<p>@NYMomof2, you seem to be getting some outstanding advice here. My only real addition is to encourage your DS to check out both large and small schools. We originally thought our S was going to want a smaller school (as did he), so we really focused on some LACs of varying selectivity, along with some larger flagship universities with a good range of programming, and a little bit of everything in between (excepting overly pre-professional tech schools). </p>
<p>My son was originally looking for schools where he could study math and theater, later got interested in possibly studying engineering, and ultimately chose a school that offered him enough flexibility that he could do any of it (although heās going to start out as an engineer and see how that goes). He also ended up at one of the larger schools he looked at, and I think was quite surprised in the end with his decision, but he grew up and changed so much his senior year of high school, and what he wanted at the end of that year was quite different from what he thought heād wanted just 12 months prior. </p>
<p>All that being said, having visited Macalester with him, it does sound like a wonderful school for your son. I only wish weād had the time to visit St. Olaf while we were in the Twin Cities, but we didnāt get to Minnesota until he visited for an Accepted Students Day. If I had it to do again (and I had the time and money), Iād visit both schools, along with Carleton and the University of Minnesota while I was in town. The Twin Cities are an amazing area, with strong STEM programs and a lot of social justice ones as well. It might be a great fit for your kiddo.</p>
<p>@NYMomof2ā I believe the party hosts are responsible ā whoever is throwing the party and paying for the alcohol regardless of the fact the party is not in their home but catered at an outside location. But then I am so far from anything close to an attorney, so take that into consideration!</p>
<p>About 5% of our kidsā high school class goes there every year. So I have a really good feel for the types of students who attend. It is definitely more conservative than Macalester, Carleton, Lawrence, or other schools in the region mentioned by posters. It isnāt on the end of the scale that a CMC might be, but it is often mentioned on the āHow can I find a conservative school?ā threads as an LAC option.</p>
<p>It may be more conservative than certain other schools, but I think kids with more liberal mindsets will feel welcome and comfortable. The kids I know there really love it and they are not conservative in the least.</p>
<p>I realize the OPās S may be seeking a liberal environment, but I find it interesting that several posts seem to imply that being conservative is incompatible with being an animal rights activist. Two vets I know well, one who graduated from MSU and the other from UPenn, are active animal rights activists and politically conservative. They both donate extensive time, money, and energy to further animal rights causes. </p>
<p>The other thing is, even liberal students (and one might argue the most open-minded) can be uncomfortable if everyone appears to think in lockstep with one another. </p>
<p>My quite liberal but rather apolitical (and slightly cynical) son found some of the LACs recommended here too extreme for his comfort. At some point he knows heāll need to hold his own with people of all philosophical and political viewpoints, so he preferred a place where heād find all types. St. Olaf may be conservative when compared with Carleton and Macalester, but itās not a bastion of far right activism. As I said, we didnāt visit, but we did visit other schools that, while they werenāt good fits for other reasons, did offer a strong social justice component. Villanova, in particular, really impressed us with their emphasis on service. It was ātoo Catholicā for my son, but we found the school, which has a reputation in some areas of being too homogeneous and pre-professional, to be pretty inspiring, especially when compared to a school like, say, the nonsectarian Lehigh, which had such a heavy emphasis on how much money your kid was going to make after he graduated, that it was just a total turnoff. </p>
<p>My son has attended Quaker schools most of his life, so heās used to being surrounded by families who tend to fall on the left end of the political spectrum. Some of them chose places like Swarthmore, Carleton, Macalester, and Bard; others chose more conservative schools like Vanderbilt, Lehigh, Villanova, Hamilton, and Davidson. And many more chose big state schools (everything from Berkeley to Michigan to [gasp] Alabama, where my son is headed), along with the full spectrum of Ivies (from Dartmouth/Princeton to Brown/Columbia).</p>
<p>Donāt form your judgments based on reputation or word-of-mouth. Check a range of schools out for yourselves. The school needs to fit for FOUR years and most students will not leave their college/university the exact same person they were when they entered.</p>
