Is Kenyon a good fit for me?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Kenyon College
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A few thoughts as a Kenyon parent:

My son is a Soph who is a Gay Hispanic Non-Latino. I 100% disagree w/ the comment that a LAC isn’t a good fit for an LGBTQ+ student. I’m not at all concerned about you fitting in. Literally, no one cares. My son’s friend group has LGBTQ, Straight, boys, girls, kids of every color, kids from every corner of the US and a few around the world, poor kids… ok granted, lots of rich kids. No One Cares. Are you a good person and a good friend? That’s all that counts. And if you’re still apprehensive, Kenyon has a 5-Star rating on the Campus Pride Index. It was also named one of 40 Best of The Best for LGBTQ+ Friendly.

Now the writing thing… that’s where a potential red flag comes up for me. If you decide to major in a STEM, you’ll have far less writing than say a Humanities/Social Sci/etc. major. But you’re still going to be expected to do a good bit of writing. Keep in mind Kenyon’s distribution is a little different in that not only do you have to complete 2 classes in each of the 4 disciplines, but those two classes must also be in the same Department. Kenyon is striving for depth as well as breadth.

Kenyon is stunning, especially in the fall. My son’s first comment when he stepped foot on campus was “I feel like I went thru the Platform 9 3/4 to get here!” But yes, it’s pretty isolated. Then again, given the times we live in… that’s not necessarily a bad thing! So far this year, Kenyon has had ONE student test positive for COVID-19.
There are some very nice dorms/apartments, but most are more in the ‘eh’ category. Serviceable enough, but not great. The Village has basically everything you need. My son has gone to Walmart maybe 3 times in a year and a half. Wiggins, Gambier Deli, and the Bookstore is where alot of his money goes.
And the new library should be done soon!!

Personally, I see Oberlin as a little more artsy than Kenyon since you have the Conservatory. And while my son also really loved Davidson, he felt it was a bit more on the conservative side for his taste.

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@ChaosParent23 That makes sense to me, and I don’t really mind too much if most students are of one demographic. My middle school was diverse, but it was also extremely segregated. You could see that students formed cliques based on race. All of the Asian kids sat together, all of the white kids, all of the black and Hispanic kids, etc. I would not want to be at any school where I’m only making friends with other POC, rather than being an integrated part of the social atmosphere. That’s partly why I want a small school! And I do trust that Kenyon would be good for LGBT students.

I’m definitely less of a writer, but not in a significant way. I’m kind of enrolled in a LAC through my high school, and it’s heavily based in writing. Lots of workshops that the whole school participates in.

I don’t know if this was unclear, but I’m not especially looking for an artsy school. I only mentioned because I’ve heard that Kenyon students are artsy. My relationship to the arts is just like any person’s. Oberlin has waaay more resources in the arts than I could ever make use of. Not that it’s a problem, just clarifying!

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That’s why I think Oberlin isn’t necessarily a better choice for you over Kenyon. Kenyon kids are ‘quirky’. Lots of varied interests that run the gamut. Yes, Kenyon’s strongest Department is arguably English. With so many well known authors, it’s known as a writer’s school. But some other famous Kenyon alumni are: (off the top of my head and skipping all writers, actors, and musicians)
Tommy Vietor
Leopoldo Lopez
Lizzie Fletcher
William Rehnquist
Rutherford B Hayes
Shaka Smart

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The Fiske Guide To Colleges 2020 shares:

“Students at Kenyon thrive on open conversation and do not silence opinion that contradict theirs.”

Fiske characterizes the student body at Kenyon as “liberal & friendly”.

I respect the opinion of the writers and editors of the Fiske Guide To Colleges 2020.

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Hi OP! Current high school senior who applied ED a few days ago here! Figured I’d pitch in my two cents as someone in a similar boat as you. I’m also from a big city, a member of the LGBTQ community, looking for an artsy feel, and wanting some outdoor activity near campus. I looked at most of the schools mentioned on this sub by other commenters (Oberlin, Vassar, Wesleyan, Middlebury, UVM Honors, etc.), but ended up choosing Kenyon for ED! No regrets, haha.
I was lucky enough to be able to tour Kenyon in early 2020 before everything shut down, and found it to be the homey, welcoming community you described wanting in a college. Now, I only had a day on campus, as opposed to having actually attended it as a current student, but I absolutely loved it. Everybody was super friendly and helpful, and were totally willing to gush about all their classes and their positive experiences. Now, unlike you, I’m interested in a writing-intensive major, but I was assured by many a current student that they don’t expect you to be amazing at writing when you come in - that they’re a “writer’s college” because they teach you as you go. A lot of that will come freshman year, apparently, and not to worry if you don’t think of yourself as a writer yet. Also talked to some current students about the farm and hiking nearby, and they only had positive things to say - said that farm can be a lot of work but it’s super fun if you do it with friends. There’s also a nature preserve right next to campus, as well as lots of hikes nearby if you’ve got a car (or a friend with a car). Plus, if I’m remembering right, they’ve got an outdoors/outing club that leads a bunch of nature trips like hikes fairly regularly.

