@2manycollegequestions4me thanks for reporting back. S19 went to two classes and he did indeed love them. I think the actual teaching and the relationships between the kids and the professors is the strongest selling point of the school by far. I’m not sure how unique it is. He’s been to some awesome classes elsewhere with friendly profs. I have heard anecdotally that Kenyon professors are particularly warm and caring and that would be a plus of course.
I hear you about the overnight experience. While he’s visited a lot of schools and sat in on classes at most of them, this was his first overnight so he doesn’t have anything to compare it to. I think once he goes back to visit other schools for overnights he will most likely come across some of the same issues as he did at Kenyon, and everything will be put in perspective.
@homerdog@2manycollegequestions4me I agree. I was a little discouraged during my overnight because my host and the people she took me to hang out with were on the complete other side of the social spectrum. It definitely did not paint a picture of how my social life would be at Kenyon lol. However all of my doubts went away when I sat in on a physics class during my overnight. The professor was so engaging with the students and it was pretty inspiring to see the relationship between the students and professor. Also got to talk with the professor and a couple others after class, and their helpfulness definitely ensured me that Kenyon is a place for me. Not to say I got to see students who seem to be like me, so that alleviated some of my concerns
Highly recommend doing an overnight, or at the very least attend a class.
@astromae2001@homerdog@2manycollegequestions4me We also just returned from Parent’s Weekend–and every time we return from visiting our first year son, we are crazy happy that he is there. Son is also very happy. The professors absolutely live up to their reputation as engaging and caring while passionate about their subjects. He went in as an Econ major, a little leary of higher math–and now is inclined towards a math/stats double major with Econ–basically because of the professors.
Socially my son’s experience is that everyone is very accepting of each other. Some kids drink, some don’t–but there’s no pressure either way. He’s been busy on the weekends and time is flying. They are all looking forward to a couple more restaurants opening in town over the next couple months, and a little “bummed” about not having a library of another year or so.
He applied RD (did not apply ED anywhere) showed lots of interest with multiple visits, interviewed, attended local events and really got to know his admissions officer.
My S recently submitted his app for ED 1 (still waiting for rec’s to get off their duffs and submit!! 8-| )
@ luloobee How does your student like the food? My son ate at Pierce during the overnight and didn’t have any complaints. He thought his 2nd choice school was maybe a tad better, but not overwhelmingly so.
@astromae2001 I wouldn’t get caught up on the social groups thing! I was more reserved and nerdy in high school but at Kenyon I have friends who are “nerds” as well as athletes who would might have been considered “popular” in high school (but keep in mind that “popularity” as it may have been in high school really doesn’t exist in college). No one expects you to be one thing or be friends with one kind of person here; the athletes are some of the smartest people! Also, it’s kind of a joke at Kenyon that if you’re here, you’re a nerd; so no one considers that to be a bad thing at all! That’s not to say you won’t naturally gravitate towards a certain group, but if you end up here I’d say just keep an open mind!! You’ll meet some great people and it really won’t matter what social groups they’re in good luck with the admissions process!
D19 just had an overnight visit this past weekend. 2nd visit and loved it. Just changed her regular decision app to early decision. And now we wait! She was worried about feeling isolated as well but after talking to several students she feels comfortable and very excited about her decision.
Hi! I just found out about Kenyon College, and it seems amazing! I’ve only been able to do online research though because my parents are not allowing me to visit unless I get in! Anyway, I was just wondering if anyone can tell me about the surrounding area of the school. I visited Sewanee and some other small liberal art colleges, and they were a little too isolated for my liking. They were also really immersed in nature which is fine to a certain extent but I’m also deathly afraid of most animals haha so it’s still a bit of a concern for me. If someone could give me some info about what the campus is like and if I’ll be fine going there even though I’m not a nature lover. Is there a small town around it or is it in the middle of nowhere? Thanks!
It’s about an hour from Columbus, and there’s a small town about 10-15 minutes away w/ some shopping (use google maps so you can see what’s there). Other than that, it’s very rural. The College even has it’s own student run farm about 2 block from main campus. There’s a small adorable village (about 2 blocks long, 2 blocks wide) smack in the middle of campus.
Other than Sewanee what schools have you seen? Maybe I can compare/contrast for you.
I’ve visited Richmond, William and Mary, Washington and Lee, Rhodes, Davidson., and Sewanee. The small village sounds really cool! I just have a thing where I feel better knowing there’s people and civilization nearby instead of just feeling like I’m in the middle of nowhere. Sewanee gave me that vibe and it made me anxious, so I just wanted to see if it would feel the same…I guess I won’t know until I visit though! I sure hope I get in.
Ok, we’ve also been to W & M and Davidson. Out of those, I would say Kenyon is MUCH more rural. The town is much smaller than Davidson & you would have double the drive to get to a large city as you would if you were going to Charlotte. I would describe Davidson as a mid-sized suburb, W & M as a large suburb to small city. I would definitely say Kenyon is small rural village w/ a small suburb nearby, and a large urban area an hour away.
Out of the three, my S thought KC was the most beautiful. He said he got a very Poe vibe w/ a good dollop of Hogwarts. W&M, he said he drove up & all he could say to start was “Wow”. It really impressed him ALOT, but he still liked KC more b/c he wants a smaller school. Davidson he liked alot, but he said it was a bit bland compared to his top choices. He loved the town though.
@makinglemonade Fellow Kenyon Applicant here. I live nearby Kenyon (Like ~30 minutes away) so I definitely know the surroundings. It is very rural. Mt. Vernon is less than 10 minutes away, and there’s a downtown area as well as some shopping centers. Definitely a lot of farm area. Kenyon itself is small, I walked the whole campus in like 15 minutes when I was wasting time during my overnight. But that’s the charm of it, though. It’s small but everyone seems connected. I didn’t feel like I was in my small high school, but I didn’t feel lost in a sea of students. Of course, coming from the area I am used to this surrounding. However, I always had it set to leave Ohio and go to a more populated college, until I toured Kenyon and fell in love. If that answers anything lol.
One more week until ED decisions come out!! I am ridiculously anxious!
@artheart28 My guess is Saturday-Monday. Last year I heard it was given out at 6pm on December 15th. Which is why I’m guessing it’s going to be Saturday. Although, I wouldn’t be surprised if it came out a day or two before or after that.
@astromae2001 I know! It’s so hard to stay focused on exams when all I’m thinking about is college decisions…I’m hoping for friday the 14th but it probably will be after that
@erinkate2000 I saw that! I thought that was just when the financial aid decisions would be coming out.Do you think that’s when the acceptance/rejection letters will be sent out as well?
