Kenyon vs. Denison

how are they different? What are the kids like at each? how is the social life at both?

I’m sorry you aren’t getting more hits – let me see if I can provide more info.

Biggest differences are size and location. Kenyon is about 600 fewer students, and the experience is quite insular – Gambier is your home. Denison is larger and, while also in a village, the village is much larger, more shops, and is commuting distance to Columbus. It is very busy on the weekends, as a lot of cyclists use it as a stopping point. It also has Whits custard ice cream. The towns of Newark/Heath are about 10 minutes from Granville and resemble Mt. Vernon which is about 10-15 min from Gambier – that is where you will find Chipotle, Starbucks, Target/Walmart etc.

Both schools have very competitive sports teams. Denison just won Men’s national championship in swimming and diving for the 4th time in 8 years, Kenyon Men’s soccer is highly ranked and goes deep into the national tournament each year and is serious about winning a national championship. Both schools have gorgeous athletic facilities, Kenyon’s are a longer walk down a big hill. Denison’s new performing arts center will open during the next year. Kenyon is renovating its library.

Greek life is similar at both schools. Both schools have active party scene. Both schools have a lot of music, theater, dance etc. happening on weekends. Both schools have a range of kids, the stereotypical guys dead set on finance careers to intense artsy types. I would say the vibe at Denison is more kids who don’t define themselves as some kind of “type” whereas – and this is a personal perception and not objective, so others may see it differently – Kenyon kids seemed more self-conscious about image. Denison is more economically diverse but has slightly higher percentage of Ohio kids, about 15% at Kenyon and about 20%, I believe, at Denison.

If you are really struggling to find a way to make a decision, perhaps spend some time looking at the general education requirements (they have a different approach) or the websites of departments of interest. On gen eds, both schools require 2 courses in 4 core areas – arts/humanities/social sciences and physical sciences – but they approach it differently. Kenyon requires the 2 classes from the same department, so the idea is to gain more exposure to a discipline outside your area of interest. Denison requires the 2 courses from different departments. So, at Kenyon, if you are a non-science person, and you decide to do Bio for your science gen ed, you have to take 2 Bio courses to meet the requirements. At Denison, you would have to take a different science discipline to meet the requirement (you aren’t prohibited from taking more Bio, it just wouldn’t count for completing your gen eds).

Good luck in your decision – no wrong answer, just a process of finding your own “right” answer. Can you visit each again?

Based on the above post, Denison seems more interesting & less likely to result in mind-numbing boredom.

@Publisher – ha – I’m really trying to be balanced! Both my kids visited Kenyon as their first ever college visit as juniors, and just loved it. I have been there about 5- 6 times during two college searches, and my kids met with faculty, toured arts, athletic facilities etc., and I loved it too. It is picturesque, quaint, charming. For both my kids, as they visited more schools, Kenyon was overshadowed for different reasons. It wasn’t the right place for my kids, BUT we know very happy current students and alums for whom it was just right!

If I had to identify a difference in student culture, I’d describe Denison kids as more “down to earth” and Kenyon kids as more intent on being “interesting.” Not to say there aren’t plenty of “intent on being interesting” kids at Denison and plenty of “down to earth” kids at Kenyon. But this middle aged mom perceived that difference in feel, take it with a grain of salt, as that is subjective perception.

We also visited Kenyon College. Unfortunately it was near the time of the frozen alcohol related deaths of a couple of students. Kenyon students got drunk & passed out in the adjacent corn fields during freezing weather. As a result of the deaths & bad publicity, Kenyon made an effort to curtail binge drinking on campus.

Most schools are dealing with binge drinking, it is terribly sad when something goes truly wrong like that.

My daughter, a Kenyon sophomore, loves the College, primarily for the depth and diversity of the faculty and students, but also for the unifying, quintessentially collegiate attraction of Middle Path and its surrounding buildings. Exciting would describe her experiences to this point.