Thanks everyone for the thoughtful responses! I toured Amherst this summer and I didn’t really like it. It felt too prestige focused than what I’d like. And my sister goes to Carleton and I love it and have spent a lot of time there. So I think I’d be happy there or somewhere similar so it’s helpful to hear that about Whitman having a similar vibe!
Why do you think St. Olaf and Pomona are less suited? Thanks for your thoughts
1 Like
I haven’t visited any larger universities! That’s a good point and maybe something I could think about. I’ve looked at a bunch of the schools on my list (Carleton, Grinnell, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Oberlin, Smith, Mt. Holyoke, Clark, Lawrence, Bard) but I haven’t had a chance to go out to the West coast or anything yet.
You have done such a great job on this so far! I love that you organized them by acceptance rates. You are well positioned to see a lot of acceptances based on your accomplishments and your thoughtful planning.
Good luck!
5 Likes
It seems like Pomona and Scripps (which are in different admissions buckets) seem to meet almost every category you name – except the weather. You are going to get much cold in SoCal. Seems like you’d have a chance at merit money at Scripps (which would feel good and be useful even if your family can afford to pay full freight.) At the 5Cs, you can major at any of the colleges if your home campus doesn’t have what you want, which seems ideal for a student looking to explore their interests. And the consortium means you have the benefit of a small (very small) home campus community nestled within a community of 5000 students.
1 Like
Did you rule out Reed for any reason besides the liberal environment? It seems to check all of your boxes besides what I mentioned. Also if you are ideally selecting 10 schools to apply to why not just take the 9 with asterisks and then add one more you feel really passionate about.
I took Pomona off because of the weather and the fact that the Claremont schools are clustered together so I didn’t think it had the same small campus feel of the others. The Pomona alums I know never took advantage of the consortium, either; that might just be them, but made me wonder how much of a plus it turns out to be for most.
At the risk of insulting Olies, the St. Olaf student body as a whole always struck me as less cosmopolitan and less intellectually curious (albeit still bright and talented) as compared to Carleton’s. If you played clarinet and were a hockey cheerleader or played tennis, I might lean more toward St. Olaf. The ultimate players go to Carleton. Mind you, I am making subtle distinctions based on personal impressions.
Have you scrolled through Niche to read students’ anecdotal experiences and impressions of each school? Obviously, your own opinions might not be the same as mine or any other individual’s, but by reading through a lot of them, you might start to sense some themes and get a vibe of each place.
Congratulations on your hard work and success! It looks like you are tackling a big list and that equals more work, but only you can decide if that dilutes the quality of your essays. I have two girls, one at Amherst College which some have suggested you apply to and I think that is marvelous advice, the other at Williams College which has Open Curriculum like a few of the schools on your list.
My Amherst College girl applied to several low admit schools and had great results, but she also wanted to be in NE and there are just so many outstanding schools that made it hard to cut any. When she started working on all the supplemental essays, she decided to reevaluate her list and that helped her.
My Williams College girl applied to one just like she kept telling us would happen- thank. the. Lord. that it worked out for her lol! She is a first year and applied ED.
My advice is if money is not in question, you have a bit of time to figure out which would be a dream to attend and apply ED, but knowing that there are others just like it that will be dreamy too, if that doesn’t work out like you first hope.
One additional piece of advice is take a look at their supplemental questions. Some will be quirky and fun, some will be serious and searching. The ones that stir in you the best response may be the ones that are easier to write and even maybe the schools that are a good fit for your personality. Best wishes to you!
3 Likes
I absolutely get what you are referring to about Amherst. Some of the Northeastern schools can have a “aren’t we privileged” vibe that is less present at Carleton and Grinnell. I would have to say that the Oberlin bakery incident, and the role that the leadership at the college played in it, would turn me off going there.
You seem to be looking for schools that feel right, and not just be looking at rankings. Good for you!
4 Likes
I think you have a good list. I wouldn’t put energy into cutting it down, per se, right now.
Rather, I would look at Early Action deadlines and look at which ones you may want to meet, as that’s coming up quickly.
And then, I would sort your list in order of priority - which schools in each category are the most important to you.
From there, I would sort what order to do the applications in, and set up a timeline for getting them done. Since your lowest-priority schools will be at the end, you can decide then whether you still want to do those applications. Either your energy and interest in those schools will hold up, or cutting the list will take care of itself.
It’s fortunate that you don’t have cost limitations. I wonder, though, how much you think you will be swayed by merit aid, if you end up with scholarship offers. (This could be a reason to keep MoHo and Scripps on the list, for example, although Smith has merit potential too.)
4 Likes
Is Richmond too warm? The campus does lean Progressive, but you also get a good cross-section of different views. The most popular undergraduate major by far is business, over one in three. However, they have a program that I believe is unique. It is their Jepson School of Leadership. For a student that wants a diverse course of study, it may be of interest. Here is a link. Good luck.
