding any. That's where you, my lovely friends at college confidential, come in. Any ideas?</p>
<p>To lower things down a bit:
-I don't care about religious affiliation.
-I'd prefer to go to a small or mid-sized school
-I'm not interested in a technical, mathematic, or overtly scientific degree. EMAC is about as technical as I'm willing to hazard.</p>
<p>Most of what is taught at most colleges, and a big chunk of what is taught at nearly every college, is book learning. If you really want experiential learning, you can try to find an industrial/craft apprenticeship or a trade school program. The heyday of apprenticeships for white collar work must have been about 2 centuries ago.</p>
<p>However, there is such a thing as a “work college”. Deep Springs College combines ranch work (and maybe construction) with book learning (and zero tuition), but it is super small and super selective. Warren Wilson College (NC) is larger and less selective. </p>
<p>An “experimental” place like Hampshire, College of the Atlantic, or Bennington might work for you. Or, look for a more traditional school with small classes and an emphasis on discussion of primary source materials (not textbooks). The University of Chicago is such a place. The “block plan” colleges schedule one course at a time (4 or 5 courses per term in series not in parallel). This makes it easier to schedule field work or research projects. Colorado College and Cornell College (Iowa) are block plan colleges. </p>
<p>Northeastern has a 5-year co-op/internship program. I may be wrong, but it sounds like the program alternates more or less conventional book-learnin’ with periods of work (rather than fundamentally changing all the academic course content.)</p>