Thank you, wonderful people! I assure you, her WL colleges are not factoring in. She is assuming she will not get off WLs. Will check out hercampus.
“She says not too nerdy” When we attended admitted students day at U of R, the dean of admissions said something like “this is a school for nerds and we’re not afraid to say it” so she might want to think about that. My S attended a class there, taught by the person that wrote his high school textbook, walked out of the class and said “Forget it, let’s go, I’m not coming here”. Apparently, the class was 45 minutes of lecture, no interaction with students, and the professor told him that was the norm for U of R. The dean also made reference to this and said there are no discussion groups setup by the college. Instead, what they offer are an abundance of research opportunities. Wasn’t good for my son, but that doesn’t mean it’s not right for your D. On an unrelated note, the dean of admissions gave one of the most brilliant “why this college” speeches I’ve ever heard.
I don’t have any experience with kenyon or dickinson but when anyone in these parts hears Kenyon, the next thing they say is “isn’t that a writer’s school?”.
Your daughter is probably not going to learn all too much of value from CC that she doesn’t already know. I had our kids put together a spreadsheet with all the things that are important to them. For my D, she has columns for school spirit, D1 sports, lack of greek life, school size, location, etc. I insisted they add a column called “X Factor” which they scored however they liked. The act of scoring colleges on all these dimensions (and sometimes finding missing dimensions) led to a pretty quick decision. Interestingly, the highest X factor rating was always their first choice 
I know this isn’t what you asked us, but I really wish your daughter would consider Whitman.
@doschicos , my head just exploded:-)
I wouldn’t sweat that there aren’t many days left. My D2 took 4 days after her last accepted student visit. I left her alone, we didn’t discuss while she processed (I know your D asked you to ask here, though). She finally came to her own conclusion and let me know what it was. We waited a few more days before sending the decisions, too, just to make sure it stuck (it did). At this point, I’d mostly leave her alone.
My kid confirmed his final decision on May 1. You have plenty of time! She can even fly to Walla Walla. 
(should I send you some Tylenol?)
If she didn’t come away from Kenyon absolutely sure it is her home, then I would think Dickinson is the better choice. Kenyon is a distinct place – minuscule town, self-aware of its place in literary world, more Greek than you’d think. Dickinson is what, 600 or 800 more students? In a more sizeable town than Gambier, with a reputation that continues to rise. That Dickinson merit money can pave the way for a lot of opportunities over the next few years, freeing her up for summer travel, internships etc. This is my own bias, for sure, but Dickinson struck us as more well-rounded community. For a student who doesn’t have an overwhelming preference, pick the reasonable fit, that is affordable, join the FB group and get to know your future classmates!
If she didn’t come away from Kenyon absolutely sure it is her home, then I would think Dickinson is the better choice. Kenyon is a distinct place – minuscule town, self-aware of its place in literary world, more Greek than you’d think. Dickinson is what, 600 or 800 more students? In a more sizeable town than Gambier, with a reputation that continues to rise. That Dickinson merit money can pave the way for a lot of opportunities over the next few years, freeing her up for summer travel, internships etc. This is my own bias, for sure, but Dickinson struck us as more well-rounded community. For a student who doesn’t have an overwhelming preference, pick the reasonable fit, that is affordable, join the FB group and get to know your future classmates!
@doschicos , yes please. And some cash for the plane ticket
@Midwestmomofboys makes a valid point. Kenyon has a distinct flavor. If your D was not feeling it, perhaps it means it’s not the right school for her. While every school has a vibe, there are some, like Kenyon (in part due to the small size), that have a more prevailing personality making it more important to be sure you fit there. I can’t help but compare your thread to @lexluthor, who has a D that had a similar application journey and now is faced with good choices. When her D came back from Grinnell, she unequivocally knew it was the place for her. Seems like your D has not had that experience at Kenyon, so perhaps it’s not the right one.
