<p>I am planning on visiting the east coast this spring to do some college searching. I am having a hard time discerning which of the New England LAC's I want to visit. I would prefer a college that is either near a metropolitan area or is in a beautiful, yet more rural area (no cornfields please). I would also like a college that has a strong biology department. Finally, I want a college that values being physically active, nature, the arts (especially music) and community service. It is important to me that the students do not spend all their time studying.
Here is a list of some of the colleges I would like more information about:
Williams
Middlebury
Amherst
Bowdoin
Haverford
Swarthmore
Vassar
Wesleyan
Bates
Colby</p>
<p>They are all excellent schools but the locations/vibes of LACs do vary. I suggest that before you plan your visits you get your hands on some good college guide books (ex. Fiske, Princeton Review, Insiders Guide), check the websites of each school in-depth, and perhaps look at the CC page for each school you listed. This should allow you to gain more insight and help you choose which ones to visit (ex. you can take out a couple that are too far removed from cities etc).</p>
<p>Haverford has a lovely campus with lots of trees, old buildings, new buildings, cricket fields, D3 sports, a pond, just a lovely, leisurely, quiet campus that is ideal for a certain kind of person. It is small and quiet but is surrounded by a bustling suburban area with residences on one side, a couple of main thoroughfares on another, shops and gas stations–none of which you would know were there if they dropped you into this sylvan campus in the middle of the night. It’s on the Philadelphia area’s Main Line, so downtown philly is an easy train ride away. The area is wealthy philly suburb, a lot of old money and good high schools. It is a pretty active campus athletically, but it’s not like there are hiking trails nearby and Adirondack vistas to behold. Lots of kids find new sports to take up at Haverford, like fencing or cricket. There’s some interaction with nearby Bryn Mawr and Swarthmore Colleges, even UPenn, but it’s not like they’re next door. Still, students take classes at each others’ campuses. It’s a school with a Quaker tradition, and many students find that and the honor code attractive elements of their experience. Community service is a big part of that Quaker heritage, as is the idea of making policy decisions by consensus rather than decree. Students are drawn from all over the world, including many internationals with interesting family histories of political and sometimes violent strife. Professors are famous for allowing students to call them at home til late at night when they have a problem; I once had a crazy student call me at 1AM on a Monday. Many of the professors live on campus in college-provided housing; others live within a few miles of the school because the school subsidizes their mortgages. Or at least, it used to. I loved my two years teaching there, but it’s a place at which you should spend some time before deciding to attend. Like a lot of places, prospectives fall in love with the idea of the LAC and have to adjust their first year to the reality of it.</p>
<p>Williams seems to fulfill everything on your wish list: Beautiful mountain setting, excellent biology and other sciences, widespread participation in sports and outdoorsy activities, access to nature, emphasis on the arts (studio art, museums, theater, music), multiple music venues and performance venues even for non-majors. Committed, multi-faceted and energetic student body.</p>
<p>Others on your list that are most similar in personality to Williams: Middlebury, Amherst, Bowdoin. I’d also add Hamilton and consider Smith.</p>
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<p>If you want to be in or near a large metro area, Swarthmore and Haverford are the best choices on that list. If you want to be in or near a beautiful, yet more rural area, then Middlebury, Bowdoin, or Williams probably are the best choices on your list. If you want both, and are willing to look outside the Northeast, then check out Colorado College. It has a very outdoorsy, physically active student body as well as a pretty good arts scene, set in a mid-sized city on the edge of the Rockies. For the arts scene alone (especially film and music), Wesleyan would be a good choice.</p>
<p>[The</a> Best Colleges For Outdoor Recreation | California | OutsideOnline.com](<a href=“http://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/north-america/united-states/california/Outside-University--The-Top-40.html]The”>http://www.outsideonline.com/adventure-travel/north-america/united-states/california/Outside-University--The-Top-40.html)</p>
<p>Vassar is an hour and a half train ride to NYC.</p>
<p>We did a spring trip which basically started at Wesleyan and went clockwise to Vassar, Skidmore, Williams, Amherst, and finally ended with Colby, Bates, and Bowdion. It was doable and kinda fun, mostly because the weather was simply fantastic. The trip was exploratory in nature which meant we wanted to get a physical sense of all these schools we’d heard so much about (btw, we also stopped in at Brown, BU, and Tufts!). Conversations after each visit were surprising and insightful, so visiting is good. Sometimes we’d take a tour and sometimes just explore on our own and ask questions to random students. It’s all a bit daunting but if one arms themselves with an attitude of exploration it can be quite productive to come up with one’s own conclusions. In the end I was surprised that my son had one school which whispered to him ‘we’ve got something going on here…join us!’ He had no real idea of what his major would be and entered with one thought but eventually connected with biology. He found his Bowdoin experience incredibly rich and diverse and the biology department and research opportunities exceptional. Along the way, and after graduation, he developed connections and friendships with kids from these other schools whose passions were similar to his own, it’s not that hard to do, so best wishes during your visits and keep an open mind, opportunities will always present themselves :)</p>
<p>My son is interested in the sciences, and has visited Williams and Haverford. He did not like Haverford; it was too small for his liking. The tour guide was fond of saying they had more trees than students.</p>
<p>My son liked Williams very much, and was especially intrigued by their tradition of “Mountain Day,” where the college president cancels classes and the whole school participates in various outdoor activities. Williams is VERY rural, almost isolated. </p>
<p>My son also looked at Skidmore, which is making a push to boost their science programs. They have strong music and arts programs, and a natural area called the “North Woods” that is part of their campus. His tour guide was a dual major in Physics and Music! They also are in one of the best college towns around, Saratoga Springs. My son has applied to Skidmore, but I’m not sure it is a top contender unless he can qualify for some merit scholarship money. </p>
<p>My son’s experience and preferences may vary dramatically from your own, so make sure to visit lots of schools to learn what you like and what you don’t. My son was able to tell pretty quickly when a place wasn’t right for him. If you can’t see yourself attending, don’t bother applying.</p>
<p>Here is a great example of the culture at Vassar. We attended the swim meet last Saturday and 6-7 members of the Vassar swim team (in their swim gear) sang a beautiful 4 part harmony arrangement of the National Anthem at the start. Not many colleges have seven D3 athletes on their sports team willing to sing the National Anthem in 4 part harmony. Fun!</p>
<p>Another example of culture at Vassar that we have witnessed: The orchestra concerts are filled with students, fiends, parents , faculty, community people and the college president attends every concert. Everyone is cheering and the vibe is great - all just there to enjoy an excellent concert. Vassar is building a new science building and a huge adjacent farm.</p>
<p>We attended Swan Lake at Skidmore 2-3 years ago and the vibe was similar - sold out performance - lots of cheering.</p>