1 Like
Your list is already long - so I’m hesitant to confuse matters with yet another suggestion, however, many of your points:
fit Barnard College of Columbia University in NYC.
It is unique in that it is a women’s college that is fully integrated in a co-ed University, essentially sharing everything with the other CU colleges, except dorms – including courses, libraries, dining halls, clubs,…
So you get the best of both worlds.
Going to Barnard is not like attending a 3,000 student LAC. Going to Barnard is like attending a 30,000 student university with a dorm for women only.
2 Likes
Actually, it’s like attending a <3,000 student LAC, with its own, gated campus, separate and across the street from the University main campus, with it’s own, predominantly female administration and faculty, library, dining facilities, public-safety and health services. Students also value the frequently smaller class-sizes vs. many equivalent courses at CC.
However, rather than being isolated/caged-in somewhere, students from either side of Broadway can and do enjoy each other’s facilities. All tenured Barnard professors are also tenured at Columbia University.
Naturally, for someone who is seeking a strictly no-males environment, Barnard is not the best choice. Dito for someone adverse to a college in a major metropolis, which implies “city life” and being immersed in a diverse population.
However, neither was voiced as a concern by the OP - hence my suggestion.
2 Likes
I have thought about Barnard! It seems like a cool school but I’m not sure if I’m quite cut out for New York City or the Ivy League. 
1 Like
Googled “Oberlin bakery incident” thanks to the post by 57special. Wow!
3 Likes
Barnard is a wonderful place, but it is no more Ivy League than Wellesley. But it is pretty spectacular.
Ditto what others have said. You’d definitely be a competitive candidate for any of the colleges mentioned so far. Columbia (Barnard) tends to go in and out of fashion depending on how Americans feel about big cities. Right now, cities and cultural enrichment and all the internships at their doorsteps are a big draw for college applicants.
1 Like
If you’re just using “Ivy League” as a synonym for “cut-throat competitive”, then this is indeed not the atmosphere at Barnard.
But, just to avoid perpetuating a popular myth here on College Confid / instill facts:
Columbia University literally is in the Ivy League (About the Ivy League - Ivy League). Consequently all Columbia University athletes (no matter from which of their four undergraduate colleges, one of which is Barnard) do compete in the Ivy League against the other 7 Ivy League universities.
Academically, all students attend the same classes from the same professors no matter which side of Broadway a course happens to be held that semester, and once all the students graduate together, they all receive degrees from Columbia University.
(As a bonus, Barnard also holds a smaller, more intimate, ceremony prior.)
2 Likes
Which has led to a fair amount of snark from some of the Columbia kids. There was a lot being written about it during the time my girls were figuring out where they wanted to attend. During our tour it came up in conversation more than once. From a NYT article in 2012 when Obama dared to choose to speak at Barnard and not his alma mater, Columbia:
But many students also conceded that the episode offered a glimpse into long-running resentments between the schools that are usually hidden from view. Some commenters wrote that Barnard classes are easier and that their own diplomas are devalued by the fact that Barnard’s also say “Columbia.” Barnard’s defenders refuted such claims, arguing that college ranking systems underrate their school because they do not take into account the resources available through Columbia.
One of my girls said what was on my mind when discussing this: seems like a great place and has a lot to offer, but the “we’re Columbia +” line felt a little bit off-putting … reminded us from back home where you sometimes hear UW Bothell kids calling themselves “UW” students, pretty much counting on people assuming it’s UW Seattle (the ‘real’ UW). The whole thing doesn’t come off well IMO. I don’t know the precise history of the association, but it’s like they went 1/2 way in following what Pembroke and Radcliffe did. It’s either Columbia or it’s not. The kids at BM and Haverford can and do take classes at Penn; but you never hear anyone from those schools trying to make it sound like they “went to Penn.” It’s fine to say you use the facilities and take classes there when it makes sense to do so; but this ‘neither fish nor fowl’ business isn’t great marketing from where I stand.
3 Likes
IDK, when someone smart enough to be a 3.8+ full IB kid applying to these kinds of schools tells me cost is not an issue, I myself don’t feel the need to conduct an audit. The tuition and R&B for these places is easy enough for a 9 year old to look up. If she’s glanced at those figures, can multiply by 4 and knows there will be a few more costs not reflected in that calculation, then I’m willing to risk assuming she’s talked to her parents and means what she says.
FWIW, I think the idea that only families with private planes who drive $200,000 cars is missing a whole swath of families (like mine) who were able and willing to pay the freight.
If they don’t say that ‘cost is not an issue’, then by all means it’s responsible to point these things out.
12 Likes