Grinnell vs. Connecticut College

After being wait listed at all four of my top schools (Bates, Kenyon, Skidmore, and Carleton), I am deciding between Grinnell and Connecticut College for where I will go next year.

I have yet to visit Grinnell—but am planning on attending an admitted students day in a few weeks—and have a few concerns about the school. From what I’ve read, its seems like an awesome place, but I’m worried that it might be too isolated. Though I live in rural upstate New York, I am used to being able to escape to NYC as often as I like. Is there enough to do on campus so that the students don’t get bored? Also, are the students all really nerdy/quirky? I lean more towards the artsy/crunchy side, but want to go to a school that has a good balanced mix of people (hipster, preppy, mainstream, etc.)

In terms of Conn, I visited last spring but only have a vague memory of it. It too seems like a good school, but I am worried that it might be too preppy. Do most students come from New England boarding schools? I am worried that it may not be diverse enough for me, and maybe a bit too sports oriented. Also, what is Conn’s reputation in terms of academics? Is Grinnell really an academically superior school? This is something that is important to me.

All in all, I would be happy to go to either of these schools, and these are only minor concerns. Since I don’t know what I want to study in college, I am not looking for any specific programs, but hope to go to a school that has strong visual arts classes—I believe this is true of both Grinnell and Conn. Lastly, what is the party scene like at each of these schools?

Don’t you have to decide by 5/1? Ideally you would revisit both schools, as I believe they are quite different. Check out some of the recent threads in this section, particularly the one about visiting days, for some insights into Grinnell.

As for isolation, yes, you need to drive through and hour’s worth of cornfields to get to Grinnell from Des Moines or Iowa City/Cedar Rapids, but the town of Grinnell is quite pleasant and the campus is rich in resources and activities. Kids do go to nearby cities for concerts and such occasionally, but don’t need to.

collegedata.com has some basic stats that can give you some basis for comparison along various lines. Grinnell is more diverse and its kids have on average higher stats, but look for the things that matter specifically to you – majors, activities, etc.

Some very recent impressions of Grinnell here:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/grinnell-college/1985584-grinnell-what-is-admitted-student-day-like.html#latest

This very old thread … updated recently … is still accurate.
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/grinnell-college/438138-why-grinnell.html#latest

Oh, and Grinnell is not dominated by any one type. Overall impression is “student casual.”

If you need a large city, Chicago, Milwaukee, the Twin Cities, St. Louis and KC are all about 4-5 hours from Grinnell – perfect for a short road road trip. But honestly, Des Moines and Cedar Rapids/Iowa City are probably enough “city” for most of your needs. Events come to all three as well as Davenport/Quad Cities (less than 2 hrs away).

If you need to see water, Minnesota and Wisconsin are full of lakes and the Mississippi River is there at Davenport, and Lake Michigan can be accessed all along the eastern coast of WI (Door County is nice…) down to Chicago.

Grinnell is an elite LAC.

Conn College is the only Nescac that doesn’t have a football team, so you can argue that it is the least sporty of that bunch.

Just realized this message was a (possibly verbatim) repost of a message from a month ago:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/1976138-grinnell-vs-connecticut-college.html#latest

Does than mean you have now visited Grinnell and/or Conn College @veryanxiousapplicant? What did you think?

Since you were initially interested in Carlton, among others, you may also be interested in this thread:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/1986812-carleton-vs-grinnell-w.html

Any decision, @veryanxiousapplicant ?

@porcupine98 Hi! I actually ended up being accepted off of the wait list at Skidmore, and sent my deposit there. I was also accepted off of Kenyon’s wait list, but decline their offer in favor of Skidmore. At the time, I was super confident in my decision, as I have always felt that Skidmore would be a great fit for me, but now I’m kind of second-guessing myself because Kenyon has a better academic reputation. Any thoughts on this?

You should go with fit. But I agree that Kenyon has a better academic reputation, at least historically. It is the most beautiful school I’ve ever seen. Just depends on your gut reaction and which school draws you more. Never been to Skidmore but people seem to like it. People who go to Kenyon seem to develop very close friendships and tie to the place. Probably also depends on what you are interested in studying.And reputation isn’t everything either; it sounds like you picked the right school based on fit and while it’s normal to second guess yourself, you shouldn’t!

If you have already committed to Skidmore, I would say full steam ahead, don’t look back. Buyer’s remorse is very common and every year at this time students are second guessing their choices.

Saratoga is a great town, and you will find your way. Enjoy it!

@veryanxiousapplicant: Moot point now - you’ve committed to Skidmore. What matters is where YOU will thrive, and if that’s Skidmore, you’re going to be fine.

Trust your initial judgment and don’t look back. Skidmore and Kenyon are academic peers. but Skidmore has a broader range of majors, including education and something like kinesiology, as best I recall, plus the arts programs are superb, and the town of Saratoga Springs has plenty to offer. Kenyon is a very specific kind of school, known for the Kenyon Review and the theater program. The college is bigger than the village around it. Some love it, others don’t. You have the good fortune to be admitted to Skidmore, where you feel a better fit. Trust it, and move on. Congrats!

Thank you everybody!! I’m starting to feel better about Skidmore, as i know in my heart of hearts that it really is a good fit for me and that I’ll be happy there.