<p>When people learn that my S likes Skidmore and Vassar, they tell him he should also look at Bard.<br>
My S has a 3.75 gpa and his SAT M and V 1450. He really loves creative writing and music but he is somewhat interested in majoring in science, possibly bio. He's def not a jock but I wouldn't describe him as granola, artsy either.
I've looked at the various guidebooks but I really can't get a handle on Bard so I'd appreciate any insights.</p>
<p>Bard is looking for science majors and gives away 10 full scholarships every year. They also have excellent creative writing and a music conservatory. Academically, I think it would be great. Socially, I have heard that the student body is not diverse. There is a certain type of person who goes there and if your son is not one of those people he might not feel like he fits in. I get the sense there are a lot of wealthy hipsters from New York who smoke. I would definitely visit both. Bard and Vassar are about 30 minutes from each other. Vassar, I believe, has a more diverse student body, but is harder to get into. My daughter did not like how it felt walled in, and the town of Poughkeepsie is ugly.
Skidmore, we have not visited, but intend to. I think the academics are not as strong as either Bard or Vassar, but the arts are great. I also think they offer science scholarships.</p>
<p>Anyway, Hope that helps.</p>
<p>Skidmore is a lovely school and Saratoga a wonderful city. That is what it has over many colleges of its kind. Other schools in the same vein are Wheaton, Goucher, Connecticut College, Oberlin.</p>
<p>My son goes to Vassar; he also applied and was accepted to Oberlin and Wesleyan. If you have any Vassar questions, feel free to IM me.</p>
<p>Bard: lots of writing emphasis. hipster reputation. very rural, though in a most beautiful part of the Hudson Valley. The conservatory is growing somewhat more slowly than originally anticipated, though great leadership in Botstein (he is still there, I think)
Vassar: great school, Poughkeepsie isn't a fabulous town, and there are some town-gown tensions. I'm sure Twinmom has the real insiders story.
Skidmore: Saratoga is wonderful, though really a town, not a city. History, class, quirkiness. Creative types welcome, there is scholarship $$ available, they are building a major new music facility.</p>
<p>My oldest S goes to Bard and I cannot say enough about what a great school it is. He has absolutely blossomed, is having a great time, loves his friends (I don't agree with the poster who said there is a "certain kind of kid who goes there") and has developed true intellectual interests. He has lots of friends who are a very diverse bunch and though my S was considering going to Berlin for Spring semester, he is now not sure because he is having "so much fun this yera." They are historically strong in the arts but Leon Botstein (who is still there) is really pushing the sciences and they have a gorgeous new science building to prove it. It is in a rural setting and is small, but lots of kids make the very easy trip to NYC on a regular basis. </p>
<p>Definitely go see it. PM me for more details.</p>
<p>PS On the "granola artsy" front, my son turned Hampshire down because there were "too many kids carrying Nalgene bottles"! Bard definitely tilts toward the urban artsy as opposed to the granola artsy.</p>
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Skidmore: Saratoga is wonderful, though really a town, not a city. History, class, quirkiness. Creative types welcome, there is scholarship $$ available
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<p>While there are scholarships available, my understanding was that the merit aid is limited to either a science or music related scholarship. It was disappointing to us, because I think Skidmore is a good school in a gorgeous location and D2 would have considered applying there had there been more opportunities for merit-based aid. Although for the OP's son, the potential music scholarship is a definite plus.</p>
<p>By the way, does Bard offer any merit aid? It's on D's list and she's interested in creative writing.</p>
<p>Wow, thanks for all the great responses. We will have to schedule a visit to Bard and give it a good look.</p>
<p>Yes, Bard does offer merit scholarships. I know several kids going there and more who applied and were accepted there.</p>
<p>Regarding Vassar, Poughkeepsie is not a nice city, and Vassar is essentially a bubble campus. That being said, one can get to NYC on the train (about an hour and a half) if one chooses. The campus does not empty out (at all) on weekends, but some kids do go in for a concert, etc. now and again. The town-gown relations are really not an issue. There is a plethora of events on the Vassar campus every weekend.</p>
<p>Vassar's campus is just beautiful. The school does not give merit scholarships, but our experience is that they are generous with financial aid. I would also say that Vassar is more urban artsy than granola artsy. (Though my son is not artsy at all!) There is a huge emphasis on writing at Vassar too; in fact, applicants have to submit a graded paper with their application. (Unless, of course, that has changed.)</p>
<p>Thank you cptofthehouse. Bard is on the list of schools my D is interested in, so we'll probably visit there in the spring.</p>
<p>The one aspect of Bard that struck me a significant (and convinced me that it was not for my daughter) is that it is only suited to highly self-motivated, self-directed students--Moderation, the Senior Project (it's Bard lingo--you'll hear all about it) are not for everyone. The one aspect that struck my daughter (negatively) is that Bard's location is very remote, very rural. You need a car to get anywhere, but there's nowhere to go anyway. Oh, and we had lunch at what we were assured was the best eating spot on campus--the food was vile.</p>
<p>I can't speak to Vassar, but we did visit Skidmore during the same trip that included Bard. I'd say they're very different. Skidmore has a more diverse student population; one large contingent is preppie, there appeared to be some jocks, of course there's a big artsy segment. The academics do not seem to be as rigorous as Bard's--our student guide was a triple major, and said there are many double majors--I could be wrong, but I doubt that can be done in a highly challenging academic environment. The Education and Business majors are unusual for an LAC. While Skidmore is also in a fairly remote location, the town of Saratoga Springs, a tourist destination, is charming, filled with interesting shops and eateries, all easily walkable from campus. (And the food on campus was very good!)</p>
<p>Yes, Bard is out there. Don't think it is that much farther from NYC than Vassar, but it is not on a train line. Annandale on the Hudson is a charming down, but not the size of Poughkepsie. Of them all, Skidmore has it for location. I was up in Saratoga last spring for a long weekend and loved the town. The food choices were excellent in town. Loved it. </p>
<p>S is in Colorado Springs and though it is a completely different venue, that town too is filled with amenities all within a short distance from campus, walkable, bikeable and good public transportation option in terms of availability. It's nice that way. S needed cleats--he could go get them himself. With S2, it is a problem because he needs to go through a lot more trouble to buy anything off campus. S1 was on a city campus, and again, it was nice having the availability of resources right there.</p>
<p>Well, S has declared that Bard is off the table because it is so rural. His sister transferred after a year at a very rural LAC and her experience is definitely influencing him.
