Help me decide!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Hampshire College
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<p>Dear Awesome CC People,</p>

<p>I have the great fortune of deciding amongst several schools by May 1st. Most people have a few clear favorites at this point, but I’ve find myself extremely enthusiastic about no fewer than six different schools. I’ve visited them all but not at great times – for example, I was at Hampshire on a frigidly cold Friday morning (most people were asleep), and had to leave promptly after the tour because I had scheduled another tour at a school 2 hours away. I am considering all of the significant differences amongst them and still not finding any one that stands out above the others, so now I need to consider all of the little nuances. I was wondering if anyone, especially current students, alumni, or parents, could tell me a little about the following things (which normally wouldn’t make or break a college decision) in relation to Hampshire:</p>

<li> Professor-student interaction</li>
<li> How politically and socially activist are the students? I would assume the answer is “very,” but then again Hampshire students are so liberal that I could understand if they just left it at that.</li>
<li> Is it easy to take a lot of courses outside of your designed concentration (specifically for a science “major”)?</li>
<li> What’s the “feel” of the campus? Community-like? Friendly student body? Any clique-ishness? What are students like in general (in other words, what’s the “kind” of person who would feel comfortable at Hampshire)?</li>
<li> How is the administration, as far as efficiency and responsiveness? Are there a lot of problems with them?</li>
<li> How much time do people spend off campus, and what do they do there? How is the town of Amherst? Do Hampshire students get along well with other 5-college students, and are the professors at those schools usually willing to accept Hampshire students into their classes? Do other colleges’ students and professors think of Hampshire kids as a bit “weird” and is there any hostility between Hampshire and any of the other schools?</li>
<li> I play ‘cello, but I’m not an über-serious musician – what are the music opportunities like for string players like me? I’m specifically interested in orchestra and pit orchestra, though small ensemble groups would be better than nothing.<br></li>
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<p>Sorry if some of these questions are vague, but I want as much info as possible, so I’m avoiding specific questions! I would so much appreciate answers to any of these questions. Thank you in advance!!!</p>

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<p>I'm just a Dad of 3rd-year and entering students, so anything I would posit would be 2nd- or 3rd-hand. I would suggest going to Hampshire</a> College where there is a substantial archive of messages on the above topics. Go to the left-hand column and select one of the keywords. </p>

<p>I don't know where else you were accepted, so it would be hard to make comparisons. In general, it appears to me that prof/student interaction is better than at most schools. Our son corresponds or speaks regularly with a few of his profs who have been tremendous sources of help and guidance. His experience though has been uneven - a couple of his profs were clearly overburdened with too many student advisees and too much research/outside interests to serve their students well.</p>

<p>There are many sources for student activism, most notably a plethora of student-based activity organizations or clubs. As one could imagine, most of those are involved in left-of-center issues. It is relatively easy to start up a new organization and gain some start-up funding from the Student Leadership and Activities Finance Committee. There appears to be a degree of cynicism on the part of some students that Hampsters are bigger talkers than doers when it comes to activism. I don't know - I've seen some pretty impressive organization and action take place.</p>

<p>As you probably know, there are no 'majors' per se. During your first year, you meet with your advisor and make a plan to pursue a concentration. You will work out with your advisor(s) the most appropriate coursework that will meet your concentration goals. There should be plenty of room there to explore courses that are not strictly pertinent to your concentration. Many students have more than one interest and manage to combine them into their overall plan. For example, a student interested in physics and music learned how to design and construct some giant instruments that explored interesting physical properties.</p>

<p>My impression is that students indeed tend to move in smaller circles when on campus. This may be exacerbated by the 'mod' housing system, where groups of 6-12 students band together to apply to live in a particular modular apartment suite. This is great in terms of living with people with whom you are compatible, but it also makes it easy not to reach out to other students on campus. Hampshire probably attracts more than its share of individualists and colorful personalities, so you are going to be entertained wherever you go!</p>