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I am the parent of a 2020 Kenyon graduate. My daughter grew up on the East Coast. She toured and interviewed at many eastern colleges, in addition to both Oberlin and Kenyon. In the end she was drawn to Kenyon for many of the same reasons that have attracted the OP.

From the outset she found Kenyon to offer a remarkably friendly and welcoming environment. She had NO issues with adjustment to college life; she loved it from the start. I attribute this to the culture of Kenyon. During her time there she made many friends of diverse ethnic, socioeconomic and gender identifying / LBGTQ backgrounds. Kenyon students accept differences without judgment.

Her academic experience was phenomenal. Classes were intellectually stimulating, with great professors, dynamic discussion and appropriately rigorous workloads. She was so happy on campus that she decided to forgo an opportunity to study abroad junior year because she wanted to be in Gambier.

When the school shut down in March she and her fellow students were, as you might expect, devastated. She came home and finished strong, but ended up moving back to Ohio to be near friends. She has an extremely close friend group, and a far reaching larger circle of Kenyon connections.

Simply stated, my daughter’s experience at Kenyon was life changing. It truly is a special place.

Also, @hmph238, I have seen the video you posted here, along with nearly every other video in the Kenyon collection. Having met many Kenyon students over the years, I can say that the videos offer an authentic representation of Kenyon life and students. If the videos speak to you, then I believe you will love Kenyon.

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@hmph238, I graduated from Kenyon College in 1990 and my S21 is applying RD to Kenyon this year. I LOVED Kenyon. I believe you could be happy there. I was born and raised in NYC. For me Kenyon College’s campus was idyllic. It is pretty flat so the hiking won’t be strenuous, but it’s so darn beautiful! Re: the students, I’m not going to say all the students were open-minded but I do think that was, and is, the overall vibe of the school. I know they’ve been trying to attract a more diverse student population since I was there. If you end up at Kenyon, I hope you have an incredible, life-changing four years!!! And make sure to study abroad!!! Best of luck on your college search!

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Is Vassar’s campus rural? Sports are divided by gender so how does that work being non-binary?

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Current Kenyon student here!

I don’t know if you decided to ED Kenyon or not or whether you just decided to RD, but I thought that it would be helpful for you if one student shared their thoughts as you start hearing decisions soon.

As other people have said, it’s a very quirky school and the students here have lots of interests (and yes being Kenyon-artsy it 100% a thing although don’t think you HAVE to be artsy to fit into the community). The nice thing is that everyone has their different “niche” per say, and it’s usually not too hard to find other people who would relate to you. Overall, the campus culture is friendly, although I will say that if you break up with a SO or have a falling out with some people that you will see them around campus and it’ll probably be awkward–one of the perils of a small college.

I am also a low-income Hispanic student (although I’m from a rural area), and I will say that the campus has pretty large disparities when it comes to racial and ethnic identity and socioeconomic aspects–that is, a lot of the student population at Kenyon is rich, privileged, white kids, which makes me feel quite out of place sometimes as Hispanic, low-income student. Overall though, I do feel mostly included within the community, although I have definitely had some rough patches.

From what it sounds like, you’re a student with lots of different interests with some environmental biology, economics, political science. Other than English, those three majors are some of the most majored in subjects, so you would have lots of your peers in the same boat as you. They are all pretty strong departments, although I will add that the political science department tends to be conservative. However, I’ve heard from people that it’s not usually a big deal. Being that this is a liberal arts school (and especially at Kenyon), writing is a huuuge part of the education here and is incredibly important for essentially every class (yes, even the STEM classes as I will attest). But like someone said up above, Kenyon doesn’t expect you to be the next Ernest Hemingway coming into college; the professors and curriculum are built to help you become a much better writer and the writing center here is fantastic for helping you with writing issues.

I will just add that working at the Kenyon farm, although it is not something is for me, is an incredibly enriching experience for those that really do enjoy it. I have a couple of friends that volunteered there every weekend and they loved it, and it sounds that you would thoroughly enjoy the experience.

That’s all I have to say! Best of luck in your college decisions and if you have any additional questions, feel free to ask me.

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Are athletics and Greek life a big part of campus culture/events?