<p>catpb, Nothing has fallen off the list - I will check every school suggested here and, after checking the HS data to see if they are possibilities and doing more research, discuss them with DS when the time comes, probably sometime next year. Thank you for your enthusiastic recommendation and the details about your Dās experience there! I am a scientist, too, and so I appreciate the information on the science conversation (and building!) I read about the science conversation, and it sounds perfect for DS - or for anyone. I wish I could take it now. And the music program sounds great - no conservatory so I have to think that DS would have some great opportunities.</p>
<p>Both St. Olaf and Lawrence have extensive video archives of music performance, and Iām sure other schools do, too. Iāll have to spend some time watching them.</p>
<p>wis75, Lucie, Itās hard to predict how DS will feel in a year or so about small schools vs large universities. Even a year ago, I would have been sure he would want a very small school very close to home. Now for all I know he may decide on one of the huge U. of California campuses! My sister and her family live in Minneapolis, and we will definitely make a trip there.</p>
<p>sdgal2, I donāt know much about Case Western, but will check it out. </p>
<p>I looked on College Board, and I think DS has the stats for it. But the HS data will tell. I didnāt have to check many schools before I learned that the online data is not all that useful. Only the experience of graduates of his HS matters. This makes sense, as it factors in things like geographical āhooksā.</p>
<p>Very good points, sally301, Overtheedge, Lucie. My conservative (meaning politically conservative) friends are heavily involved in charitable activities, and Iām sure that animal rights activists come from all points on the liberal-conservative spectrum. Iām smiling because some years ago, DS returned from a long weekend with my two unmarried sisters (who have invited each of their many nieces and nephews, in pairs or threes of similar ages, to a weekend of fun when they were around 12-13) saying that heād become a Republican because āI want to keep my money!ā And now my concern is that he wants to give away every penny he has now and plans to live as an adult on $10k/year and donate the rest. (Maybe my sisters would take him again??)</p>
<p>Be aware that since Wisconsin and Minnesota have tuition reciprocity you will find a fair number of students from either state crossing the border. Some from the Twin Cities want to leave town and I know students who prefer one or the other, or get into one or the other that decides them. Packer-Viking football games are sure to be interesting to view in the mixed crowd.</p>
<p>IUPUI was specifically built to be a commuter school, although it does have one residence hall and a few Greek organizations. I donāt know very much about the other schools mentioned in the article. </p>
<p>We discussed the commuter idea upthread (near the beginning). Terrible idea for a student who wants a pretty intellectual environment, that is not the typical case at a commuter school.</p>
<p>^Iāll second that. I went to a big commuter school and although kids do take school seriously and get good educations, their heads arenāt really on campus. College is a necessary evil to get a better job - a lot of them are more about their off-campus jobs, church and home life with parents and high-school friends.</p>
<p>What about a school that isnāt a commuter school but is close enough to home so the D could live there. For instance, where I live kids can go to Union, Siena, UAlbany, RPI and even Skidmore, and be only 15-30 minutes from all of them. There are kids who go to these schools that live at home. No one would consider them commuter schools. Imo, a school like those where kid could live at home would be best bet for OPās D. </p>
<p>I believe the OPās kid is a son. I think he sounds like the kind of kid who would like the late night dorm discussions about ethics, politics, and whatever. Doesnāt sound to me like he needs to live at home, he just needs a school with a healthy group of students who share his interests and arenāt into partying to have a good time.</p>
<p>^ Just realized I posted on wrong thread. Thought I was posting on āapoltical schools threadā and living at home was my suggested for that OPās kid. </p>
<p>I was wondering as Union and SUNY-Albany have long had a rep for heavy partying and drinking campus cultures. Union also has a fraternity/sorority system with some serious hazing and other issues. </p>
<p>Itās a reason why some HS parents forbade their kids from applying to those schools and why other HS classmates who initially attended transferred out. </p>
<p>RPI also has a drinking subculture, but itās more limited and part of their work hard/play hard campus culture. </p>
<p>Yes, Union is one of those which has the drinking label. Albany not as much because it is so much bigger that not all the weekend activities a student goes to have to be at parties (though there are plenty of those.) </p>
<p>Yes, RPI is a work hard/party on weekends - like a lot of the more selective schools are. </p>
<p>And as I mentioned, I thought I was posting that info in āapolitical threadā not the no partying thread. </p>
<p>Several HS classmates and friends who attended Albany would be to differ. There were enough rowdy drunk partiers in the dorms that they became fed up enough to transfer out and tell all their friends and neighbors about it.</p>