I’m look into Cornell College, and really liking it, except for one problem: small financial aid. The net price calculator puts total cost at about 52k, and right of the bat qualifies me for the Presidential Scholarship, which is worth 22k. But then, the financial aid doesn’t give much help, as the net price ends up much higher than other, colleges I’ve looked at (Ohio Northern, Oberlin College, and other small, regional liberal arts schools). Everything else is great about Cornell (College), as it’s rather close to my current location and also my hometown. How worried should I be about this? I’m lower-middle class, so cost is big for me. I’m also a Junior in high school, so it isn’t a very urgent decision.
You should be worried. Cornell does not claim to meet need. You should assume that you probably would have to pay what they show in the net price calculator. If your family can’t afford that, you need to keep looking.
Here is a list of schools that claim to meet need:
Some others that come close to meeting need but don’t make this list because they don’t quite meet 100% of need include St. Olaf, which probably isn’t too far from you if you are near Cornell. Bucknell, Dickinson, Babson, and Lafayette are also schools that meet 95% of need or more (by their calculation).
Good for you to be running net price calculators early and asking these questions.
That’s a helpful list, thanks! I’m happy to see how many of my prospect schools are on that list, and that explains the huge price difference. Thanks for the help!
I assume that you know that Cornell College has a curriculum where you only study one course at a time. If you like that approach, then look at Colorado College too. I think they might offer better financial aid.
https://www.coloradocollege.edu/financialaid/
If you can get accepted to Oberlin, you should be able to get into Colorado College. Also take a look at Kenyon College. It claims to meet all financial need. Kenyon, like Oberlin, is in Ohio.
http://www.kenyon.edu/admissions-aid/financial-aid/
I’ve looked at Kenyon, and it was atop my list for a while, but I’ve heard that it’s very liberal (I don’t want to go to a school that is politically affiliated one way or the other). Do you know how much truth there is to that?
Most LACs are going to lean to the left. Kenyon is certainly not as liberal as Oberlin, which you also mention as a possibility… but the list of right-leaning LACs is fairly short.
To clarify, I don’t mind “leaning”, it’s strong political affiliation that I have a problem with. I didn’t realize Oberlin was liberal, but that’s good to know. A lot of colleges on my list (such as Ohio Northern and Cornell College) are there because they’re affiliated with the United Methodist Church (as am I), so it shouldn’t be such an issue. But thank you for notifying my about Oberlin; I’ll have to look into that.
@intparent is correct, Oberlin is much more liberal than Kenyon. Oberlin is “activist” liberal, while Kenyon just kind of considers liberalism to be normal. Moderate or conservative students will get a reasonable amount of respect at Kenyon, if they can make a rational case for their views.
If you want a more conservative type school take a look at Centre College in Kentucky. Outstanding school.
Colorado College is liberal but mostly in a “green” kind of way. Other than that, apparently it was conservative enough for both daughters of former Vice President Dick Cheney’s to attend. His wife is also an alum.
The colleges themselves are not politically affiliated, but the student body tends to be liberal at most LAC and some are known for it more than others Oberlin more than Kenyon, more than Colorado, agreeing with the above post. You can look at Ohio Wesleyan, I don’t think they meet full need but they do give some good aid to the students they want to attract.
Colleges do not have “political affiliations”. And just because a college has some affiliation with a church does not mean the political leanings of all faculty or students’ will match yours. I’d suggest you visit, read the Fiske Guide to Colleges, read threads out here, etc. on all the colleges you are considering… if you didn’t know that Oberlin attracted very liberal students, you can’t have done much research. But Oberlin is also, by the way, is probably the strongest school academically discussed on this thread. Don’t toss out academic rigor in your quest for some kind of political purity.
To clarify, when I say the school is politically affiliated, I mean their student body is. Also, upon further research, I discovered that a number of colleges are rather liberal, but I guess that’s too be expected in LAC (as intparent mentioned). The only reason I don’t want an incredibly liberal college is because I’ve lived in rural, conservative environments my whole life, and I don’t really want to have to deal with that big of a contrast. But, thank you everyone for your help.
Why not go to a college that expands your horizons? College is about thinking about and learning about things outside of what you have already experienced.
Because I’m planning on undergrad, grad, and PhD (I want to be a history professor). I’ll have plenty of time to adjust to politically diverse environments, but I don’t want to feel like I’m under attack for my beliefs because I don’t want to be distracted from my studies. I feel as if many colleges can provide a diverse yet safe environment. I don’t really want to continue to discuss this, because I feel as if it is too subjective of an issue to debate. Again, I thank you for your contribution, and I will weigh your words, as well as look further into these colleges.
If you can’t defend them in the less rigorous atmosphere of your undergrad education, you won’t have an easy time at higher levels either. Might as well get started. And you might find there is some merit to looking at things from another perspective, which is a very valuable quality for a history prof to have.
It isn’t a matter of perspective, or defending my views. I’m rather moderate, libertarian if anything. I just don’t want a campus dictated by politics. I have a lot of very liberal friends, including a professor at a nearby university. I’m used to defending my views, and I love the fact that my views are always changing. My current college prospect list (7 schools) contains 2 rather liberal schools: Oberlin and Grinnell. They’re there because the amount of things I like about them greatly outweighs their flaws. I should and will give Kenyon another look; I acted irrationally. I am still on the mailing list and everything, and if I get the chance, I will visit both Kenyon and Oberlin (I’m in Missouri, so not the easiest to visit), however, my point stands. No individual thing will rule a college out for me, but I factor in the people I will be surrounded by for 4 years rather highly.
I think most people don’t want to be surrounded by a majority of people who do not share (or perhaps are even hostile to) one’s beliefs. Liberals rarely choose to attend extremely conservative schools. I don’t see any reason that a conservative should attend an exceptionally liberal school… other than it drastically narrows the options.
Another appropriate college for conservative students is Hope College in Michigan. It is Christian – conservative but not fundamentalist. Dutch Reformed, if I recall, but has a very wide range of denominations.
I actually meant to look at Hope earlier, as I have family very near Holland. Thanks for reminding me!
Take a look at St. Olaf’s as well. Another respected LAC thats a bit more conservative. But I’m not sure about their financial aid. You might also want to take a look at some southern LACs. I also agree that you don’t want to go into a school where you are part of a cultural minority. There are enough challenges in adjusting to college life without feeling on the defensive about your views.
Actually St Oalf didnt come close to meeting need. In the end I choose Cornell College and have zero regrets!