These are the two colleges I have been accepted to and am considering. I was wait listed a bunch of places too, but I think I would be happy with either one of these schools.
I am probably going to study something math or science related, possibly physics or computer science, or engineering (probably in grad school, I don’t see myself leaving whatever school I attend early with a 3-2 program, but that could change.)
Oberlin is the school I am leaning towards now, though I have yet to visit either. My mom has spent some time there and has advocated the school as a good fit for me since the beginning, and we are pretty close. I got a significant merit scholarship from them too. The impression I have gotten from various pamphlets and a friend who visited was also very positive, and I have registered for a visit later this month. The strong artistic environment due to the conservatory seems very attractive, as well as the sustainability measures, and the independence it gives students (nonspecific course requirements, January term, exco), and my general sense of the culture there. I really don’t mind the “isolated” location; I think a more campus oriented environment would be most comfortable for me.
Reed is a school I know less about, and visiting will be difficult (I live outside NYC). I am still waiting to hear back about financial aid. The location near a city like Portland is nice as well, I often find myself overwhelmed in New York but expect that Portland would be a little more manageable. I have seen Reed compared to UChicago in some of these discussions, and had some questions about that. The impression I had on UChicago was intensely intellectual in a somewhat older definition of the word, in that I have read that studies like engineering and applied sciences were seen as lesser to the pure sciences, and some of the other beliefs seemed relatively “conservative” (when compared to places like Oberlin).* I was wondering how this intense “where fun goes to die” feeling manifests in a more liberal place like Reed, especially when grades are not so valued. I have pushed myself pretty hard in high school but don’t necessarily want to be bogged down with endless reading and writing in college. However I do want to work hard and don’t want my classmates to be apathetic or to be choosing the “easy” option by going to Oberlin.
I’m doing some research of my own, but could anyone comment on the differences between the schools or any experiences with either, especially studying computer science, physics, or math? Thanks!
Not an attack on UChicago, it's obviously an amazing school
I’m a recent Reed grad and I know some people who went to Oberlin. I think the schools are similar. Social life at Reed is very campus-centric and I think that’s the case at Oberlin as well. Reed and Portland in general are beautiful and very green. (Reed is located on the edge of an old and wealthy residential neighborhood and the immediate surroundings on that side are mostly houses, gardens and parks.) Oberlin is known as the more artistic environment, whereas Reed has a more intellectual reputation, but I think this is a false distinction and both schools have both artistic and intellectual students. The student bodies are probably extremely similar.
Reed does have better course offerings in the sciences, however. It is very strong in that area. And no one there would judge you if you said you wanted to be an engineer or do something practical rather than theoretical; there are plenty of students who have similar ambitions and Reed has been doing more and more recently to support them. Also the science departments have been hiring lots of younger professors in recent years and those people are typically supportive of students’ career ambitions outside of academia.
However, Reed does pride itself on giving students a strong, theoretically sound ‘traditional’ education regardless of what they want to do in life. They may organize startup labs, ask alumni in fields you’re interested in to mentor you, give you money for travel/internships during the summer or winter, etc., but in class you’ll be expected to learn a lot of theory and the workload will be demanding. There are also distribution requirements that will structure your courseload to some extent, though I personally never felt like they were forcing me to take classes I wasn’t interested in.
Re. your potential majors, the computer science major is new at Reed; until this year all comp sci classes were listed as math classes. Reed also runs some sort of extracurricular comp sci lab that is geared toward more practical skill acquisition, but I’m not familiar with it. Reed alumni are very well represented in the Portland startup community, which Reed actively partners with, and Seattle (Microsoft) and reasonably well represented in Silicon Valley. There’s a 3/2 engineering option and I know people who’ve done it and graduated with degrees from Columbia and the University of Washington, but it’s not very popular because you have to plan your coursework around it from day one.
Anyway. If you can visit Reed, I highly recommend it because it’s a special place. But, as I said, I think socially it’s probably very similar to Oberlin. And now I’ll let the Obies tell you about their school. Good luck!
As a not-so-recent Reed grad, I’ll add a comment here.
I don’t know Oberlin well, but it was one of the schools I considered before choosing to attend Reed. I think that Reed and Oberlin are quite similar in some ways, but quite different in others.
Though without a conservatory, the arts have a strong presence on Reed’s campus, and involve many students who are not ‘arts’ students. There is also fairly strong support for environmental concerns, including an interdisciplinary Environmental Studies major. Both schools also share a liberal/progressive social environment.
As ‘Ghostt’ notes above, the sciences are very strong at Reed, including CS (even though the major is new, there has been CS work done at Reed for many years, and there are a lot of Reed graduates involved in technology).
Students at Reed also have a considerable degree of independence (independent work on a thesis is required of every senior) – but with one very important warning (based on your comment about “nonspecific course requirements”): Reed’s curriculum is fairly traditional, and in addition to some relatively strict requirements for majors, there are also significant distribution requirements and required courses (every freshman is required to take freshman humanities, for example). Also, the course work and workload can be very demanding. This does not mean that Reed is a place “where fun goes to die”; to the contrary: there are lots of opportunities for ‘fun’ of various kinds, both on and off campus, and everything from cultural events to camping holidays. But it is important to recognize that the relaxed social environment at Reed does not translate into a relaxed academic environment.
Both schools are excellent; I don’t see any reason to think one would be better for you than the other. I do think an overnight visit at each would be instructive.
