<p>I'm trying to decide between these two colleges. Obviously this forum might be a little biased :D but what can you tell me about the differences, pros and cons, between these two schools?</p>
<p>Hi! Both Oberlin and W+M are awesome schools – it depends on what you’re looking for. If you’re really interested in music, sustainability, science research, writing, and arts, I’d say Oberlin is totally your go-to school. Though I don’t know much about William and Mary, I’d bet it has a different personality than Oberlin.</p>
<p>So… what are you looking for? :)</p>
<p>If you’d like a lot of information about Oberlin (especially what students are like), I’d check out the blogs: [Oberlin</a> Blogs](<a href=“http://blogs.oberlin.edu/]Oberlin”>http://blogs.oberlin.edu/)</p>
<p>I’m looking for a school that’s very academically focused, where classes take precedent over most everything else, but where there are still other activities for students to do. My major concerns with Oberlin is that it is too alternative and may have too much of a hipster culture (W&M) is a little more mainstream. </p>
<p>As for academics, I don’t know what I’d major in. My interests are in the humanities, something which Oberlin is great for.</p>
<p>Depends on your definition of “hipster.” I define hipster as someone who relishes the urban beat. A patron of the big city club scene. The kind of person who loves Manhattan and L.A., or any large metro area with a vibrant night life for young people, and is always out and about. By this definition, I don’t see Oberlin as full of “hipsters.” It’s not a hipster culture. Perhaps Reed is hipster. Or California’s Claremont colleges. Or just about any school in Boston. NYU is hipster. Oberlin is not NYU. That’s my opinion. My D, an Oberlin frosh, agrees with me. </p>
<p>From what I’ve observed, Oberlin is a less intense version of Swarthmore, if Swarthmore had a world class music conservatory.</p>
<p>Wiki’s hipster: “… middle class young people associated with alternative culture, particularly alternative music, independent rock, independent film and a lifestyle revolving around thrift store shopping, eating organic, locally grown, vegetarian, and/or vegan food, drinking local or brewing beer, listening to public radio, riding bicycles …”</p>
<p>By most reasonable standards I think one would have to conclude that hipsters are well represented there. Also well represented, so I’m told, are people who say they don’t like hipsters. Make of that what you will.</p>
<p>-Suggest an overnight, if it comes down to this and you’re serious.</p>
<p>Hm. This seems like a time to visit. While I love to discuss what a hipster is (a fashion-forward student? an urbanite? loathed skinny-jean-wearing holier-than-thou jerk? the kid who built his bike and listens to obscure bands?) or what alternative is… I think you’re thinking about the overall picture of the community. And that’s about visiting, more than anything else. What I consider alternative might be really different from you. </p>
<p>I’d say the big thing that define Oberlin students is passion. Nearly everyone I know here is absolutely devoted to one/several activities. Most students find their biggest problem is that they don’t have the time to do everything they want to do. </p>
<p>Does class dominate all activity? Well, it’s the number one priority, but students do a whole lot outside of class. I find that class and extracurricular clubs often interact more than you’d expect, especially when you start to play more of a leadership role in your organization. If you’re a coordinator for OCDems or College Republicans, the lessons in your sociology class, on how to interact with different cultures, may come in handy. In my case, I taught a Storytelling Exco (student/community-taught class) and majored in Creative Writing. They worked together, more often than not.</p>
<p>The humanities here are awesome.</p>
<p>Vossron: I agree with most of that definition, except the thrift store shopping and the vegetarian/vegan food. I’m convinced you can be a hipster, eat meet, and never have visted a thrift store. I know because I have three teenagers. So I’m not buying that list. Not completely. But thanks for sharing. It’s interesting.</p>
<p>My daughter is a freshman at Oberlin, and I for other reasons know a lot about W&M. They are very different schools. Both have excellent academics and have serious, talented students. But W&M is far more conventional than Oberlin. Strangely, my daughter’s roommate was deciding between Oberlin and W&M, and chose Oberlin (obviously). I met another student at Oberlin whose final choice was between Oberlin and W&M. There is a very simple solution to this dilemma: visit them both. After visits, choosing will be easy.</p>