So I’m a political science major looking for a college to make my home… and a couple of offers came my way. I’m having a really tough time deciding what I want to go with. Here’s a quick rundown for ya:
Top Contenders
Kenyon - full ride.
OSU - full tuition via Morrill Excellence Scholarship, but not room+board.
Unlikely
GW - 20k scholarship, no word on financial aid yet
UMiami - Holy $30k left to pay a year, Batman.
UDayton - Holy $20k left to pay a year, Batman.
Awaiting Further Info
Georgetown - Coming by April 1st
Reed College - Coming by April 1st
I think it’s really gonna be down to OSU and Kenyon, but I was really disappointed with the lack of grants from OSU, which ended up bringing the cost of attendance up to about 15k a year… so… I dunno. So I guess… any advice?
I can’t believe you’re even asking. Wow. Kenyon is FANTASTIC and better for political science than tOSU (smaller, interactive classes, rigorous writing/reading, motivated classmates, an environment that’ll be very supportive of your goals…)
OSU is an entirely reputable mega-university, but (dependent on one’s definition) not one with even remote “elite status” (Buckeye football is great, but irrelevant in this matter). Kenyon, on the other hand, is an elite (or, at a minimum, near-elite LAC). Candidly, there’s no comparison in their prestige and stature. Of course, for most individuals, the real issue is Kenyon’s affordability; however – you lucky dog – the Kenyon fill-ride makes it makes it BOTH better and cheaper.
Go to Kenyon, thank Heaven multiple times daily for your blessings, and don’t think twice about this decision.
@redpoodles : I too was wondering if this was a humblebrag - “Oh I got into this amazing elite university with a full ride but I was wondering if I should attend a mid-tier state flagship without a full ride?”
However I figured OP’s probably in a “normal” (non-cc, non-uppermiddle class, non academic) environment where people have heard more about tOSU because of its sheer size, local influence, and football team, than about an elite but much smaller university that’s mostly known to the general public for swimming champions and John Green (if that.)
OP: Kenyon is the real deal.
When you say “difficult to get involved in things”, what do you mean?
Kenyon has lots of money (endowment) and students lack for nothing. Not only won’t you find it harder to “get involved” than at tOSu, but it’ll be in fact easier since the whole university is dedicated to undergraduate students.
Kenyon, no ifs ands or buts. It’s a great school where you will receive a solid education. Congrats on the full ride! Make sure you keep up the grades so you can maintain that scholarship.
@MYOS1634 Ha yes, I wasn’t intending this to be a humblebrag. I was rejected by most of my dream schools and applied to Kenyon because a friend of mine goes there (free application + waivers and such made things easier for me overall).
I come from a fairly average middle class family-- both my parents attended community colleges (one spent some time at a state school) so the idea of getting a full ride at a prestigious LAC is very unfamiliar to them-- and was totally unexpected by me!
I live in Ohio, so OSU is quite familiar to me indeed. I suppose to be more specific (I know, “things” was so horribly vague) I meant like political activities, student government, assorted other clubs and events that one would typicall expect to see on a large campus like OSU. I was fortunate enough to visit Kenyon once, and I guess I still didn’t come away with a really good feel for what life would be like.
I have several friends who have been encouraging me to pick OSU over a place like Kenyon because of things like internship opportunities and networking that they believe won’t be available to me at a smaller school.
So I guess, my real question is this: are the benefits of attending a large state school like OSU really capable of outweighing a LAC like Kenyon? Especially in the context of someone looking to get involved in government and politics?
The opportunities you’ll get from Kenyon are superb.
Can you afford to visit Kenyon for an overnight?
Email them if you can’t afford the bus fare, explain your situation. They do “fly ins” for lower income students, so they should be able to offer you a “bus in”
No, not really. In fact, for example, it will be far easier to get involved in student government at Kenyon College than at OSU. Kenyon has fewer students (less competition) and almost none know each other from high school. By the end of your sophomore year, you will probably at least know everybody’s face (and if you have really good political instincts you will know their names too).
If you want to network with the OSU students, then go there on the weekends for parties (I am not joking). If you were from, say, Nebraska and wanted to enter politics there, then this might be an issue. But your home is Ohio, Kenyon is in Ohio, and OSU is an hour away from Kenyon.
Received my rejection letter from Georgetown today in the mail… which is making this decision seemingly much easier…
Thank you all for the kind words and advice! I really do appreciate it haha, especially given how nervous I am about the whole college process. After poking around on here I’ve realized how incredibly lucky I am to have received such an offer (one that I personally am still totally baffled by, given that I do not consider myself academically fantastic by any stretch of the imagination).
Any other advice or comments are welcome, of course.
My goodness haha. Thank you all for your comments. I actually had a chance to visit Ohio State over the last two days and even though I really did love the area, their financial aid package was far less generous than Kenyon. On that basis alone I’m leaning strongly towards committing.
And @TheDidactic I’m not sure? Just “lucky” I guess I got to hear back about it soon.
But yes. I plan to visit one of the Kenyon “Thumbs-Up” overnight events in the next few weeks to solidify this!
Wow. Kenyon is FANTASTIC and better for political science than tOSU (smaller, interactive classes, rigorous writing/reading, motivated classmates, an environment that’ll be very supportive of your goals…)