<p>I’m the parent of a junior in a family where we have limited $$ for visiting schools, so we’re trying to narrow down a list. Here are two questions that would affect whether we visit Oberlin:</p>
<li><p>I know there are a lot of majors at Oberlin, so obviously everyone doesn’t study music, but I wonder if so many people are interested in music that not being so makes one “out of the loop.” Does Oberlin feel like a place where everybody does something musical?</p></li>
<li><p>My son will probably study political science. He is somewhat conservative in his views, although not altogether so. (He would have voted for Obama but also might join ROTC if he ends up at a college that has it.) Is the student body at Oberlin overwhelmingly liberal? (I’m a Macalester grad, so I am concerned.)</p></li>
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<li><p>No. The music culture is strong, but there are plenty of students who aren’t actively engaged in it.</p></li>
<li><p>Yes, but there are some relatively conservative students. On balance, probably quite close to the mix at Macalester.</p></li>
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<p>While not everyone <em>does</em> music, there is a campus-wide appreciation for music. Concerts are big deals. Conservatory and college students live in the same dorms and share campus, so a lot of your son’s future friends would be pursuing a career in music. I go to my friend’s concerts, whether they’re classical guitarists, rappers, composers or jazz pianists. If your son is really, really uninterested in music and nearly hates it… Oberlin is not for him. </p>
<p>That said, you’re totally right, not everyone does music. I certainly can’t understand “new music,” I don’t play an instrument, and I’m not a huge fan of classical music. Still, I’m not ‘out of the loop.’ and no one’s ever treated/implied that I am. </p>
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<li>Generally, Oberlin is really tolerant, open place. If your son is very social conservative, he might feel a bit at odds with campus culture. If he’s fiscally conservative, we’ve got a lot of students who are. But if he disagrees with someone, people here like to talk it out. We’re fans of discussion and discourse. I wouldn’t say we’re overwhelmingly liberal-- there aren’t many protests <em>on</em> campus and few liberal prosteletizers. There’s every kind of person here. </li>
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<p>Also, if he’s going for poli sci, I’d recommend joining the OC Republicans. They’re a strong organization that brings a lot of incredible, conservative speakers to campus, including Newt Gingrich and Bob Barr. </p>
<p>In Politics: take Paul Dawson, Ben Schiff and Harlan Wilson. Top notch profs. The politics department is pretty awesome – professors really force you to think. The department covers international relations, political theory and public policy.</p>
<p>Great advice, quibbler, except the part about joining the OC Republicans. You’re entitled to your opinion, but I disagree. Don’t presume the kid is a Republican. His parent said had he been old enough he would’ve voted for Obama. That doesn’t sound like a Republican to me. Perhaps he should join the OC Democrats. There are Democrats with moderate to conservative views. </p>
<p>I, for one, would never consciously attend a college or university where the dominant culture was antithetical to my own views. That doesn’t make sense to me. Would you attend Bob Jones University just to be challenged? How about Jerry Falwell’s Liberty University? Not moi. College is about more than being challenged. It’s about fit, about meeting people who could become lifelong friends, about being comfortable to a degree so you can learn. </p>
<p>I don’t think a high school junior quite knows what he is in terms of his political views. But I agree that he should not be afraid of Oberlin just because he has some interest in the military. I wanted to be a Navy fighter pilot, and almost made it until they found out I was colorblind. I was ready and willing to bomb enemy targets, which would’ve killed other human beings, and I’m a liberal. But I’m also patriotic. The two are not mutually exclusive.</p>
<p>Thanks all for the intelligent advice. We’ve put all our visiting plans on hold until the fall, but your comments encouraged me about Oberlin. My son isn’t an arch conservative or anything like that, but he gets really impatient with the kind of knee-jerk liberalism that some of his high school friends espouse. I looked at Oberlin’s econ department and found that the range of profs suggests the education is fairly balanced, which it isn’t everywhere.</p>
<p>To clarify-- OC Republicans serves as the catch-all conservative group. Their adviser is a libertarian. A lot of them don’t espouce the party line (any more than OC Dems do), but find themselves right of center on some issues. Like gun control, role of free market or biomedical research. Again, one of their main roles is to encourage discussion on campus. There was a really popular, student-lead debate on the sustainability of capitalism last week.</p>