Looking for a tiny college...

College Search & Selection
61

<p>Here’s my current list of colleges that I’m interested in seeing/learning more about: (in alphabetical order :D)
Amherst College
Bates College
Bowdoin College
Carleton College
Colorado College
Dickinson College
Franklin and Marshall College
Grinnell College
Hamilton College
Hampshire College
Haverford College
Macalester College
Middlebury College
Oberlin College
Pomona College
Reed College
Sarah Lawrence College
Swarthmore College
Vassar College
Whitman College
Williams College</p>

<p>That’s… 21. Eek. I’d like to narrow it down to 15 at the most…</p>

62

<p>Sorry, have to admit I have jumped around this thread and may have missed it, but has anyone mentioned Bennington?</p>

63

<p>Certainly if you are looking at Hampshire, Reed, Oberlin & Sarah Lawrence, you might want to take a look at Bennington too, and “tiny” certainly fits the bill!</p>

64

<p>Certainly if you are looking at Hampshire, Reed, Oberlin & Sarah Lawrence, you might want to take a look at Bennington too, and it definitely fits the bill for “tiny”</p>

65

<p>Amherst and Pomona, both have the advantage of 5 school consortium, which could be very helpful for more research opportunities in the sciences.</p>

<p>Bowdoin- very good for sciences, as well as Haverford.</p>

<p>I would be wary of Franklin and Marshall, not know for particularly nurturing enviroment.</p>

<p>Swarthmore, while very good for science not very “warm and
fuzzy” known to have a competitive nature.</p>

66

<p>How do Williams, Amherst, Swarthmore, and Pomona compare in terms of environment? I know they’re all excellent academically…</p>

67

<p>Obviously this is a broad generalization but:</p>

<p>Swarthmore: Intellectual atmosphere, high % of future PhDs, fairly competitive</p>

<p>Williams: Athletic athmosphere (most successful D3 school), more mainstream, outdoorsy</p>

<p>Pomona: Laid-back yet hard-working west coast vibe.</p>

<p>Can’t say I know much about Amherst, but I would expect it to be the most similar to Williams. Less rural, however.</p>

68

<p>You might want to check out Franklin Oln College of Engineering in Needham, MA. Yes, it is an engineering school, but small (300+ student body) with a truly innovative, creative curriculum focused on the art of learning. You can take any course you like at Wellesley practically next door; the faculty is flat out amazing and the whole place is dynamic, collaborative and nurturing. Also, many graduates of Olin pursue other areas of interest in the top grad school, outside traditional engineering tracks. Oh, and it offers full tuition scholarships to all students.</p>

69

<p>Whitman College might be a good match for someone with your characteristics. I will be attending Whitman in the fall and I chose for a lot of the same reasons you have listed. It’s coed, with a student population around 1500. Walla Walla, Whitman’s hometown, has a cute, small town feel and crime is definitely not an huge issue there. In addition, it is in the (arid) Southeastern part of Washington, so there is tons of greenery without all the rain. When I visited last October, the leaves were all red and ready to fall. Needless to say, the campus is gorgeous.</p>

<p>From what I could gather, the kids there were all very congenial, academically-oriented students. When I talked to them, they talked about how many professors has discussion based classes and how students often got together for study groups all the time. It didn’t seem at all cutthroat or competitive, if that bothers you. The general atmosphere among the students and the faculty was pretty laidback and cooperative.</p>

<p>A large percentage of the student population is involved in fraternities and sororities, but if partying/drinking isn’t your thing, there are also lots of people who don’t drink and manage to find other activities to participate in. Music and intramural sports, for instance, are all very active on campus as is outdoor-based programs.</p>

<p>I would definitely encourage you to take a look at Whitman and see if it’s right for you.</p>

70

<p>before i saw your last list of colleges i was definetly going to recommend haverford. great with the sciences and definetly very small. provides a unique experience due to the honor code.. something like 40% of the student body are varsity athletes (DIII). one of my best friends from HS just finished freshman year and LOVES it. give it a closer look.</p>

71

<p>There is great word of mouth on Hamilton Colllege. Despite the challenging academics, there is supposedly a non-competitive vibe and a very friendly student population. And it’s one of those 5 or 6 schools with no core requirements at all. You put together your own program with your advisor, based on your interests and goals, not on requirements.</p>

72

<p>Environmental club? Small college? check out College of the Atlantic.</p>

73

<p>I think Oberlin would be a great school for you to look at. It’s a bit larger than your target range (about 2,800 students) but it has a close community and definitely still feels like a small LAC. From the students I’ve met and the classes I’ve visited, people are very smart, but not competitive or pretentious; it seems like everyone is passionate and curious, and most don’t take themselves too seriously. And Oberlin does a lot of things to encourage intellectual exploration, going outside the box of a conventional classroom: things like Winter Term, or the Experimental College, where students can teach courses for credit on [just</a> about everything](<a href=“http://www.oberlin.edu/stuorg/exco/students/courses.htm]just”>http://www.oberlin.edu/stuorg/exco/students/courses.htm).</p>

<p>We have very strong sciences - including one of the oldest and best neuroscience programs in the country, and an incredible environmental studies program with a brand-new, student-designed sustainable [center[/url</a>]. (There’s a lot of activism on campus, and much of it is environmental: holding an Ecolympics to reduce energy and water use in dorms, working against town & college reliance on coal power, setting up a theme house for students who want to live sustainably, composting and building partnerships between food service & local farms…) Looking at your ECs, there’s an incredible music scene at Oberlin because of the conservatory, and if you want to continue with newspaper work, writing for the [url=<a href="http://blog.oberlin.edu/blogs/blog_entry_detail.dot?id=29457&bloggerID=23274&crumbTitle=Summertime,%20and%20the%20livin’%20is%20easy]Oberlin"&gt;http://blog.oberlin.edu/blogs/blog_entry_detail.dot?id=29457&bloggerID=23274&crumbTitle=Summertime,%20and%20the%20livin’%20is%20easy]Oberlin</a> Review](<a href=“http://www.oberlin.edu/ajlc/ajlcHome.html]center[/url”>http://www.oberlin.edu/ajlc/ajlcHome.html) is a great opportunity. And FWIW, your GPA & test scores put you right in range for admissions.</p>

<p>I’d strongly recommend that you visit and check out the campus and community for yourself; it’s not for everyone, but I think it’d be a great match for you. I visited last year and will be starting school there in August (in case it wasn’t obvious), so if you have any questions, let me know and I’ll try to help.</p>

74

<p>Smith College and Whitman College are wonderful colleges with quality education, committed professors, and terrific advising and mentoring.</p>