<p>What schools do you think are the most accepting of others and less cliquey, have the friendliest students, etc.?</p>
<p>You're going to want to stay away from the Northeastern part of the country for this one.</p>
<p>The U of Iowa is about the least pretentious and most friendly place I've ever been.</p>
<p>I've found the friendliest, down-to-earth students at Rice and Wash U. Also, Rice's residential college system promotes a very inclusive social environment and a lot of integration among ethnicities.</p>
<p>Virginia Tech has always seemed pretty friendly. Not a lot of cliques or anything, and a lot of people so you'll be able to find friends.</p>
<p>i second rice.</p>
<p>Texas A&M was pretty nice</p>
<p>I second what blackeyedsusan said: Rice and WashU, fa sho'.</p>
<p>Notre Dame.</p>
<p>I would look into the Jesuit schools. The doctrine of tolerance and of serving others translates well into student attitudes.</p>
<p>Macalester?</p>
<p>Midwestern LACs in general would be very high on the friendliness/acceptance scale, as would most if not all of the Universities of the Big Ten.</p>
<p>Grinnell, William & Mary, Reed, Carleton are know for lack of pretentiousness and conformity.</p>
<p>I disagree about ALL northeastern schools not fitting this profile. Public schools maybe...I've spent some time at URI and UMass Amh and Dart. and they're not the friendliest people, but I don't think this goes for some of the privates...PC and BC were both awesome to visit and the kids seemed pretty sincere and friendly...albeit wicked preppy with a hint of snobbishness.</p>
<p>It is tough to answer your question since different kids perceive different things about the same colleges. My son felt a certain way about colleges that were different from conventional wisdom, it seemed. There were certain types of colleges that he did not like as much, which were the more artsy, quirky, off beat schools like Bennington, Sarah Lawrence, Bard, but then his college is left of center in that department. </p>
<p>One thing that I did notice is that some schools are suitcase colleges, or largely commuter or local. When you have that situation, a kid who does not fall in those categories can feel left out. However, my son goes to a state school that is largely commuter, non residential, and has no problem with it because there are enough kids who are not. In a smaller setting, it might be an issue.</p>
<p>any others?</p>
<p>Virginia Tech for sure, I dropped something and like 3 people rushed to help. during that same trip I went to UVA and they weren't as nice there IMO.</p>
<p>Hillsdale. (They only attract students who agree with them, so they are certainly accepting of and friendly toward their own kind.)</p>
<p>Another vote for the Midwest in general.</p>
<p>Carleton, Macalester in particular among LACs.</p>
<p>Agree with Rice. Northwestern and Wash U also very accepting and friendly with low-key cliques thrown into the mix.</p>
<p>Middlebury for sure.</p>
<p>Bowdoin. Don't diss the northeast! Small, unpretentious, smart community of good people who love to learn and to have fun.</p>