Help weeding out midwestern LACs

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hey everyone, I plan on visiting midwestern LACs (+ one in western PA) this fall, but due to finance issues, I most likely will not be able to visit all the ones I would like to. So far my list includes: Allegheny College, College of the Wooster, Earlham College, Lake Forest College, Beloit College, Knox College.</p>

<p>In order to shortern my list, I would like to see peoples opinions of each college by listing them in a number of categories (not doing this to "rank" each college, but instead to find my best fits). Basically all of these categories require you to use personal opinion. Anyone who has visited, attends or feels they are knowledgeable about any of these colleges please help me out. Any additional comments about the colleges are welcomed.
In the bold are the titles, just use those when making the lists, below them are my explanations.</p>

<p>Overall academic quality
From "best" to "worst", please.</p>

<p>Selectivity
From least selective to most selective. I am actually trying to find a good safety on this trip.</p>

<p>Student ideology
From Liberal to Conservative. I don't need a campus full of liberals, but I know I will feel uncomfortable in a school with a conservative feel.</p>

<p>Campus beauty
From most beautiful to least beautiful. I prefer colleges with lots of older buildings opposed to modern looks.</p>

<p>Quality of the library
From "best" to "worst". Not only based on the number of books, but also on outer apearance of the library, comfort of chairs / atmosphere, computer access, etc. I'm the type of person who is easily distracted if studying where non-academic activities are going on, so a library is important to me.</p>

<p>Financial Aid<br>
From "most" to "least". Mostly based on need-based, please.</p>

<p>Popularity of the Greek scene
From least popular to most pouplar. Not only based on % of students going greek, but also on the exclusiveness and elitism some greek systems display.</p>

<p>Grad school success
From most success to least success. I am especially interested in law school or humanities/social scienes PhD programs.</p>

2

<p>You can do some of the research yourself. Google the Common Data Set for each school and section C will give you the selectivity while section H2 will give you the aid information.</p>

3

<p>These are all in my opinion:
**
Overall Academic Quality:**</p>

<p>You cannot go wrong with any of these schools.</p>

<p>I would say Beloit, Knox and Earlham are the most challenging. Alleghany and Wooster come next. Lake forest is not exactly what I consider high academic quality, from what I have heard and read.</p>

<p>**
Overall Selectivity:**</p>

<p>All schools are very self-selective and have comparable students to much more selective east coast elites.</p>

<p>Knox (Average ACT 29)
Beloit (Average ACT 28)</p>

<p>Earlham (Average ACT 26)
Allehgany (Average ACT 26)</p>

<p>Lake Forest (Average ACT 25)
Wooster (Average ACT 25)
**
Student Ideology**</p>

<p>All are extremely liberal and accepting.
**
Campus Beauty**</p>

<p>I have only seen Beloit, Lake Forest and Knox.</p>

<p>Knox is least attractive, Lake Forest is nice, but I find Beloit’s campus beautiful styled after a traditional northeastern LAC.
**
Quality of Library:**</p>

<p>Knox has a very beautiful Library. It feels like something out of Oxford. Most beautiful LAC library. Wifi and good study areas.</p>

<p>Beloit’s library is nice, great for studying and also has Wi-fi. Beloit students can get library cards at UW-Madison’s library too (Madison is like 45min away)
**
Financial Aid**</p>

<p>Knox’s FA is good and will work hard to make the school affordable.</p>

<p>Beloit’s FA is outstanding. It is slightly need sensitive but pledges to meet 100% of student need with packages that contain less then 20% (usually around 10%) loans. Has a lot of merit aid too, that is not difficult to get.
**
Greek Scene:**</p>

<p>Greek scene at Knox and Beloit is present but 100% nonexclusive. Parties are attended by everyone and there is no sense of being “better”. Beloit has 3 frats and 2 sororities. Knox has like 6 or 7 total greek houses. Neither dominate social scene. LACs greek life is very different from large universities.
**
Grad School Success:**</p>

<p>Students at all schools will experience fantastic grad school success. Wooster, Beloit, Knox and Earlham are especially known for intellectual-ness. Beloit is in top 20 LACs for students who go on to get PhDs.</p>

4

<p>I have only visited 2 of these campuses. Allegheny is beautiful. It is one of the oldest schools in the country and has lovely older buildings. It also has some very nice new ones as well. The grounds are very well maintained. Politically, it is middle of the road. I would characterize it as neither liberal nor conservative. Financial aid is good. Greek life is present - sororities have rooms, frats have houses - but it doesn’t dominate. People are comfortable which ever way they choose to go. Grad school acceptance rates are quite good.</p>