S wants to be near "civilization", AKA small town/city, but have access to outdoor activities, hiking etc.
That leaves Skidmore, which S likes, but I am a little worried that it is not strong academically. I know they are trying to strenghten their science programs but I'm not sure how they stack up.
It's hard to find a school that balances S's interests in music and creative writing along with his desire to pursue bio. All these interests may change after he's in college and I'd like him to be somewhere that haas strong programs in all.</p>
<p>I wouldn't rule Bard out because of location without visiting. Yes, Bard is not an urban campus. On the other hand, it is not located in the middle of a corn field with the nearest town 10 miles away. Bard's campus encompasses the hamlet of Annandale and two former "country seats" owned by members of New York's 19th century "aristocracy." The sprawling campus is linked by walking and biking trails. Montgomery Place, a riverfront estate owned by Historic Hudson Valley (currently closed unfortunately) borders Bard to the south. The Tivoli Bays Nature Preserve, which boasts more than five miles of hiking trails, borders the college to the north.</p>
<p>The closest town/village to Bard is Red Hook, which is about two miles southeast of campus. There are a small assortment of restaurants, a pharmacy, Hannaford supermarket, book store, hardware store, ice cream parlor and multi-plex movie theater in Red Hook. The village of Rhinebeck is located about six miles south of the campus. This upscale village has more than a dozen restaurants of various kinds, boutique shopping and an "art house" cinema. You never know who you'll bump into in Rhinebeck. My kids and their grandmother had lunch at the Beekman Arms with Bill and Hillary Clinton and one other dining party last month just before the Dem convention.</p>
<p>The hamlet of Tivoli is about three miles north of Bard and is where many upperclass Bard students have found off-campus housing. Tivoli's bars and restuarants are pretty popular with Bard students. I believe all three towns are linked to the Bard campus by college shuttle bus and public transportation (The Loop). </p>
<p>You might still find Bard "too isolated" but I think you would be doing yourself a disservice by knocking it off the list sight unseen.</p>
<p>I had a niece (arty, dancer/writer, grew up in the middle of nowhere) who spent three semesters at Bard. She got in to NYC a fair amount while she was there. It's not the most accessible place, but I think it's not that difficult to get into the city.</p>
<p>Lots of people on CC really love Bard, and a number of kids I respect have looked at it and liked it. Botstein is a great leader, no doubt, and there is real energy associated with the college. On the other hand, the kids I know who have actually chosen to go there have not been so academically oriented. That's a huge contrast to Vassar, where I think the students, for the most part, are VERY academically oriented. Skidmore is probably losing its preppy character, but gradually.</p>
<p>As a parent of a current Bard student, I can absolutely attest that while he arrived at Bard not at ALL "highly self-motivated, self-directed" , he is just such a student now! Also, since he was not studying madly in high school, but instead, spent all his time socializing, he has a very high standard for his social life. As hudsonvalley51 wrote, lots of upperclassmen get apartments in Tivoli - my S has - and there is lots to do there and they are all having great fun. My S had a car his first two years but now that he is off campus, he said he is sick of paying for gas and carting his friends around so he left his car at home! He never has trouble getting back and forth from school.</p>
<p>Bard is definitely on the recommended list of my sons' gcs. So are Skidmore, Vassar, et al. Skidmore probably is the preppiest of the bunch. I don't think that the kids that I know who have gone there are not academically oriented. They were more the "artsy" kids rather than the preppy or jock kids, if those terms are used as stereotypes.</p>
<p>i'm a current student at bard, i absolutely love it. I definitely agree that it is not the place for everyone. I would like to describe it as a different, discernible-but hard to place-quality of the students. Here are a couple of general characteristics of bard students--Politically correct, well-read, liberal, talented pseudo-intellectuals that at times are pretentious. Yes, hipsters are a group here but are like any other "group" of people on campus. Every person is dealing with the typical college social anxiety and awkwardness. A big difference from most colleges is that there are no traces of greeklife on campus. The most recent "kegger" was the Studio art moderation gallery show...</p>