<p>ive heard happens to be filled wit extremely preppy stuck up rich kids....is this true? and also what is the academic life and and social scene like?</p>
<p>^I've heard the same. I've also heard (from a LOT of people) that Hamilton has a huge drinking/drug using culture. Is there validity in this?</p>
<p>From what I understand - mind you, I have not been to Hamilton yet, I'm just a very devoted forum reader/applying there for Fall 09 - Hamilton is NOT as preppy as people say. People are supposedly very nice and laid-back, and not snooty at all. Accepting, even. Drinking is also apparently prevalent, but I haven't heard of anything about drugs. And, apparently the attitude is that if you don't want to, just don't do it.
Again, I've never been there. I'm applying there [EDII] and my friend's cousin goes there. He apparently loves it.</p>
<p>Any rural LAC is going to have a drinking scene. I don't think Hamilton is worse than most. My D's best friend is a senior at Hamilton, and she has had a wonderful time there. I think she drinks a bit, yes, but not binge drinking. She is involved with many, many activities at the school.</p>
<p>Preppy? A bit. There are frats and sororities but there are not frat houses, so it's more like clubs. It's preppier than my D's school, but I was just there last weekend, and I definitely did not find the students snooty or stuck up. They were really nice, laid back kids.</p>
<p>There is a lot of drinking in certain groups, and no drinking in others. They did a poll recently (which they love to quote), and the results were that a third of campus drinks heavily (10+ drinks a week), a third drink moderately (4-10), and a third drink less than that.</p>
<p>as for preppy stuck-up rich kids, we do have then. then again, they have them at all schools. i visited a friend at a state school in colorado and they were there too. a fair amount of people on campus do have plenty of money, however very few flash it. it is preppy meaning LL Bean, not bright pink juicy tracksuits. i think if you want to be a preppy stuck-up rich kid, you will find company, but if you want to completely avoid that scene, it isn't hard. and i have yet to meet someone who is honestly just not friendly.</p>
<p>I hail from Portland, OR, where strangers greet you on the street for short conversations, so my standards of friendliness and laid-back-ness are tremendously high. That said, the reason I chose Hamilton over other schools (Middlebury, Bowdoin, Colgate) is that, basically, everyone is much nicer. </p>
<p>It's true. Any top college is going to have a significantly wealthy student body, but what matters is whether or not that wealth factors in to the attitudes and behavior of the students. In Hamilton's case, it usually does not. Everyone is invited to every social event, everyone is welcome everywhere, and exclusivity is not a reigning factor in the social life on the Hill.</p>
<p>It's also true that Hamilton could be a lot more diverse. But, in comparison, it's the best of the bunch. If you want a small, liberal arts college in the Northeast, get ready to meet a lot of rich white kids. I would say that Hamilton significantly departs from the standard stereotype-- or at least more than other comparable schools.</p>