<p>hahah, that came off as really arrogant. Sorry - just stating my plan of action as plainly as I can.. ; )</p>
<p>I would strike off UNC, Oberlin, and Dartmouth is sorta questionable... in the middle of no where, and you already have some top notch schools on your list. In this case I would think Brown > Dartmouth since Brown is so laid back and stress-free, and that's one of the qualities you are looking for. Also, it's in a great town and puts more emphasis on UG than its peer schools.</p>
<p>Based on the qualities you've listed, I think you would like Northwestern, Yale, and Rice the best. Those schools seem like they would really be fits for you.</p>
<p>Thanks! Isn't Dartmouth a little bit easier to get into than Brown, though? UNC seems to be in the same fate as Oberlin now. I think I can get into probably one of Rice, NW, UMich, so I don't think I really need another school when I don't really LOVE it.</p>
<p>So far (this is incredibly exciting - thanks guys!!):
1. Yale
2. Brown
3. Princeton
4. Stanford
5. Harvard (reluctantly..)
6. Rice
7. Dartmouth
8. Northwestern
9. UMich
10. Emory..</p>
<p>Anyone have suggestions on some "not Ivy but still high (or higher) quality schools on par with Rice/Darthmouth/etc or above" ? :D</p>
<p>It's down to 10 now, but I feel insecure about a "gap" between the HIGH impossibles and reasonably possibles..</p>
<p>Have you considered LACs, or are they not your type of school? If you wouldn't mind going to one, Williams and Amherst, etc, are excellent schools. While LACs can't be compared to the Ivies, they're ranked in the top twenty private colleges or something like that by USNWR.</p>
<p>Working mostly off of stereotypes, I’ll try to profile the remaining ten colleges that fit the criteria your provided in the first post…</p>
<p>I’d say Brown and Dartmouth are the most laid-back. Of course they’re very competitive because of the ivy status, but out of those on the list they seem to fit well. Although I’m not sure which colleges would be best for a “multitasker” I’d say that it’s a skill which you may put to use very well at any school : ). For sociable un-preppy schools I’d go with Stanford, Dartmouth, and Emory. They all have the ‘scene’ that some of the other schools (Yale, Princeton, Harvard) have but without the preppy element you mentioned. For medium/large classes I’d go with Brown, Harvard, Dartmouth, Northwestern, and Emory as they all have about 7/1 student/teacher ratios. The only school on your list that you might consider “out in the cornfields” would be Dartmouth, but I think that it and Princeton have the strongest sense of community (two highest rates of alumni giving). As far as the music environment I’m not as knowledgeable, but I do think that Yale, Stanford, Northwestern, Harvard, and Emory are frequented by bands a lot because of their location/appeal. Good luck!</p>
<p>Good list!</p>
<p>You may want to consider Smith College. Smith has a wonderful, supportive sense of community. Its known for academic excellence and small classes. Very good music opportunities as well. Students are provided with terrific advising and mentoring, and available, committed professors. </p>
<p>Because Smith is not inundated with graduate students, students have a number of opportunities to do research projects with faculty or independently. Also, students win many national and international awards -- 17 Fulbright Fellowships in 2008 and 14 in 2007! </p>
<p>Smith is part of a 5-college consortium (with Amherst, Hampshire, Mt. Holyoke and Univ Mass). You can take classes at any. There is a free shuttle bus to get to classes at the other campuses.</p>
<p>Here are some facts: <a href="http://www.smith.edu/collegerelations/SpeakingofSmith-0414.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.smith.edu/collegerelations/SpeakingofSmith-0414.pdf</a></p>
<p>How about University of Virginia?</p>
<p>UVA might be out because of it's large size, and because she already has two publics that she will most likely get into. Although it is worth looking into. Maybe she would rather replace UMich or UNC with UVA.</p>
<p>Strong sense of community, music, intellectual yet laid back, no cornfields... if you're rethinking Oberlin you might want to consider replacing it with Vassar, Wesleyan or Haverford.</p>
<p>I wouldn't drop Duke.
If you want to do other things besides getting wasted- you can!
There is a substance free dorm freshman year.
Most people I know who chose to live in the substance free dorm enjoyed freshman year a lot- and didn't feel the pressure to drink.</p>
<p>froshdad - thanks! I considered Wesleyan too, but (I don't really remember WHAT it was, exactly) I for some reason took it off my list. But I am reconsidering it for it to be back on my list..</p>
<p>Mondo - that's exactly the problem. The fact that there even IS a substance free dorm kinda "proves" the prevalence of drinking all around...while I feel that kind of dorm can provide a non-drinking environment, I think I would be unconfortable just being IN a heavy drinking school. Again, however, I am reconsidering Duke too. Although the big athletics and drinking part doesn't really appeal to me, everything else about it seems so nice! : )</p>
<p>I don't remember who mentioned other LACs (sorry, it's on the other page, heh), but I don't think I like the idea of LAC. I know I have/had Oberlin and Emory, but I think I want a more "vibrant" university feel.</p>
<p>I lived on UNC campus for a couple years and still live in Chapel Hill; it's extremely suburban and really kind of hard to get anywhere without a car, but you might like it. My only cautions are that A) it's pretty preppy as colleges go, particularly the girls, and B) its campus is basically one huge construction zone.</p>
<p>elwoodblues - thanks! that's definitely something I didn't know before.</p>
<p>You might want to drop Dartmouth. Not only is it in the middle of nowhere, but the social life revolves around drinking. Since you stated that you wouldn't want to attend a heavy drinking school, Dartmouth probably wouldn't be the right choice.</p>
<p>Tufts has an amazing music program (including a world music section...I play violin so I visited their music department before applying). Also, it's in a great area, with so much to do.</p>
<p>electricalstorm - yes, that's EXACTLY what I'm avoiding, so in spite of the great focus on undergrad, locale+drinking kicks Dartmouth off the list. I think I'll choose one between Tufts and Emory, though I very well might end up with both on my list.</p>
<p>Anyone care to argue for either one? ;)</p>
<p>PS. I LOVE this part of CC. I think this section? topic? fine - thingy is CC is the most supportive and informational. Oh, the joys of the internet.</p>
<p>
[quote]
elwoodblues - thanks! that's definitely something I didn't know before.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Haha, no problem. Yeah, the construction zones are so permanent that the present AND future ones are on the campus maps! (And honestly, most of the new buildings are extremely ugly.)</p>
<p>elwoodblues - this is the time when I lament that I wish I was born 10 years later and NOT in this peak of competition and time of major constructions for MANY of the schools trying to renovate old buildings. Sheesh. ;D</p>
<p>Tufts is really on the rise and I think it is now stronger in most dimensions than Emory. I don't think its ratings have caught up with its reality. It is in a Boston suburb (in-close and relatively densely populated as opposed to suburb/exurb) and you can get into Harvard Square or Boston by public transit. I have been to Atlanta a few times and from what I can tell, Boston is an order of magnitude more interesting than Atlanta. No competition. I'm sure others have more information about Emory and Atlanta, but based upon what I know, I would choose Tufts over Emory without hesitation.</p>