CC block plan is unique.
You stayed in the original post, you disliked sitting in class for 3 hours. Since this us the crux of CC, it sounds to me that you would be better served at Oberlin
Interesting read in #19. Lots of info. I don’t believe all the spin from the college, though.
From the data in the Oberlin link I provided above, it looks like the decline in conservatory students is already happening of its own accord, given declining yields for conservatory applicants.
I question whether this strategy will pay off in the long run, however, as the conservatory provides a niche and a way to differentiate itself from other small colleges. I guess time will tell. Hopefully it doesn’t tick of alums and result in a decline in donations.
@hydrationiskey The CollegeKickstart blog is reporting Colorado College’s admission rate for the Class of 2023 at 14%. I’m not sure if that’s accurate; they inadvertently repeated the number of applications from the Class of 2022 (around 8,550), when the acceptance rate was 15%. If the 14% acceptance rate they are listing is accurate, I predict CC received around 9,000 applications for the Class of 2023 (the actual number is probably a little above or below that number). Whatever, the actual number, you should feel great about having been accepted! If you were admitted RD, the acceptance rate for that pool has been around 5 or 6 percent for the past few years. It’s really competitive to be admitted to Colorado College these days. By way of comparison, Middlebury, Wesleyan, and Haverford admitted 16% to the Class of 2023; Harvey Mudd and Pitzer admitted 13%. Other schools at 14% (though not liberal arts colleges) are Georgetown and Washington University of St. Louis.
Plenty of CC grads are accepted to competitive PhD programs and teach at some of the leading research universities and liberal arts colleges in the country. Oberlin may produce more PhDs, but Colorado College grads who aspire to teach at the college level have many fine opportunities.
The final thing I’ll say is that I feel you’ll end up choosing which college to attend not based on hard data but on a certain je ne sais quoi, an ineffable quality that may be hard for you to put into words. In my mind, that’s the way it should be. You mentioned visiting Oberlin again. Will you have the chance to go back to CC? Doing so may be the best way for you to make your final decision. I hope all of the thoughtful posts here will help illuminate some of the pros and cons of both schools and lead you to the one that’s best for you!
Column 6 is Oberlin acceptance rates through 2017. Yes doschicos facts are interesting especially when you use them from the source.
You portray Oberlin as a school on the decline. They have a healthy endowment, they have issues as do many LAC’s but they are getting considerable kudo’s for being proactive in addressing them. They were just featured in an article from an educational journal lauding that very fact. They had a bad year in 2017 but last year they passed their enrollment goal. Their acceptance rate in 2016 was their lowest since 1994.
Did you go to Colorado College? It’s sad when someone tries to promote one school by bashing another school with inaccurate/manipulated data.
COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
Admitted Enrolled
% of % of Double Average SAT Score
Year Applications No. Applications No. Admitted Degree Verbal Math Writing
1988 4,303 1,858 43% 575 31% 20 600 622
1989 3,967 2,277 57% 735 32% 28 613 632
1990 3,480 1,891 54% 574 30% 37 611 638
1991 3,391 2,298 68% 642 28% 42 597 627
1992 3,684 2,392 65% 655 27% 39 605 635
1993 3,887 2,472 64% 600 24% 42 599 626
1994 3,652 2,624 72% 687 26% 41 609 630
1995 3,727 2,694 72% 668 25% 35 601 629
1996 3,863 2,507 65% 671 27% 39 670 633
1997 3,805 2,364 62% 681 29% 41 665 634
1998 3,535 2,233 63% 633 28% 28 671 637
1999 3,819 2,203 58% 634 29% 36 681 645
2000 4,193 2,023 48% 677 33% 32 677 644
2001 4,570 1,798 39% 623 35% 55 679 655
2002 4,924 1,763 36% 658 37% 40 691 659
2003 4,934 1,904 39% 658 35% 30 683 656
2004 5,160 2,065 40% 625 30% 27 688 663
2005 5,461 2,015 37% 637 32% 27 697 665
2006 5,552 2,034 37% 621 31% 40 699 668 688
2007 5,749 1,949 34% 632 32% 38 697 667 681
2008 5,778 2,053 36% 668 33% 24 700 674 689
2009 5,939 2,184 37% 696 32% 27 700 676 690
2010 6,014 1,996 33% 703 35% 38 699 675 694
2011 6,117 1,942 32% 647 33% 33 699 678 696
2012 5,842 1,978 34% 664 34% 45 692 674 685
2013 6,167 2,023 33% 683 34% 38 696 673 689
2014 6,038 2,094 35% 713 34% 34 690 671 683
2015 6,589 1,982 30% # 690 35% 37 694 669 686
2016 7,257 2,093 29% 658 31% 35 688 676 678
2017 6,366 2,344 37% 644 27%
@liveforlacs The Class of 2023 admission rate you found was correct. To be more specific, the admission rate for the CC Class of 2023 was 13.4%, with about 8,900 applicants and about 1,200 acceptances. I was very surprised to be admitted (considering the fact I was deferred EA, rejected from Middlebury, and waitlisted by Trinity College). To answer another question of yours in conjunction with this one, I found this figure out from CC Admissions when I visited campus last week for a CC Admitted Student Event. I hadn’t been able to visit campus before then and I thought it was a beautiful campus. But I had this lingering thought that it may have just been because I hadn’t been there before or couldn’t compare it to any other admitted school post-college admissions cycle (essentially, it was the first admitted school I visited).
