<p>Can anyone (preferably current students or well informed parents) compare these schools for me? I am interested not only in the academics, but in the culture or "feel" of each place. I am also interested in Vassar and Hobart/Smith in relation to these others.</p>
<p>I just visited Wesleyan and Conn College a few days ago, so I'll give you a quick briefing on the "feel" I got from those --</p>
<p>Wesleyan is a very diverse (small) university, its campus is beautiful, and Middletown is very picturesque as well :) (I'm biased, it's my #1 choice lol) Its dorm rooms are also very nice (unlike Conn - I found the common rooms really dark and not at all comfortable, but maybe that's just me) and the 3 libraries are AMAZING! As you've probably heard, students are very self-motivated there are not at all "grade grubbers" who only care for achieving the A and not actually learning the material. I sat in on a class when school was in session, and after countless college visits where when a teacher asked a question no one would answer - Wesleyan had almost EVERYBODY volunteer their own opinion. Nobody is afraid to speak their mind, but in a positive nature. Campus is also beautiful, everyone seemed to generally care about what I thought! I know they are very strong in the premed program (90% med school admit rate) because I asked, and by next year they will have a 100% wireless campus (which impressed me a great deal, most of the other schools I saw didn't have this)</p>
<p>Conn College - I was only here for a short while, but the campus is beautiful as well. The "honor code" is strictly enforced here, and the food is amaaazing (I know, because I ate lunch there :P). However, I did not like the dorm rooms as much, nor the library as Wesleyan, however it was still pretty good compared to other schools (I didn't like Trinity dorm rooms at all - soo small and cramped) Overall, our tour guides were really nice people who also encouraged us to ask questions and whatnot... I enjoyed my visit :)</p>
<p>Hope that helped, even if a little bit!</p>
<p>I visited Bates about a year ago. It had the feel of a typical New England college. The few students I talked to then seemed very friendly; many came right up to us and asked us if we needed directions or had any questions. As far as academics go, I'd say it's pretty comparable to the other schools on your list. </p>
<p>If you're going to visit Bates, I'd highly suggest visiting Bowdoin and Colby as well. I went up to Maine with the intention of seeing Bates, and actually ended up liking Colby a little more.</p>
<p>Wesleyan and Vassar are probably most well-known as the more "liberally" bent of the schools and are often compared. (The downside of Vassar is the imbalance in the male/female ratio) I'd agree with precocious' stellar assessment of Wesleyan, but I'm also biased as a student there. Bates and Hamilton - and Conn. College, to a lesser extent - may have more of a "preppy" feel, but they're all fantastic liberal arts schools where you will get a wonderful individualized education. Wesleyan is probably better than the others if you're interested in sciences. Since I haven't been to the others, it's hard to compare... but if you have any questions about Wes specifically, feel free to PM me!</p>
<p>as a recent alum, i can answer any specific questions you have about conn. but as for a feel, i can summarize the student body as: liberal, bright, motivated, fun, laid back, involved, dedicated to making a difference, friendly, work hard play hard mantra.</p>
<p>I can only answer for Hamilton, Wesleyan, and Bates, but I visited all three. </p>
<p>Hamilton felt like it was very remote to me, no big cities nearby at all but really set in the country side. The campus used to be two campuses, two different colleges, and they merged so now they have two kind of disjointed-looking sides of the campus, seperated by a street. The students seemed friendly but in the class I sat in they seemed kind of apathetic and not motivated - no one was discussing, just reading stuff from the material. It had a great dining hall, though, and I actually noticed a lot of diversity.</p>
<p>Wesleyan was a beautiful campus, totally college-feeling. There seemed to be a lot of diversity, not just racial but also difference in students - some were very alternative looking, and some looked pretty preppy. There was a more activist bent to the campus, and I saw tons of different posters and things for different protests. Students seeemed a little bit pretentious to me, but that is obviously just an opinion.</p>
<p>I'm going to Bates, so thats a bias here, but its a very college-looking campus in kind of a crappy city in Maine. The students seem to be very friendly and open, and it had a very relaxed feeling, although it also has that preppy New England thing going on. Great food.</p>