My son was admitted to both schools - we are going to visit in the next 2 weeks. They seem pretty similar. We are hoping the decision will be clear from visiting, but would appreciate any thoughts comparing these 2 schools, from this group. He’s an undecided major, runs cross country, and not into a big party scene.
Our D21 considered and really liked both schools. In many ways, they seem more alike than different. Both schools have a few shops but are maybe a 10-minute drive from the nearest “real” town, and about 45 minutes from a bigger city, although being in Connecticut means you’d be closer to other, much larger metro areas (Boston and NYC). Conn is across the street from the Coast Guard Academy, but it was unclear to us if there is much interaction between the schools. Conn has a cool arboretum near the campus, and Kenyon is surrounded for miles by beautiful trails and hiking paths. While our D was deciding we’d heard rumors that both schools have “big” party scenes, but think it’s similar to any LAC, where there are parties on the weekends, and kids take them or leave them, per their preferences.
We visited last spring and were able to do tours, even most schools weren’t allowing them, although we couldn’t go inside most buildings, so I can’t speak to the facilities at Conn. We had a great tour guide there, who was funny and artsy. The students seemed friendly, and the campus was lovely.
After both visits, our D chose Kenyon. She loved the campus itself, but I think at the end of the day it was the people, who were so down to earth, open, and excited to talk about the school. She reached out to a professor who put her in touch with a couple of students, and they spent hours on FaceTime with her talking about their experiences. Admissions also put us in touch with a professor who spoke with her on a Saturday morning about some ideas they had for an emerging program that might interest her.
I hope your son will find, as our daughter did, that visiting the school offers some clarity about which is the better fit for him. He can’t go wrong. Congratulations!
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Thank you, this is so helpful! We live in NYC, so I like the idea of him going a bit further away, but will probably come down to a feeling he gets when we visit both schools. Can you comment at all on the Greek Life at Kenyon? It’s one of the things that he’s concerned about at Kenyon – he prefers a school without greek life, but just not sure how big a deal it is at Kenyon. Any thoughts on that? Thank you again!
Our D wasn’t interested in a school with Greek life. The admissions director (who gave our tour last year because students weren’t allowed to during Covid) said that something like 20-25% of students participate, and the largest of the groups is a no-rush, co-ed service organization called the Archons. One or two frats actually closed this year or last (can’t remember) because there weren’t enough people to sustain a chapter.
One of the students our D talked to last spring was a senior who advised that she should really go to one frat party, and then she would never have to go again. 
When parties happen they tend to be smaller, in apartments or dorm lounges. There is always something fun to do on campus, and our D and her friends spend most of their time going to see each other in plays, concerts, and sporting events. She actually does have a few friends who joined sororities this year, but it’s by no means a huge part of their experience.
Thanks so much - it’s great to hear from a parent perspective. We asked about Greek Life at an online event, and they said it wasn’t a big part of the school, but it’s good to hear this from a parent too. He’s also still interested in Lewis & Clark College in Portland, but I think will end up choosing between CC and Kenyon. Thanks again!
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I graduated from Conn College, way back in 1989. Played basketball there. Cannot say enough good things about Conn! Plenty of time for your studies, in addition to practicing and competing… My best friends to this day are my college teammates. While not a big party school, partying did occur (as I am sure occurs everywhere). We did hang out with the “Coasties” from across the street from time-to-time. No greek life, no football, but our men’s soccer team won the D3 national championship last year so there are great teams and great school spirit!! The casinos are close by, but were not open when I was there–good restaurants, concerts and sporting events (Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods) there. My colleague’s son is considering Conn for cross country also (is a junior and will make an official visit in the spring). If a small, liberal arts, suburban setting is what he is looking for, he wouldn’t regret choosing to be a Camel!
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Sounds like he can’t go wrong! This will be a difficult decision! Hopefully he will get a feeling one way or another when we visit in a couple of weeks. Thank you for the response!
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I just want to echo what @kbm770 said about Greek life at Kenyon. Here’s what I posted on an earlier thread:
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What is he interested in studying?
I too have a first year student at Kenyon and would say that Greek Life seems to be more like a club. Some participate. Many do not. It doesn’t dominate the social life or friend groups. My D has several friends who rushed, but she didn’t feel any pressure to join them. She has an active and fun social life (and I’m sure some of it involves going to parties at frat houses or otherwise).
Her experience at Kenyon has been everything she imagined and more. When she talks about it – her relationship with her professors, the people she’s met from all over, the opportunities she’s had to get involved - my son comments that she’s describing an environment that he though only existed in the movies!
She had applied to CT College, but got into Kenyon EDII so withdrew that application The one thing CT had going for it was the water! But, she’s come to love the cornfields. 
Good luck to your son on his decision. It’s so nice to have good choices.
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I read your response after writing mine and see that we both describe Kenyon’s Greek Life the same way – like a club!
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I absolutely love what they’ve done with the curriculum at Conn College. It makes for a great integrated education with close advising.
I also noticed a couple of other things:
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41:59 male:female ratio. That’s pretty good odds if he’d like a harem
but it’s something to consider for any student if he or she would like a normal social life. It’s in keeping with the unfortunate trends in higher education, but Kenyon is a little better at 45:55, approaching something more normal. -
Conn College draws heavily from the tri-state area and New England. Kenyon seems to have greater geographic diversity.
Make of these what you will. Just a couple of things to consider and throw into the decision making hopper along with everything else.
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All of the comments are great and very helpful! I’m definitely looking for considerations to throw into the hopper! I suspect he will things about each school and walk away from their accepted student visiting days just as undecided as before, but hoping he gets a better feel at one of the schools.
He is also visiting Lewis & Clark, but I’m guessing it will feel very different than Conn College and Kenyon.
Appreciate all these comments – keep them coming! And also if anyone has thoughts about L&C, would love those, as well!
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Okay.
New London has the reputation for being a run down town, which it is (although it has some nice sections). But, location, location, location . . .
Kenyon is landlocked while New London is on the water with a nice beach on Long Island Sound. Nearby are the charming fishing villages of Noank, with outdoor waterfront dining on fresh lobster as the specialty, and Stonington Borough, which is a mini-Newport. Each has their own fishing fleet, bringing fresh fish to local restaurants daily. Mystic is a coastal town more for the yachting crowd and has major tourist attractions. An Uber or student car can have you to Rhode Island’s ocean beaches in half an hour. For an all day adventure, a 1-hour high speed ferry can get you to Block Island’s ocean beaches or in 1.5 hours to Montauk. Bring a bike and make a day of it. There are also whale watching cruises from local docks as well as other fishing and sight seeing cruises.
There’s actually quite a lot more to do nearby to Conn College. Mohegan Sun Casino is 15 minutes away by car and 1/2 hour or so by bus. Forget the gambling, it has a 10,000 sear arena for concerts and sporting events, free live music in Wolf’s Den, and lots of restaurants and shops. There are a number of museums and vineyards scattered around New London County. Half an hour away on the Connecticut River there is live theater and historic riverside villages. The Amtrak Station is right down by the waterfront and can have you to Boston in under 2 hours.
Much of this is not evident from a campus tour. You might want to combine your campus tour with a little sightseeing to get a better feel for the area.