I also just thought about the two parts of myself: the linguist and the musician. I felt the linguist might be happy, but would the musician? The musician who always be told “Oberlin is a good place for smart people who like music”? Would I enjoy the Block Plan, really, or would I find it too constricting? Would I like being there once I got there and stayed there for more than a couple days? And, if not, and if indeed felt the need to be at Oberlin, would I be able to transfer there as a freshman?
I like your talk about finding a certain je ne sais quoi with my schools. I feel like I felt that at Oberlin, but also at CC, and it’s becoming harder and harder as time ticks on for me to come to terms with which one would make me the most happy.
Thank you everyone who has posted so far. All of your comments have really helped me think critically about this and I honestly can’t thank you all enough.
“You portray Oberlin as a school on the decline.”
Look at the figures, @gonzaga35. They aren’t mine. I didn’t make them up. They come from the school’s website and show several concurrent years of decline in yield rates and increases in acceptance rates as well as decreases in enrollment. The school has been losing money as a result. They brought in a new president and are making changes as a result. This is NOT an issue that Colorado College is facing nor many other LACs.
" It’s sad when someone tries to promote one school by bashing another school with inaccurate/manipulated data."
Pray tell, how is the data I presented either inaccurate or manipulated? It’s from the school itself. 
The data you present (difficult to read in the format you’ve presented) doesn’t contain 2018 data which Oberlin ITSELF shows as another year of downtrend. How come you left that out?
This seems to be personal for you. It’s not for me. I’m just representing data from the source. And there is plenty of supporting info in the articles posted by me and another. Have you read them? Do you think those articles are made up, too?
I appreciate your enthusiasm for your son’s school and it’s great that he is enjoying his experience however it doesn’t change the fact that Oberlin is facing challenges the past few years. How do you square the data reported by Oberlin and the side by side comparison with data for Colorado College and arrive at any other conclusion then CC is in a much more robust place in terms of demand and enrollment?
I am not sure how helpful this is to the OP!
And while some of this may be school specific,
some differences may relate to more macro things such as the political environment of Ohio and legality of marijuana in Colorado.
By standardized scoring attributes, these schools place fairly closely:
SAT Middle Ranges
CC: 1300-1470
Oberlin: 1280-1490
ACT Middle Ranges
CC: 29-33
Oberlin: 29-31
Note, however, that more scoring data for Oberlin (109% for the combined total of both exams) appears than for CC (94%), which might negatively impact Oberlin’s scores in relation to CC’s.
(Source: most recent Common Data Sets.)
@hydrationiskey Thanks for offering the admission information for the Colorado College Class of 2023. If the acceptance rate is 13.4%, that will be rounded down to 13%, which is one of the lowest rates for liberal arts colleges (or for any college) this year. (A few LACs, like Swarthmore and Bowdoin, are at 9%; there is also a very small number of LACs at 10%, 11%, or 12%).
Just one final thought: You might contact the admissions counselors you worked with at both CC and Oberlin and ask if they can find a few students for you to chat with. Explain your dilemma to the counselors, emphasize that you’re genuinely torn and undecided, and ask to speak to students who will answer your questions honestly and forthrightly, without trying to sway you to go in one direction or the other (since it really does have to be your decision).
I think that’s what I would do; you may decide on a different route, and that’s fine, too. In any case, you seem to be handling this very well. Follow your heart; it won’t mislead you. Trust your judgment. To thine own self be true.
“legality of marijuana in Colorado.”
Since marijuana is only legal for 21+ and since technically CC’s campus is smoke free and marijuana isn’t allowed, you’re unlikely to see a difference between the two campuses. Plenty of weed on both, as well as all liberal leaning campuses.
^^true about the age, and true, not being legal has never stopped college students, , but anecdotally, it has factored into the attractiveness of colleges in certain states.
Hi everyone. I’m going to throw another wrench in my predicament. After sifting through and see what I like and don’t like about each school, I have some addendums to my original post.
