We live in Illinois - and my daughter (a junior) thinks Rhodes and Reed are both interesting. What else can we look at? I don’t want to limit her - but we have to be realistic with finances and scholarship opportunities.
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<li>Smaller school - less than 10,000 (max)</li>
<li>ACT - first time (with no prep) 28. She thinks she can improve that score.<br></li>
<li>Smiles when others describe schools with student body as a little ‘quirky’ - she considers herself to be that way a bit in her choices of TV and movies (loves Harry Potter, Dr. Who…).</li>
<li>Major - She’s used to talk a lot of about Forensics and being a Coroner. Now she is thinking pre-med - so who knows where she’ll land. I’m encouraging her to go somewhere that encompasses these majors so she has plenty of opportunity to explore.</li>
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My son really loved Dickinson College (although he ended up choosing American U in DC because of his internship aspirations)…the new science building is amazing. She also might like Muhlenberg.
My daughter (we’re also from Illinois) has Rhodes high on her list (she applied early and is waiting to hear).
As of this writing, absent a decision from Rhodes, she is most excited about Kalamazoo College. It’s very small (1,400), which may be a draw or not for you and your D. The campus is lovely; it’s not super fancy or anything but it’s very pretty (lots of trees, kind of hilly, nice facilities). She was accepted with a generous scholarship (she has a 31 ACT and 3.74 UW GPA and got $ for vocal performance). Her acceptance letter was highly personalized; the dean of admissions quoted her essay! Made me cry. Not kidding. It is really worth a visit. Things that stood out for my D: opportunity for study abroad (85 percent of kids take advantage), open curriculum, lots of internship/externship options, senior independent project. Thing that stood out for me: Bell’s Brewery.
My D was not thrilled with College of Wooster, but I would recommend checking it out; if money is an issue they are known for good merit aid and the student body fits the “quirky” bill. The campus is VERY nice, and downtown Wooster is charming in that “I’m in the middle of Ohio, what else can I be but charming?” sort of way.
Earlham College did not appeal to my D because of the surrounding town (she is VERY picky on that score). But by all accounts the student body is in that quirky vein. Campus is beautiful. Beloit College is also worth a look: Close to Illinois, well regarded, good merit aid.
One of my D’s best friends (a Dr. Who fanatic, as it happens) LOVES Knox College, so if you’re looking at all in state you might want to take a look.
In the reachier category, consider Kenyon College and Grinnell College.
If she is interested in forensics and possible coroner work, she may appreciate being in TN nearer to one of the Body Farm facilities. There is one in Knoxville and Maryville College (my alma mater) might suit her well. It’s in a beautiful setting just outside of Knoxville.
She should check out other schools around the other Body Farm facilities in Texas, NC, and PA.
My daughter who applied EA to Rhodes also applied to Wooster, Sewanee and Richmond in that same vein. She applied to a few others for different reasons but as far as feeling similar to one another, those are the closest. Good luck.
Thanks everyone! My daughter just mentioned Wooster the other night.
We are going to visit Knox. I don’t know anyone who has attended - but they have an open house coming up that we plan to check out.
Thank you for all the other suggestions - we will start to research those as well!
absweetmarie - I hope you daughter hears soon!
As we continue looking at smaller private colleges - I’m noticing that many are considered very liberal…to the point there aren’t any real strong views on campus. It would be nice to find some additional schools that have the Rhodes/Reed feel - but have a little more political diversity. Any additional suggestions? Just curious.
With regard to the political leanings of an institution, I think that the only way to get a true feel is to actually visit the school. For example, I am quite familiar with three colleges – Miami University (Ohio), Earlham College, and Beloit College. Miami has a reputation as being conservative, while Earlham and Beloit have reputations for being liberal. However, I personally know liberals who attended Miami and conservatives who attended Earlham and Beloit and had really good and robust experiences, politically speaking. And in my experience, it is pretty easy to avoid all of the political stuff if you get immersed in your filed of study and other activities.
I just wouldn’t be too concerned about reputation until you actually make a visit. Your daughter will be in a much better position to make the determination once she gets on campus for a visit.
Rhodes, a great school in South (Memphis), has a reputation in Biology/Chemistry ( 1/3 students take Bio/Chem major), but, you need to know that many of them go to University of Tennessee medical school in Memphis and OleMiss medical school in Jackson, MS. And, most of alumni network in South, especially in Mid-South and Southeast (mostly TX, LA, AR, TN, MS, KY, AL, GA, SC, MO).If your D want to stay this area, I recommend you consider here.
Sewanee, same as Rhodes, in rural east Tennessee, only difference is in rural setting, not urban (Memphis), rest of them are pretty similar.
Another suggestion would be Denison University in Ohio. FWIW, it has a reputation for being more middle-of-the-road than some of its Ohio LAC brethren. Another notable thing about Denison is that it has a test-optional policy, in case that matters to you. Also, I’ve heard they are comparatively generous with financial aid. My D ultimately decided not to apply because she concluded she wouldn’t pick it over any of the schools where she’d already been accepted. The campus is stunning. Granville is teeny-tiny but adorable. Not sure how far afield you want to venture, but there are also a bazillion good LACs in Pennsylvania. (Every time I drive to or through PA I find that it is further away from Illinois and wider west to east than I remember.)