While my kid is not your kid, one of the things that has impressed me in my research about Dickinson is that it seems to do a really good job with summer internships, in part because it is within a reasonable distance of Philadelphia, Baltimore and DC. I wonder if those kinds of opportunities might be more limited, were she to go to Kenyon? Just a thought that might be worth investigating further.
I think that @Midwestmomofboys makes great points, so I won’t repeat what she has stated so well.
which I must have thought was really important info, because I managed to post it twice, sorry about that!
@Midwestmomofboys my D has stated from the outset that she wouldn’t walk on a campus and think “this is the one.” I believe her, she also thinks “love at first sight” must be nonsense too. She is a realist to the core. We talked a little more, she is concerned about partying. She doesn’t want to be the only one not drinking.
She read this thread. I think now I will just have to leave her to cogitate for a few days and let her do whatever else she needs to do to make a decision.
Hi Linda:) I read somewhere about there being 3 partying nights at Kenyon. From what I know, that’s fairly typical at every school. The question is how many partake in the 3 nights. It’s just my opinion, but it seems that at a larger school like Rochester it would be easier to avoid the partying. I would imagine there would be more options. Another thought is whether she could be happy at any of these schools as long as she lived in substance free housing. Do they all offer that? That would insure that she met like-minded people starting from day 1.
She might be overthinking the partying aspect as there are many more kids in her “non party” shoes entering college these days (even at the smaller LACs that can have a work hard play hard reputation). How does she feel about sub free housing? Would being in one alleviate some of her concerns as an incoming freshman? Denison has the Morrow House for first years.
I am sure she has spent time looking at the res life pages on various websites, would she be interested in contacting some of the upperclass student RAs/CAs to address her specific concerns? They could provide some insight from their experience that might help her decide. They could also give her an idea if their school will honor a strong request for a roommate who also prefers not to drink/party.
DS sounds a little like your DD, and much to his surprise he was really impressed with Dickinson when he visited for the accepted students day. (He liked the internship opportunities mentioned by @mamadefamilia, too!). Were you able to get there for an accepted students day (or are there any more?) or can you get there for a schedule your own day? The kids seem very friendly, and it felt like a place where a kid who has social interests that go beyond partying with substances might be happy.
Yes, she revisited again and had a good day there.
My D did a “custom” Kenyon visit last week and had some of the same issues, particularly about drinking. It does seem ubiquitous at every LAC, something I hadn’t been prepared for, nor the Greek culture which I tend to associate with big state universities. I have seen evidence, and gotten this from other Kenyon parents, that there are other things to do and other sub-cultures besides the party-harders, which is not a scene of any interest to my d, who is looking for people who are engaged and passionate about their creative and intellectual interests. So, now I am trying to expose her to what evidence we have of wider varieties of social life at Kenyon (which had been her first choice on our way to the visit) while re-evaluating the other options…giving her info and letting her decide which has been pretty much her MO up to now…just wish now weren’t so close to May 1. She’s unwilling to take more time out from senior year at her beloved high school (and rigorous academic classes and commitment to musical ensembles) for more visits, and at this point I’m inclined to think more visits will only produce more stress.
I am sympathetic to students who want to be in an environment with like minded people and to find social outlets that do not revolve around hard partying. However, I would like to point out that liking to drink/ party is not necessarily mutually exclusive with being “engaged and passionate about thei intellectual and creative interests…”
" who is looking for people who are engaged and passionate about their creative and intellectual interests."
There is definitely a degree of partying at 99% of colleges, small and large, with maybe a little more emphasis on it at remote schools where there is less to do in terms of cultural pursuits you might find near a big city.
However, I can assure you that at the selective colleges students are engaged and passionate regardless of whether they are partiers or abstainers. One does not preclude the other.
I think all school are cognizant of providing activities on weekends for those not wanting to party and your student will be able to find like minded friends to make their own fun if they don’t find anything officially organized to their liking. One good thing about LACs is most of them are generous with funding student initiated clubs, programs, events, etc. so if your children want to devise their own non-alcohol and non-weed related alternatives, they can make a pitch for financial support.
edit: cross posted w/ @momofzag