Less selective open-curriculum colleges

New College of Florida.

Merc81: yes, thats sort of what I meant. Also when I made “requirements” foe what an open curriculum is, they were mostly guidelines.

I really appreciate all the answers, guys! They’re very helpful.

Does anyone know of any larger schools that dont have as many requirements? Just to round things out? I dont care if nobodys heard of it or whatever. I think George Washington U had small distribution requirements last I checked…

(If you qant to post a small school anyway, by all means go ahead. Im trying to collect as much information as possible)

In terms of larger schools, the mentioned University of Rochester has a classically arranged campus (in Greek Revival and Georgian Colonial, I believe) on the edge of a medium-sized city. Though a “most selective” school, a strong student will have a good chance of admission there.

http://collegelists.pbworks.com/w/page/16119530/Open%20Curriculum%20-%20schools%20with%20more%20flexible%20curricula

Re #23, Be advised that some of the schools included on the list have highly structured curricula, and would actually be notable for their lack of flexibility.

Re #23

Really do not see why that list has any credibility since it includes Saint John’s College, which has a core curriculum that is the entire curriculum.

Yeah, ive seen that list before, I think if anything its more a list of “non-traditional” curricula.

The inclusion of schools (e.g., Grinnell) under both of what initially appear to be two distinct headings also diminishes the list’s credibility.

@merc81 all of the schools are included twice. The second heading says “List of Schools with Different Levels of Curricular Freedom (as defined above)” which does not at all rule out schools with fully open curricula (which is the top list). I don’t really see how that diminishes the credibility of the list (though of course I admit that this list, like many things on the internet and on College Confidential, probably isn’t 100% accurate).

I don’t see what’s wrong with posting this list. It’s obviously not a perfect list, but it includes a number schools that have what the OP is looking for that haven’t been mentioned on this thread yet. I hope the OP finds it helpful. Let’s not hijack their thread to debate its credibility.

Thanks, @lalalemma. Youre right. I did actually fond a few colleges I wouldnt have otherwise on that list. Lets definitely not turn this into a flame war :slight_smile:

In the list linked from #23, the first list of four colleges with completely open curricula is also incorrect. Grinnell effectively has distribution requirements, in that one cannot take more than a certain number of courses in the same department or in the same division (humanities, social studies, science). Smith also has a similar limitation. But the completely open curriculum Evergreen State is missing from that first list (although it appears in the second list).

“Let’s not hijack this thread to debate [the list’s] credibility.” (28)

Stated at the conclusion of two paragraphs . . . discussing the list’s credibility.

@lalalemma: Once a few points about the list’s limitations – and perhaps inaccuracies – are made, I do believe its inclusion can be potentially quite valuable. So it’s a good contribution, and one the OP has obviously appreciated.

Hampshire, Eugene Lang/New School, New College of Florida, Pitzer . . .

Kalamazoo revised its curricular requirements and no longer has gen eds or distribution requirements, except for a foreign language competency and writing-intense class in freshman, sophomore and senior year. So, it is not on that linked list about flexible curriculum schools.

I’ll put in my vote for Kalamazoo College - We really enjoyed our visit last summer. If you are looking for a bit warmer weather, and a larger school, maybe look at Wake Forest University: http://college.wfu.edu/academics/open-curriculum/

Good luck on your search. Very smart of you to get started early!

Oberlin College in Ohio might be an option for you. When I was there, there were no distribution requirements whatsoever, but that’s changed but is still fairly open.

http://catalog.oberlin.edu/preview_entity.php?catoid=15&ent_oid=1023#requ_for_grad