<p>i was reading through my princeton review book and guilford seemed interesting to me, however i really don't know anything else about it except what the book says. it could possibly be a safety for me, so i was wondering if anyone knew anything about it, like regular life, students, strong programs, etc. Thanks!</p>
<p>Guilford is one of the schools profiled by Loren Pope in his "Colleges That Change Lives" book. The book is somewhat dated now, but it has a several pages long summary of Guilford. I would also check out the Colleges That Change Lives website <a href="http://www.ctcl.com%5B/url%5D">www.ctcl.com</a> -- should be a profile there as well. </p>
<p>Don't know a lot about it personally. Sorry.</p>
<p>My daughter also looked at Guilford as a possible safety, since Earlham, another quaker school is her first choice. We found it very useful to read the live journal community for Guilford and ask questions there(<a href="http://www.livejournal%5B/url%5D">www.livejournal</a> then do an interest search for Guilford). I have also talked with several people who know both schools well (Including our own Mini here on CC) and the general concensus seems to be that Guilford is a solid school but academically a few steps behind Earlham and schools like Beloit, Knox, Kenyon, etc.That said, I do think Guilford has some solid programs and would be a good choice as a safety for someone looking for a quirky and liberal student body. If you like Guilford, also check out Earlham, Beloit, and Hendrix as possible safeties/matches: I think they all attract very similar students and have a similar "quirky" feel.</p>
<p>I think Carolyn has pretty much hit it spot on. It is a school very strong in community service, with a hefty number of Bonner Scholars (folks who receive scholarships in exchange for their work in the community.) They have some interesting study abroad opportunities. The campus is quite nice (I have spoken there) and historic - the New Garden Friends Meeting was the remnant left behind when the anti-slavery Friends moved en masse to southern Ohio/Indiana, freed their slaves and became the backbone of the Underground Railroad (and formed Earlham); they were beset by both sides during the Civil War. They became the backbone of the College.</p>
<p>There are many students from New York/New England, and from the South, and among Friends (we actually have one member of our Meeting whose son attends, who is doing a combined study and community service program in Mexico next semester.) Their most famous relatively recent graduate is probably Lloyd B. Free, the basketball player, who, when he went pro, changed his legal name to World Be Free so that every time he scored two points the announcer would say, "Two points for World Be Free!</p>
<p>Peace and Global Studies are a big deal there. Oh, and they are BIG TIME if you are a golfer - I think they are the NCAA Div. III Golf Champions two years running. Academically, Earlham is stronger, though Guilford, as I remember, is a good bit larger.</p>
<p>Couple more things: there are lots of psychology and biology majors. Tuition/room and board are quite a bit lower than many LACs and uni.s. And, in contrast to many LACs, they are actually 50/50 male/female.</p>
<p>My ears just perked up at the community service deal. Unfortunately, it's way outside my region (New England/New York with PA and Jersey considered if really good). Still, that place looks great! I think it's free to apply there on-line, too. Love that.</p>
<p>My son looked at Guilford very seriously last year. We (read that as more Mom than son) researched it and liked what we learned. He applied under their "Not Your Ordinary Application" program which allowed him to submit a graded paper in lieu of an original essay (did I mention he is the king of the lazy boys?). He was accepted and given a very nice merit award. I was hoping he would like it better when we went to see it, but while I loved it, his gut was against it. Can't put my finger on what it was that he didn't like, but they certainly went all out to make him feel welcome and to provide a great campus visit. People were warm and friendly and the programs seemed very interesting. With him it was love at first sight at Beloit where he is very happy. I would agree that academics seem stronger at Beloit.</p>
<p>We toured Guilford with our daughter. One of my cousins had attended and liked it. However, D was sort of turned off by our tour guide -- he was on his fourth or fifth major and just didn't seem like a serious student. Also, it seemed kind of tired -- like it was rundown and they didn't have funds to improve their infrastructure. However, I've heard good things about it.</p>