<p>I know there is not an IR major at Oberlin, but are the areas of political science, business, economics, or justice and legal studies good/recognized at Oberlin? I really like the culture there and feel like I fit in, but I'm worried it is more of a "social" fit than an "academic fit." Is it a good school for these kinds of majors that are less "liberal artsy" (ie: creative writing, philosophy, history, art history) majors?</p>
<p>Also, can anyone speak generally about the academic quality at Oberlin? Is it comparable to a school like Vassar?</p>
<p>Politics profs/ courses D1 took were good, she reported. Some really good profs, her favorites.
Am not aware of “business” courses.
D1 took one upper level econ course which was good, not sure about others (she didn’t take)
“legal studies” : there were some courses along these lines in Politics dept. which were very good IIRC
“justice” per se: don’t know.</p>
<p>I perceived academic quality to be quite high. I believe it is comparable to Vassar. But how would I really know? I don’t know anyone who has attended both, or had grad students from both, etc, or taught at both, to compare.</p>
<p>rachel, methinks you may be assuming that because the social/political culture at Oberlin is “liberal artsy” that the academics are similar. Nothing could be further from the truth. Neuroscience is one of the most popular majors. Nothing “liberal artsy” about neuroscience. Oberlin has a 5-year, 3-2 engineering program with Columbia, Cal Tech, Washington U in St. Louis, and Case Western Reserve. While you can take a course like “Sociology of Gender” you can also take “Quantum Mechanics” and “Computational Physics.” </p>
<p>Finally, there is an International Studies concentration with more than 100 courses to select from. </p>
<p>As far as comparable academic quality, well, all I can say is there are Oberlin students who were admitted to Vassar (and other top LACs and universities) but picked Oberlin. Then there is the Best Undergraduate Teaching rankings among National Liberal Arts Colleges (by USNWR). Oberlin is ranked 5th. Vassar is not on the list of the 34 best. </p>
<p>My D2 is a soph at Oberlin. She passed up Cornell U for Oberlin (she didn’t apply to Vassar). She loves it at Oberlin. She’s had only two complaints. As a frosh she was assigned the “roommate from hell,” but that could happen anywhere. Her other complaint is about the crummy PCs sold by the campus computer center. Forget the deals they offer. The laptops they sold last year (Hewlett-Packard and Apple) suck hugely. Most of the people she knows who bought from the computer center have had a ton of problems with their machines. My D has been forced to get a loaner machine every semester while they try to figure out what in heck is wrong with the expensive machine we bought on campus. Unless they switch to different models (or different PC companies), bring your own laptop. :)</p>
<p>[Pasting this from another thread not only for the OP’s benefit, but also for the benefit of any other prospective students with questions about the Politics department or Oberlin]</p>
<p>From chatting with dozens of friends who graduated from Vassar and visited Oberlin, they felt the academic quality is comparable…though each school does have strengths the other may lack.</p>
<p>As for politics, I can speak on this as someone who practically minored in it while there…including taking two 300 level courses in that department. The program is strong in comparative politics, the area I concentrated in. </p>
<p>However, I’m not really sure about IR. Check this page and peruse the course selections to see if it is a good fit here:</p>
<p>Also, it is not just a school for “creative majors” as I can attest as a history major with a minor in politics. Moreover, Oberlin students are very passionate about discussing politics and acting on them. Before I attended Oberlin, the first things that came to most teachers’, classmates’, and others’ minds were “top-notch academics”, “politically active campus”, and “radical progressive-left activism”. </p>
<p>Oddly enough, I’ve always thought of Vassar as being a haven for “creative majors” like one younger cousin who is going there this fall to major in something related to the creative arts or the numerous Art/Art History, English lit, etc majors I’ve known from there.</p>
<p>Hmmm. I didn’t realize they had an issue with the comps they sold. Seemed decent enough and “business class” as opposed to “consumer class”. I sent my daughter off with a Lenovo Thinkpad which we have used at our office for the last 7 years and are now buying our third installment of them (new ones every 3-4 years). They’ve been really reliable machines (knock on wood) and a lot of our folks take them on the road where they get beat up. We’ve bought Dells and Compaqs in the past and they haven’t held up or performed as well. Got her an on-site service contract and hope she never needs it. I’d certainly recommend Thinkpads if you are looking at buying something other than what Oberlin offers.</p>
<p>With respect to the OP’s question, my impression is that academic standards at Oberlin are quite high. I think they are quite comparable to other top notch LACs to which my daughter was accepted and passed on, including Carleton, Grinnell and Bowdoin. I do know she is stressing over mid-terms right now, which is unlike her normal behavior, so she apparently finds it challenging enough.</p>
<p>While not doubting Plainsman’s daughter’s story, for what it’s worth, I’ve never heard a student express any reservations about Computer Store products. They’re exactly the same computers you’d get if you bought them from Apple or HP directly.</p>
<p>Re Oberlin academics vs. Vassar’s, if you google you can find like three people who have been relatively recent faculty or staff at both schools, including Oberlin’s ex-president who is the one I thought of. These people should be in a position to have a more informed opinion about this topic than mine would be.</p>
<p>Dave, I spent three years of my life working for Hewlett Packard. Okay home printers; sucky PCs. Normally, I would never buy one of their PCs. But Oberlin made it difficult not to with the pledge to repair any laptop purchased from the computer store, the ability to get a loaner, etc., and last year they came out with a new model. I figured I’d take a chance. Now I’m sorry I bought the thing for her because her problems with it continue. I should ask her to try to get a new one from the computer center under the “lemon” policy.</p>
<p>Pohaku, I don’t know if they have a huge problem. I can only tell you what my D2 tells me she sees. But here is something I think I do know: Like you, I use a Lenovo (formerly IBM) Thinkpad for my work too. It’s an excellent machine. Much better than what HP produces.</p>
<p>You may be (and presumably are) quite right about HP–I don’t know, I use Macs. I thought you were criticizing the Computer Store for selling products that were somehow inferior to what the same manufacturers sell elsewhere.</p>
<p>International relations is one of the four subdivisions in the Politics Department, with two dedicated faculty members, and supplemented by the comparative branch of the department. To give you a sense of the courses offered directly in the field:</p>
<p>-Third World Political Economies
-International Environmental Politics
-Topics in Contemporary African Affairs
-International Organization
-International Law
-War, Weapons, and Arms Control
-US Foreign Policy Making
-Seminar: Non-State Actors in International Politics
-Seminar: International Criminal Law
-Seminar: Globalization</p>
<p>I have had very good experiences in the classroom. I think, however, that there is an aspect of campus culture that isn’t as supportive of this type of traditional academic study. Identity politics and the deconstruction of power are often given a priority in student organizations, research, etc. It can be tough to be pursuing a field that is associated with ambition and power–diplomacy rather than grassroots activism. However, the great strength of Oberlin is that if you want to create opportunities, you will have the resources and support to do so.</p>
<p>The politics department is fantastic! I was a major, so I’m a bit biased, but it’s also one of the top three majors at the college in terms of number of graduates. As mentioned above, international relations is one of the four subdivisions within the politics department, and you will find courses in other departments that relate to that interest as well. I was very impressed with the quality of teaching in the department (some phenomenal professors, and the rest solidly good), and I have very high expectations.</p>