<p>Hi,
Daughter deciding between the 3.
Wants to major in Envir. studies/creative writing/international relations.
Wants liberal but structure...wants diversity. Seekng passionate, academically driven student body, laid back. Fun college town/city a plus. Reputation important.<br>
Music (for fun).<br>
Thoughts?</p>
<p>I have kids who attended both Oberlin and L&C. Based on what you state above, I would choose Oberlin. Oberlin is stronger in ES than L&C. Music is much better at Oberlin. The town of Oberlin is not nearly as good as Portland, but there is so much going on on campus that it isn’t that much of a problem.</p>
<p>Can you tell me about the academic competitiveness of student bodies on each campus? I hear Oberlin is uber competitive vs. <a href=“mailto:L@C…she”>L@C…she</a> checked out Facebook pages of those 2 schools (Plus Pitzer) and said the L&C kids looked most up her alley.</p>
<p>Oberlin is competitive in the sense the students work very hard. However, they are supportive of one another. It is not a cutthroat kind of place or anything like that. However, L&C is definitely more laid back than Oberlin.</p>
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<p>Just to echo Shennie: there’s nothing competitive (in the negative sense) about Oberlin students. Their approach to education is entirely supportive and collaborative; they want to live up to their potential, but not at each other’s expense.</p>
<p>Ok. Thank you both. My daughter wants to major possibly in creative writing. I have heard you have to apply to get into those classes and to that dept. Is this true?</p>
<p>Has your daughter visited all three schools? If not, get her on a plane.</p>
<p>If a fun college town is a plus, Oberlin, Ohio would be so far down the list, it would never come up. Great kids, serious students yes. Laid back? Not so much. </p>
<p>I don’t know what music for fun really means to your daughter. If that means taking music classes for non-music majors Oberlin will be a fantastic opportunity. If that means just strumming her guitar in her dorm, well you can do that anywhere. If it means getting into an organized music ensemble or using the practice facilities when she wants, Oberlin would be an awful choice. It’s like a non-athlete trying to use the 50 meter pool at a school with a top swimming program … priority will be given to athletes first. </p>
<p>I don’t have any first hand knowledge of Lewis & Clark or Pitzer other than they both have fine reps. Certainly the Clairemont College Consortium has advantages as people have remarked that not only do they take classes at the other campuses, they also attend parties at the other campuses.</p>
<p>She is on the plane as we speak to Pitzer. Saw L&C last year and saw Oberlin last fall.
Facebooked accepted kids to each school…could see herself more at L&C. Pitzer kids very Cali, Oberlin kids talking about SAT scores and GPA, L&C more laid back. She has somewhat forgotten about the visit to Portland last year…hoping she recollects it after the Pitzer trip!</p>
<p>Oberlin sounds like a good fit.</p>
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<p>Highly uncharacteristic.</p>
<p>yeah, I thought so too…
Dave, I know you are a prof. in the english dept. there. Is it that competitive to get into a class? My daughter adores poetry and loves to write it…I checked out some of the applications to get into the class and they did not seem elitist, just a need to demonstrate interest and experience. She also is interested in envir. studies and international relations. Her biggest concern is the lack of a town. I have stopped w/the whole topic of the school is what you make of it, town is not where most activities happen but being from Vermont she is a bit desperate to get away from small town.
She is meeting w/an Oberlin grad from Vermont next week. She is still not sure of what she wants. She did speak to a Pitzer creative writing prof. who said the program there is much less competitive than Oberlin’s. We shall see what she thinks of Pitzer upon her return.</p>
<p>Since all creative writing classes beyond the introductory level at Oberlin are taught as workshops limited to 12 students, there has to be a screening process to make sure students have a serious interest, are willing to work hard, and understand the difference between studying writing as an academic subject and writing purely as a means of self-expression. It’s my sense that students who can demonstrate these things don’t have trouble getting into the classes, though they don’t always get in on their first try.</p>
<p>She can find out more by going to the [Oberlin</a> Blogs](<a href=“http://blogs.oberlin.edu/]Oberlin”>http://blogs.oberlin.edu/) and asking questions of any of the student bloggers who are creative writing majors (Aries, Yitka, etc.).</p>
<p>Anyone who has serious problems with being in a small town shouldn’t choose Oberlin. It’s a very lively campus with a great deal going on, but it’s not a city. Personally I think going to college in a city can be a real mistake–there’s a reason why most liberal arts colleges aren’t located in cities–but everyone has to figure this one out on their own.</p>