<p>hey i would love to go to a liberal arts school, however my main issue is their location, as they are mostly located in relatively small towns. I feel that their location makes it really hard to find internships. I plan on majoring in international relations/studies and would like to get internships during the school year, but i feel the location would set me back. If you could recommend any colleges that are in more metropolitan locations or are good with internships, it would be very greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Occidental college and Pomona are really close to LA.</p>
<p>Tufts – really close to boston and really good in international relations.</p>
<p>University of Denver has a good International Relations program.</p>
<p><a href=“Josef Korbel School of International Studies | University of Denver”>www.du.edu/korbel/academic/academic_degree_programs/ba/BA_Major.html</a></p>
<p>Swarthmore, Haverford, and Bryn Mawr are right outside of Philadelphia. Consider Macalester for an urban LAC as well.</p>
<p>What Axel said. Literally fits your description on what you are looking for.</p>
<p>Holy Cross, Trinity, Davidson.</p>
<p>Look for schools that have a January term because you can use that time for an internship. Middlebury has J-term and the international studies/relations major is excellent. If you can get into Dartmouth (which is supposed to be LAC-like), the D-plan also opens up more internship options that are not near the school. (You go one summer and then can take a semester away from the campus which you can combine with another summer to make 6 months away). Also check whether students are really doing internships during the regular semester anyway at some of the schools you are thinking of. Are students from Swarthmore really going into the city during the week for an internship? And how valuable is it if you can only be there 7 - 10 hours a week? Your most valuable internships are probably going to be in the summer anyway and you’ll apply over the internet so you don’t need to be close to the internship city.</p>
<p>thanks for the responses, by liberal arts schools i was going by newsweeks standards which disregards tufts and u of denver. i would be interested in tufts i just dont think i have the grades and even if i did i couldnt pay for it more than likely. Would it better to look strictly in d.c., given my major?</p>
<p>It would help to know your stats and finances. </p>
<p>Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using CC App</p>
<p>as for finances, i probably wouldnt get need based aid, however, i would need a scholarship of some kind to make a liberal arts school financially possible. And in regards to grades and stuff, i dont have much as im only going to be a junior next year. i have a 3.95, varsity soccer, church group, etc. but i dont have an ACT score yet. I did get a range of 27-31 on my plan test if thats of any help, although i think i’ll be able to get higher than that. I realize it’s early, i’m just trying to get an idea of lac’s in a more urban area with good opportunites in international relations.</p>
<p>bump…</p>
<p>Lake Forest College is in an upscale suburb of Chicago, maybe 45 minutes away from downtown by commuter rail. Lots of merit aid.</p>
<p>Well Georgetown SFS, GW, and American are all great and in DC, but they aren’t LAC’s, lol. Once you have your ACT scores, etc, It’ll be easier to see where you might get accepted.</p>
<p>yea i understand, ive been looking a lot more at macalester, what do you think is a good score to shoot for on the ACT? collegeboard said the middle 50% is 28-32, does that sound right?</p>
<p>Always shoot for the 75% mark, but you don’t necesarily need to be at the 75% mark to be accepted. The higher the better, though, so I would try to get a 31+ for any schol, although you would still be at the median with 30.</p>
<p>thanks a lot axel</p>
<p>If you do well on the ACT, you do have a shot at Tufts and G-town. Those schools usually can give really nice packages of aid because they have more money. For its part, Tufts is considered to be somewhat of a pseudo liberal arts school in terms of size. It’s the only national university in NESCAC (the little ivies of sorts).</p>
<p>I have heard Middlebury is good in IR too. It’s liberal arts. But I don’t know much about their program. I do know it’s a tough school to get into (but really good, obviously). Luckily, you still have time to make yourself competitive (via test scores, etc.). Best of luck!</p>
<p>As for being close to a city, just remember that top schools with reputable programs will have recruiters for internships in DC, NYC, Boston, etc. So I wouldn’t let that be a concern (if that were the case, it would be tough going to Stanford, U of Chicago, MIT, etc. Obviously not the case). Best of luck!</p>
<p>gtown, I think you need to step back a bit.
First, get a clear picture of your financial situation. This is the #1 factor in determining your list. Needing merit aid and wanting merit aid are two very different things. Many of the colleges that have been recommended to you do not give merit aid, period. If you can get by without it, fine, proceed. If not, take them off your list now and concentrate on “merit” schools.</p>
<p>You should also ask your parents to use one of those on-line calculators to determine if your family may be eligible for need based aid. You might be surprised. Many selective privates only offer need based aid.</p>
<p>Second, put your scores – SAT or ACT – at the bottom of your worry list. They are important but nowhere near important as grades, rank, recommendations, ECs and other life experience and demographics. </p>
<p>If that 3.95 is out of 4.0 then you’re in good shape. Are you interested in playing soccer at college? If yes, that’s a plus. Do you have any other diversity factors, like ethnic background? If you’re female, look at all women’s colleges.</p>
<p>It sounds like you want small to medium size. Don’t quibble over whether its a small LAC or a small university. There are lots of overlaps in ambience and teaching style.</p>
<p>I don’t think mid-semester internships are all that common even if you’re right in the middle of DC. The real connections get made during the summers and in some cases during winter semester. Most colleges with rigorous academics have good IR programs (which can encompass development economics, political science, history). You will be exposed to thinkers in the field and offered internship and career opportunities at schools like Dartmouth, Middlebury, Williams etc. </p>
<p>Maybe the exposure isn’t as intense as at DC schools, but for sure IR graduate schools, government agencies and NGOs are full of people from a wide range of undergraduate experience. </p>
<p>Focus on the money first.</p>
<p>thanks for the replies, momrath i should clarify, i do need some sort of aid, i just thought it would be more likely for me to get merit than need given my financial situation. I’ve tried to talk to my parents about money but they’re pretty private about the whole thing. If i’m suggesting schools that dont offer merit aid please tell me, that’s why i crossed georgetown and others off my list. If anyone else has suggestions of small schools with reputable IR programs i’d greatly appreciate it. Also, in regards to other details, im a white male from suburban wisconsin so not quite a URM haha. And for soccer, i’m not to interested in playing in college mostly because i wouldnt be good enough to play at that level.</p>