<p>Students will probably tell you that the administration is not efficient or responsive, but I would tend to disagree. I think that many students do not realize the administration's financial, political, and educational limitations and do not understand why the President doesn't jump whenever they demand it. For example, some maintenance has been deferred for cost savings - students have portrayed administrators as being unresponsive when they don't immediately fix or renovate a structure that is in need of some work.</p>

<p>Most Hampsters spend a good amount of time off campus. There is a great free bus system that will take you to the other campuses, as well as Amherst, Hadley and Northampton. The latter is substantially larger than the other two and has more going on that is of interest to students. Amherst is a classic college town, with Amherst College in town, and UMass just up the road. I think that you will find that many students have friends in the other colleges, mostly from taking classes with them. The 5 Colleges tend to reserve a certain number of seats in most classes for outside students. It can be a challenge to get into popular and/or small classes, but if you persevere (an important Hampshire skill) you should get into most 5-college courses you desire. I don't know of any overt hostility, although students tend to pigeon-hole kids from each college into stereotypes. You may have heard the Scooby-Doo version: Hampshire=Shaggy, UMass=Scooby, MoHo=Daphne, Smith=Velma, Amherst=Fred. </p>

<p>Don't know much about the music scene, but I would bet that there are opportunities for you. I'm told that the % of Hampsters who play instruments is far above the average for SLACs.</p>

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<ol>
<li><p>Professor-student interaction is what you'd expect at a LAC (e.g. more of a mentor-mentee or future colleague relationship, hanging outside of class, dinners, giving out of phone numbers, confidant, etc). Students are on a first name basis with profs, the relationship's very informal, and since you mentioned the sciences, profs at least in the School of Natural Sciences have an office open-door policy. </p></li>
<li><p>I would classify the typical Hampshire as "politically aware" rather than as activists. The hardcore activists are more vocal, but they're definitely in the minority.</p></li>
<li><p>Yes, definitely.</p></li>
<li><p>I think the kind of students at Hampshire who thrive socially are those who feel comfortable in their own skin. Hampshire students are some of the friendliest students I've ever encountered. Whatever the school's faults, one thing that isn't lacking is the friendliness of the school community. As far as cliques, like anywhere people tend to gravitate towards like-minded individuals, but I don't think you'll ever feel purposefully excluded unless you have some personality defects...and even then.</p></li>
<li><p>The administration is okay. I haven't noticed anything unusual or extraordinary. The students love to complain about them though. Then again, Hampshire students I've noticed like to complain in general.</p></li>
<li><p>I think Hampshire has a closer relationship with the other colleges than any other school in the consortium partly because it has to as it relies more heavily on the other schools for resources. As long as you work hard in your classes, 5-college profs will be more than happy to have you. And as for getting along with 5-college students, that has more to do with the individual rather than with one's affiliation with Hampshire.</p></li>
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<p>I keep getting booted off from CC so I'll continue this in another post...</p>

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<ol>
<li>There are a ton of things to do in the 5-college area. Northampton has more going for it than Amherst, and it's more of the place to hang out. There are a ton of great restaurants with a diverse selection of cuisines; movie theaters that show mainstream as well as more obscure foreign and indie flicks; some great art galleries; lectures; museums; plays and concerts; and the other colleges frequently advertise their events in each other's schools. If you ever feel bored, it's probably your own fault.</li>
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<p>If you like the outdoors, there are a plethora of dirt-cheap opportunities with the OPRA program e.g. whale watching, hiking at night, boulder climbing, kayaking, mountain biking, skiing, etc. </p>

<p>Student parking, for a reasonably fee that you pay for the semester or year, isn't an issue and having a car, though not necessary, will allow more frequent trips to NYC over the weekend or Boston. Hartford is the closest major city (~45 minutes away). If you don't have a car, you can always ride with a friend or take a Peter Pan bus to NYC or Boston. The bus station's conveniently located in the center of town. </p>

<ol>
<li>If want to play in an orchestra, you will probably have to join one of the other college's music groups, which is certainly doable. I would ask a music professor for more about this.</li>
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<p>I hope this helped. I'd be happy to answer more questions if you have any more.</p>