<p>Thanks for the info jmmom. I'm originally from Maine and she is very familar with Maine, NH, Vermont. Matter of fact we saw more schools in that area then any place else. She really liked the feel of the colby campus better but liked more of the details or bates. Plus she really liked the bates coach. Coach has been very active in emailing her over the last few months. I think that is helping. I agree Lewiston Auburn area isn't the best but I did see a bit of work being done in town so maybe it's starting to change. Great uncle used to live there so I spent some time there in my ancient teen years. Thanks for the info that there is a Bates forum. Haven't looked around too much yet. Too new to this site. Guess I'll have to go do some hunting....</p>
<p>Just noticed that people were looking for scores. Math - 670 (good in my mind), Writing - 600 (also good), Verbal 540 (not good but much improved from the first time). None are GREAT but she is NOT a good standardized test taker and for her these are realistic scores that do emphasize her strengths.</p>
<p>I'll admit I don't get it. She got a 3 on her English AP to so at least she is consistant.</p>
<p>She is in AP/IB English and gets a high B low A. Depends on what they are reading. I really think it's an interest thing. If she's not interested in the topic she has trouble understanding -- or doesn't want to.... Oh well we do know that it's a reach. </p>
<p>My thought was though that everyone tells me that ACTs might be a better test for her -- more science type questions etc. She did some practice ones and said that they were really easy. </p>
<p>
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a Colby legacy and chose Bates instead.....(not validating his choice, just communicating it)
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</p>
<p>LOL -- as a Colby alum, I wouldn't be able to validate it either! Neither D nor S was/is interested in small LAC's but if either showed any interest, I couldn't, in all good conscience, let her/him apply to Bates over Colby!!!</p>
<p>Why? What does Colby have over Bates? Interested in the answer? I was left with a bad taste in my mouth at Colby. We had a Sat. tour because that was all that we could arrange. Tour guides did not have any material to give us. No one had picked it up on Friday. We then were supposed to meet the cross country coach later in the day (much later) which meant that we needed to stay near buy and then the coach never showed. This was 3 weeks ago. We left a message and cell phone number plus an email and we still have not heard from the coach. This is someone who wanted to meet with my D so I'm stunned by the lack of response. Just over all I didn't feel that any thing at Colby was handled well. On the tour they weren't even going to show us a dorm room until I requested it. Luckily our tour guide found a student who was willing to show us their room.</p>
<p>Might have just been a bad day/one bad experience. Colby is a great school, and I honestly don't think you'd go wrong with Colby, Bates, or Bowdoin, but all three schools have different "feels". I have a lot of friends that LOVE Colby, but I don't know if I'd have been as happy there. Just depends on the individual.</p>
<p>I agree luckcharmed that they were probably having an off day. Hard though when you visit a school once and they don't put on their best. D downed Bowdoin almost immediately. Didn't like how it was spread out I think. I think she would have liked Colby better if there had been a better tour/coach visit/etc. Still not out of the running I don't think but Bates is tops out of the 3 in her mind.</p>
<p>OK, my $.02 -- but you have to realize I am completely biased since I went to Colby!! (There's this whole Colby/Bates/Bowdoin rivalry, too.) Back in the day (yes, w-a-y back then) Bates' reputation didn't hold a candle to Colby's. Fast forward to about 5 years ago when we first started thinking about colleges w/ our D. I was amazed at how many people were raving about Bates. Clearly it's not the same place as it was back in my day. I interviewed there and remember horrible old buildings, and a cramped women's gym upstairs in one of them. Plus, the Admissions person admitted me on the spot -- that really put me off since it told me I wouldn't be challenged much. Anyway, my impression of Bates all those years ago was pretty horrible.</p>
<p>Sorry to hear about the less than positive visit to Colby. At the end of the day, I'm a firm believer in kids having to trust their instincts about schools. What "fits" one may not "fit" another. If Bates seems to fit your D, then by all means she should apply. And if she ends up there, and if I ever meet her, I'll still shake her hand!!!</p>
<p>For the non-Northeastern amongst you, can you all give me the skinny on the different "feels" of Bowdoin / Colby / Bates? My impressions are probably a bit dated and out here, there aren't alumni for me to draw impressions about. Thanks!</p>
<p>I've never visited Bates either, and my general sense was the same as CBBB's: I thought Colby was great, Bates not-so. Colby is gorgeous, no question. I think it is currently suffering from its relative isolation, when kids seem to prefer more urban/suburban setting to real rural isolation. Bates and Bowdoin are much closer to things like airports, the ocean, and Boston or Portland.</p>
<p>But there's no question that Bates is hot in my corner of the world. Part of it is very local. Bowdoin used to be the Maine college of choice at the particular private school I know best, but a couple of students had terrible experiences there (which probably had nothing to do with Bowdoin as an institution), and all of a sudden no one wanted to apply there. Then Bates admitted a bunch of kids who enrolled and loved it, and all of a sudden Bates was the go-to place. Good for Bates!</p>
<p>There are alternates to the Hilton in Lewiston, where you can look at the small falls on the river, in both Lewston and even better down in Portland. I would suggest</p>
<p>Down in Portland there are several right across from the Maine Mall on the highway so you can get to Bates quickly. It is about 45 minutes.</p>
<p>I agree with the earlier posters that Bates is indeed very serious about not considering the SAT/ACT and I believe that their interview is an important component.</p>
<p>I love Bates! I am an ancient alum-(we were told the year that I went that it was the second most selective school in US for girls that year-have no idea if it was true)-The place is so much better now. I would bet that the new dining hall will soon take over as the #1 best college food. (even better than Bowdoin which is amazing) All students have the opportunity to do research and there is a mandatory senior thesis or project which is invaluable. The spring short term is also quite unique-taking advantage of the nicer Maine spring to travel or study something fun.</p>
<p>****agirl - I don't know what the difference is in the students. There is a difference in the campuses. Colby is beautiful - set up on a hill, close together - not crowded but the buildings are all together for the most part about 15 minutes walking distance to Waterville. Campus built in the 50s so no building is older than that. Bate is in Auburn/Lewiston that is more urban than Colby. Some of the dorms are actually old homes that are now part of the campus. Again much of the campus is together. Basically in the city but since it's set a part a bit I can see where the "Bates Bubble" comes from. Bowdoin is more spread out I think then the others. At least it seemed it to us. That was one of the reasons that my D didn't like it as well and well being a runner the track wasn't as impressive as the other two. Maybe not great as a deciding point but certaintly of interest to my D. D was also interested in the spring term. Colby has a short term in Jan. Not sure about Bowdoin. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>^ My D thought the Bowdoin campus was charming, one of the strong points of her visit there. It's a bit spread out but basically well contained around a lovely, tree-lined central quad, just the way D likes it. And the nearby coast is absolutely gorgeous!</p>
<p>I agree. If it was me I would prefer the coast but that didn't seem to be a selling point for my D. I understand. I actually left Maine to come inland to Rochester NY for college and have never left. Still miss mountains and the coast. Nothing like that here!! I think they all have great selling points and are all lovely. I think the fact that Bates is getting a new indoor track and Colby a new outdoor track is perhaps some of the selling points for those schools for my D.</p>
<p>^^ my guess re pizzagirl - you may have mistakenly hit the "s" instead of the "z". cc has filters which filter our inappropriate language. Some are kind of mysterious; the one that usually confounds posters is when they try to type a word such as w i s t f u l, it comes out as wi****l, because those four middle letters are an acronym in use by some that is rude. Easy to guess when you realize why those letters were *'d out, but odd until you think of them in isolation from the rest of the word.</p>