Oberlin: has the Experimental College (which, ironically enough, was part of my Early Decision school as well), has a prettier campus, has more student organizations
CC: has better [url=<a href=“https://weatherspark.com/compare/y/3685%7E17361/Comparison-of-the-Average-Weather-in-Colorado-Springs-and-Oberlin%5Dweather%5B/url”>https://weatherspark.com/compare/y/3685~17361/Comparison-of-the-Average-Weather-in-Colorado-Springs-and-Oberlin]weather[/url], in a prettier town, has a more open feel (both student-wise and faculty-wise), has pretty robust study abroad options
Maybe there’s more, but this post is getting long…
Also, @liveforlacs, what (specifically) was your experience as a French major under the Block Plan? How did the three hours feel to you? How did your schedule look? How was music at CC?
@Nicckkkkkk, is there a reason your friend thought the Block Plan was particularly tight?
Also are there any current Oberlin students who can talk about the pros and cons of their school and its environment?
Also, for the general College Confidential community, if I do make the wrong decision now, do you think I would have a chance as a transfer if I hold it together freshman year?
This is only getting harder and harder.
@gardenstategal
“some differences may relate to more macro things such as the political environment of Ohio and legality of marijuana in Colorado”
– True. But Colorado Springs itself is actually quite conservative, even though it’s part of a state where marijuana is legal. CC students need to drive an hour or more to reach the truly more liberal areas of Denver and Boulder.
@katliamom There are definitely pockets of liberalism in Colorado Springs, Colorado College being the center of one, Manitou being another, and so on. No need to drive to Boulder.
I think you are frying your brains at this point. My D was in a similar predicament two years ago involving Oberlin and one other college. There’s something to say for a college that defines its success in terms of your success. If after a careful consideration you are still frying your brains, choose the college that defines its success in terms of your success.
@StJohnny I’m going to be honest: I don’t quite understand what you mean.
My D chose Oberlin after an agonizing decision between Oberlin and one other school (she had already made the enrollment deposit at the 2nd school when her waitlist at Oberlin moved.) She was totally torn. She even posted a thread in College Confidential seeking advice. In the end, she didn’t care about the prestige, general selectivity stats or trends, median SAT/ACT…
I am short on details because I don’t want to sound bias against CC in any way. It’s just I am more familiar with Oberlin than I am with CC. However, in your college search you sense that one of the colleges wants you more than the other, that school is probably defining its own success by its student’s success. When students succeed, the college succeeds. It isn’t a complicated formula. My D says she keeps “tripping” over opportunities at Oberlin.
(Also, fyi, current college students busy planning year end typically do not visit college confidential.)
@hydrationiskey I chose French because the small department worked well for me, and the classes and professors were incredible. Frankly, the three hours flew by. I remember in one class we returned in the afternoon for another hour or so, and even that seemed manageable. It was true immersion. I spent almost nine months in France through a CC program; I stayed for the summer to work on a family farm.
I participated informally in music by singing in the college concert choir. Some friends and I started a Madrigal group and sang at Madrigal dinners. There are many musical groups and opportunities. I may not be the best person to weigh in here since I wasn’t a music major, but I remember there being a vibrant music scene.
It sounds like both schools would be a good fit and would allow you to thrive. The advice you’ve received here has been wonderful. It should help you consider your options carefully. You can make lists and look at all the “pros and cons,” if you will, for each school. Ultimately, though, I would set it all aside and reach deep within yourself for an answer that I suspect is already there. Good luck in finding what speaks to you at the very essence of your being.
yes, my friend think the block plan is really tight for studying language. I would agree that block plan is an unique feature of Colorado and may be a great way to study STEM fields. However, study language is completely different compared to study chemistry or math. You need a long process to immerse into it, not just several weeks
PLUS, the reason why Colorado has lower acceptance rate and higher enrollment rate is CC admit half of the class from Early Decision round. According to CC’s official data for class of 2022, class of 2022 has a total enrollment of 544. For early decision round, CC admit 307 students, which is 56% of the whole class. This is really a trick for students who focus on the acceptance rate to judge whether a college is good enough. Yes, the acceptance rate for CC looks very low, but actually they use Early Decision to ensure their enrollment, so they do not need to admit much students from RD. Low acceptance rate doesn’t mean CC is on par with Vassar or Haverford, which has similar acceptance rate. It’s just a trick of data.
For Oberlin, it has a total enrollment of 725 for class of 2022 of college of Arts and Science. Oberlin admit 235 students from the ED round, which is only 32% of the whole class. That’s why the enrollment rate for Oberlin looks lower. In fact, Oberlin has more RD enrollment than CC in the whole class.