<p>I chose this school because (choose as many as you can):</p>
<p>□ It was made for me
□ It was my reach school
□ It gave me the best money package
□ It was closest to home
□ It has the program which I wanted
□ The students were what I wanted
□ The professors were what I wanted
□ The campus was what I wanted
□ My parents made me do it
□ I chased a girl/boy here
□ It was the one place that would take me
□ OTHER _________________________________</p>
<p>(I'm answering for my daughter because she is too busy studying for AP exams)It was her reach schoool (well sort of), The students,professors and campus were what she wanted (she knew right away) Her parents are now trying to figure out how to pay (they did give her a good Fin aid package --but our EFC is unreasonably high)</p>
<p>For me it was the student body, the campus, the programs and it seems that it was made for me as well! I can't wait for this fall</p>
<p>My daughter loved the place (facilities, academics, financial package, prestige), but decided to go elsewhere after attending an accepted student weekend. Too much alcohol and morning-after beer can litter. I guess she dodged a bullet by learning of the social mismatch.</p>
<p>Interesting, my daughter didn't have that problem when she was there in the fall visiting over a Friday/Saturday..could it have been spring fever? Quite frankly, weekend binge drinking is an 'American' problem and part of most college campuses -maybe not Wheaton College. But was she pressured to participate or was it just too noisy?</p>
<p>my daughter would not, I am sure, take the time to visit this site since her decision has been made, let alone reply to your question, having just recovered from AP exams, but it was a combination of financial aid, course possibilities and the fact it wasn't too far from home...and just felt fine to her! The professors for some extracurriculars have reached out to her and she has met many students (current and former) who love the place - she has never met anyone who didn't speak positively of their experience there. It was not her only choice but it seemed to have the best balance of courses, financial aid and friendliness! She is very much looking forward to being there...</p>
<p>merepoule,
My D had same experience as yours at one of the prospie weekends. Maybe she just stayed with someone who didn't drink, but she had a great time. She had questioned her experiences at some other colleges (that the students social activities centered on partying and drinking and she questioned how she would be accepted if she didn't). She didn't find that to be a problem at Grinnell and was excited about some of the other activities going on that weekend. She also really enjoyed the people she met. At one of her other college visits she commented that the students all looked at the tour group like they were not wanted there, but felt very welcome at Grinnell.</p>
<p>merepoule - She was offered beer several times, but declined. She was in a coed dorm - some guys were drinking beer in the halls, others were drunk outside of the dorm. And there was morning-after beer can litter. </p>
<p>... my daughter was told that the substance free dorms aren't really substance free, and, at least last year, were difficult to get into. Beer is part of many of the sanctioned social events there. Other substances are part of the unsanctioned events.</p>
<p>There was also talk of an upcoming underwear dance ... where kids dance in their panties, etc. And then there is the cross country team that runs naked through campus from time to time.</p>
<p>My daughter is an academically gifted, expressive, socially outgoing, fun loving young woman. She thought that the people were friendly and welcoming. She didn't want to spend years in an isolated location watching others drink on weekends. She's no prude. She didn't or doesn't look down on the drinking or those who do it. She just didn't want to spend her time in such a setting. That was her take.</p>
<p>thanks for the info...I just have a feeling this happens elsewhere (a colleague visited Kenyon a few weeks ago and 3 students completely stripped as they walked past - her son was more embarrassed than she was...). I am glad that your daughter at least didn't feel obliged to drink beer - am I correct in assuming she wasn't badly treated because of her refusal - my daughter just does milk herself to my amazement. I live in a town with a 'big name' school and drinking is a huge problem with these students so I really do think it is a rare school that doesn't have it ...just more kids probably go off campus to indulge perhaps? Sounds pretty tame compared to, say, Oberlin...</p>
<p>I'll admit to being perplexed every time I read a post from a parent who presumably came to age in the 1960s, 1970s, or 1980s talking about alcohol being uniquely pervasive at a particular college. Unless you're going to BYU or Grove City you're kidding yourself if you think there won't be a lot of alcohol being consumed by a lot of students at virtually every college. The real question is whether a particular school has more of a partying than academic atmosphere. Clearly Grinnell falls into the latter category. </p>
<p>Our daughter is just finishing up her first year at Grinnell. She and most of her friends don't drink and have managed to fit into the social scene just fine. Grinnell is a haven for intelligent, highly motivated, and deep thinking kids who more often than not aren't quite in the mainstream. It's hardly the frat-boy beer pounding school that you've described. It sounds to me that you're daughter may have simply had bad luck during her visit and generalized from that.</p>
<p>parent1009,
Thanks for your comments. I think it makes those of us whose kids have chosen Grinnell feel better. That is basically what my daughter saw. She said that there were parties and drinking, but there was no pressure to participate. She also saw that there were other things going on ( I think she went to a dance/music performance). I have told her exactly what you said. Unless you go to a completely dry campus there will be drinking. She honestly felt that she would be accepted more as a non drinker at Grinnell. She actually thought it would be more of a problem at another campus that is supposedly "dry". From what she saw the students just go off campus and drink.</p>
<p>There are 1500 students at Grinnell, and your daughter probably saw about 50 of them drinking. Sure, there is drinking at Grinnell, but there is a whole lot of other things to do to.</p>
<p>I love drinking, so I don't mind, but I have no trouble finding things to do when I don't feel like drinking.</p>
<p>It had the students, campus, and programs I wanted. Plus, I don't have to drink and still be cool.</p>
<p>it was my REACH college, so i was totally grateful when i got the admission at the first place ( got off the waitlist ) , and ofcourse, most importantly, i got a VERY GENEROUS finaid offer with major loan that absolutely saved me....
and i guess it was a lot because of the supercool stuff i got from Grinnell even before applying properly-- the NO LIMITS booklet and other booklets about the international community there....
and plus i always had a crush on the idea of a small liberal arts college, where i'd be more than just a number, so Grinnell, for me, is a perfect fit in more ways than one.
oh and lastly, the posts in this forum make me feel ever more confident about my choice.
YAY ! GLAD TO BE JOINING EVERYONE!</p>