5

<p>Might look at dumping LFC and adding Lawrence–a very good but lower profile LAC.</p>

6

<p>If you have the stats, Kenyon may also be worth a look, along with Oberlin.</p>

<p>Personally, I would also heavily look into Kalamazoo, as well, for their stellar programs and reputation without much of the selectivity (on par with Earlham selectivity-wise)</p>

7

<p>Agree with adding Lawrence and maybe Kalamazoo.</p>

8

<p>Thanks. Yeah, I looked into Lawrence a bit but my mom is convinced it’s too far away (had the same problem with St. Olaf). Kalamazoo may be doable, I know very little about the college though - I’ll have to look into it.</p>

<p>Right now my top choices to visit are Earlham, Beloit and Knox… I may be able to get in another visit, maybe Kalamazoo or Wooster. It’s a hard choice, I wish I could just visit them all.</p>

<p>Also I will consider dropping LFC, from what I read in the PR it doesn’t sound like a great fit for me, but the financial rating PR gives it makes it tempting. Allegheny may be able to stay on if I can convince my mom a day-trip is possible (it should only be a few hours away). Maybe I will visit on my own if my mom isn’t up for it.</p>

9

<p>What exactly are your stats?</p>

10

<p>Not recommending Rhodes for OP (it’s in the south, not midwest), but I just have to disagree with SmallCollegesFTW on who has the most beautiful LAC library…
[Rhodes</a> College | Our Building](<a href=“http://www.rhodes.edu/barret/2660.asp]Rhodes”>http://www.rhodes.edu/barret/2660.asp)</p>

11

<p>Have you seen Knox’s library? It literally could be found in cambridge or oxford. It has a large archive room and it has super cozy study areas. I refuse to believe that it can be topped. :P</p>

12

<p>Disclaimer: I don’t know much about Allegheny.</p>

<p>Overall academic quality: Earlham/Beloit/Knox, Wooster, Allegheny, Lake Forest
Selectivity: All in the 60% range. Earlham is higher but self-selecting, so it amounts to the same.
Student ideology: Beloit, Earlham, Knox, Wooster/Allegheny, Lake Forest
Campus beauty: I’ve only visited Wooster, and the architecture wasn’t to my taste but might be to yours–white faux-medieval castle structures.
Library: Knox is supposed to have an amazing library in “comfort.” They all have small libraries by numeric count. Wooster’s library is unimpressive and kind of cold-ish.
FA: Beloit/Earlham, Knox, can’t really speak for the rest although Wooster offers very good merit aid
Greeks: Earlham (no Greeks), Beloit, Knox (30%, I think, but supposedly inclusive), no idea about the other three
Grad school: Beloit/Earlham/Wooster, Knox, Allegheny, Lake Forest</p>

<p>Overall, they’re all quality schools, though I have a rather low personal opinion of Lake Forest. Wooster is known for being more challenging than its student body might imply. I agree with adding Lawrence and Kalamazoo instead of Lake Forest.</p>

<p>lynxinsider - Admittedly I’ve never seen Rhodes or Knox in person, but my personal favorite LAC library for sheer beauty is Vassar’s.</p>

13

<p>I’m going to have to take and post some pics of our library here… I must defend her honor! lol</p>

14

<p>Have you thought about Illinois Wesleyan University?</p>

15

<p>You are lovely person Lynx, but let it pass.
It is all about personal taste.
Do you like library a la Marie Antoinette or Aung San Suu Kyi?
I have seen them both. Suu Kyi Knox won, for me at least.</p>

16

<p>And Vassar’s is, say, Jackie Kennedy before she was Kennedy?
I like it better if they ditch the stained glass window and pennant thing hanging from the ceiling too much like the Metropolitan museum American wing.</p>

17

<p>Oh, but I love Vassar’s stained glass window. The one with the PHD lady in pink, right?</p>

18

<p>Yeah, that big one you face when you enter, and the tour guide just have to hi-light that detail. Agh.
If I were your age, I would like it better, I can see that.</p>

19

<p>I’ve heard and seen mostly good things about all these schools. Not really sure about the issues alluded to regarding LFC though. </p>

<p>Of the schools on your list I have a personal bias towards Wooster. It’s a beautiful campus and promotes a great culture of learning. It also has a golf course on campus to which I’m partial. Overall, a good balance. </p>

<p>That said, I agree with others who have basically said you can’t really go wrong with the others. This group really does boil down to a matter of personal taste. I also agree with throwing Lawrence into the mix – I really like what I’ve seen of it.</p>