Congratulations on your acceptance to two great schools. Academically you won’t go wrong at either place. Both would provide you with an excellent foundation for your graduate plans. If at all possible you should visit both schools. It’s the only way to find the right fit for you.
Both are definitely great schools, can’t go wrong with either. However, I’ll make a quick argument for Oberlin since this is the Oberlin forum
Looking over the course offerings and professors it seems like they would be pretty similar in physics. Neither has engineering, other than the 3-2s which you mentioned you weren’t interested in. For CS and math though, I think one could pretty easily argue that Oberlin would be a much stronger! Reed it seems have 11 faculty members in the Math department (which includes their CS concentration, so it’s not even it’s own major) compared to Oberlin which also has 11 math professors and a whole separate compsci department with an additional 7 professors. This means Oberlin can offer more electives more often, and they can be less theoretical and more practical. Both will offer a solid theoretical foundation though.
I think Oberlin is a more relaxed environment (distribution requirements can satisfy multiple categories, you don’t have to applying to a major, no junior exam, senior thesis is optional), but I don’t think that makes it inferior in any way. It’s just a very relaxed, collaborative environment. They are just different styles and you should pick the environment that will be best for you OP.
“I know writing a thesis shows grad schools that I know how to do research and write about it in refereed journal style. I really should write one. I plan to do so.”
Our CS department will be a thing from your sophomore year. It will be a 3 person department, but given the tremendous amount of interest in the program, I expect the department will grow by 1 faculty member every 1-2 years until we have 5 people or so. I can assure you that we have the /finest/ professors, simply because the top PhD graduates want to live in Portland.
Like, both Oberlin and Reed are great for the sciences. And if Oberlin offers more $$, go to Oberlin.
I’m going to be attending Oberlin next year and also visited Reed in my application process. One thing I noticed and heard was the cultures are somewhat different. I think by reputation (this probably isn’t true for all students) Reed is known for being very intense academically during the week and very intense recreationally during the weekend (i.e. drugs, alcohol, parties). Don’t get me wrong- these things definitely exist at Oberlin but I think the intensity and maybe even the pressure is lower at Oberlin. You might want to check with someone from Reed about that though. Academically I choose Oberlin because of the opportunities for undergrad research which I’m sure also exist at Reed I just didn’t hear about them. I also felt that Reed was somewhat snooty in the way they perceive themselves. Not sure how to describe it, but all the staff, faculty, and even students seemed to think Reed was the best education one could receive and Reed and Oberlin are for the most part on par with each other. Location wise I probably liked Reed more. Portland is a very liberal and exciting city where there’s all sorts of great places to explore. Oberlin is in a small town planted in a rural community surrounded by blue-collar Ohio towns. The winters are very cold while Portland remains somewhat constant year-round. I grew to love the location in my own way however so it’s really what you make of it- I know most Oberlin students have plenty of ways to keep themselves occupied. Also Reed has a stunning campus which might sell you on it- probably the most beautiful campus I’ve ever been on. Oberlin is unique in a way that very much matches the school, lots of different architecture styles and very interwoven with the town.
The first time I visited Oberlin I liked it a lot, but it wasn’t immediately where I saw myself going and it wasn’t till I visited other schools that I realized it was clearly the best place for me. The second time I visited I did an overnight and fell even more in love with the school. I suggest you do the same for both Oberlin and Reed.
I don’t think students who are admitted into Reed should be worried about the academic intensity. Reed is what you make of it; you can push yourself to amazing extents, but you can also do enough work to get by and be happy with your education. The stress is real but I can’t possibly imagine how students at other LACs couldn’t be similarly stressed. Like, it’s college? I would also be amazed if students at other schools didn’t engage in as much or more alcohol drinking – it isn’t really that excessive, and it is very simple to stay away from it.
And we do have student opportunities for research. Many of my friends are traveling to Sweden, Barbados, the woods in Colorado, and where not to conduct faculty-supervised research, while others are staying on campus to work for faculty. We also fund open-ended research opportunities that students find at other institutions; one of my friends, for instance, is going to work for CERN/Caltech faculty this summer. We don’t throw opportunities at students but those who seek them have no problem finding them.
Our Reed grad daughter had all-nighters in high school and at Reed. Those for whom high school was easy may have a harder time adjusting to the Reed work load. Your accepted Reed application proves that you can handle the work. This certainly applies to Oberlin as well.
The conservatory. I do not think any other liberal arts college has a conservatory like that, with 400-500 performances per year. If you want to learn about or become more involved with music, even if you do not play an instrument, that is the place. Also, you can go to a concert if you are looking for something to do. The talent is phenomenal.
The coops. About 22% of the campus board at a coop, and many live there. These are student-operated buildings where the students do all of the cooking and regular maintenance in exchange for lower room and board. You work a few hours per week. It’s a good way to become a good cook and make good friends.
The small town atmosphere. I love Portland, but it is a major city. I liked being able to bike 10 minutes, and be out in the country. There’s a wonderful bike path which was an old railway line that takes you out to the country as well.
The existence of varsity sports. Oberlin has a Division III sports program with about 20 varsity sports. Even if you are not a varsity athlete, the major spin-offs are fine gym, exercise, pool, track, and indoor and outdoor tennis facilities. There is a large intramural and club sports program. Also, you will not meet many dumb jocks there. Most of the athletes are bright, accomplished students, who are interesting people.
