I was so happy to find out that I got accepted to Hamilton College, Colgate University, Lafayette College and Boston University (College of Art’s and Sciences) but I am having a dilemma of where to go.Any tips would be much appreciated!
A little bit about me:
Want to major in international affairs / journalism
I am looking for a college that has a nice atmosphere in which everyone is very accepting and friendly
I am not really into a huge party/frat/preppy scene which I hear dominates Colgate University
I visited Lafayette and loved it and the people there, but I’m not sure if their academics are as great as the other colleges
I’m visiting the rest of the places soon
They would also all cost around the same amount of 10,000 a year (not including loans as I don't want to take those out). Hamilton was slighter cheaper at 8,000 a year, and all of them offered me work-study
BU definitely stands out as being a huge city school, while the other three are very small and kind of in the middle of nowhere, so it will have a very different atmosphere. Colgate and Lafayette have the most Greek life of those schools. Colgate and Hamilton are probably the preppiest, but they are also probably the most academic.
You will know better once you visit. Colgate, though, has a relatively low percentage of kids on financial aid (I think 30-some percent): they are not need-blind, although they guarantee to meet need once admitted. What that means, I think, is that the majority of kids there are from upper middle-class to upper class families. That may be no problem. But it can be hard to be surrounded by rich kids, with an entirely different experience and expectation, if you yourself are watching the dollars. Little things, like going out for ice cream or getting presents for Secret Santa, can be awkward if you just don’t have the cash; bigger things, like having to work during break for tuition money, not spending money, can be weird, too.
Determining which of these schools is most academic is subjective. What you can quantify objectively is their degree of selectivity. In your group you have two schools that are “most selective,” Hamilton and Colgate, and two that are “more selective,” Lafayette and BU. I avoid relying too much on SAT score averages, but in the case of your colleges the differences are fairly significant. The range between the highest, Hamilton, and lowest, Lafayette, is 110 points. (BU and Lafayette are almost identical.) This difference may show up in the classroom. But, I wouldn’t allow this to override your personal impressions if you did sit in on a few classes.
On Hamilton, which I know the best:
– One of the top writing programs in the nation.
– No residential fraternities.
– A beautiful countryside location with easy access to the village of Clinton and the suburban area of New Hartford.
– A curriculum that is evenly balanced between physical sciences and math, humanities and the visual and performaning arts, and social sciences.
– A highly interesting Kirkland College legacy that sets the College apart from its peers.
– Bison have been spotted in the area. (From another thread. Don’t ask.) This would break any ties for me. But that’s obvious.
I’ve visited both Lafayette and Colgate recently. As I am also interested in international affairs, I was impressed by Lafayette’s new Center for Global Studies. The students I met there seemed very excited about the new center and all the great programming associated with it. Lots of opportunities for lunches/dinners and small group sessions with invited speakers. Within the past two years, Lafayette has hosted President Jimmy Carter, Tony Blair, Jane Goodall, etc. Both Philly and NYC are close (within 90 minutes). I found Colgate very isolated and it seemed much preppier. I just didn’t click with the students I met. Of course, this was my personal experience. Just thought I would share since we are looking at similar colleges.