<p>Hi parents; I am interested in perspectives on Goucher and Sweet Briar. (I recognize they are different from one another.) As I'm in the midwest, would particularly appreciate input from those of you in the east. Are there other colleges you would compare them to academically, socially, prestige-wise so I can get a feel? My experience with Goucher is limited to a former colleague who went there who I liked a lot, and my experience with Sweet Briar is reading about them in the preppy handbook when I was in college :-). Thanks!</p>
<p>Obviously as a male I never went to SB but i did live nearby and have been on the campus. Very pretty rural campus. Mile to the nearest stores in small town of Amherst. Great if you have a horse or love to ride--amazing trails and stables. Socially I think the spend much time an hour up the road at UVA or at some of the other nearby schools like WL, VMI, etc.</p>
<p>Goucher is a creative place with innovative programs. Study abroad is mandatory, I believe.</p>
<p>Wells in New York or Wheaton in MA might be alternatives.</p>
<p>Goucher was one of MY top picks for my D, but she just didn't get that "feeling" so it did not make her top three despite a nice merit offer. She was a potential Russian major and would have had some of her program at JHU, which I thought was a bonus, but she didn't like the idea of having to go to another campus.</p>
<p>My coworker is a Sweet Briar grad and worked there in admissions after grad school at Emory. She loved it despite not being (as she called it) a stereotypical Vixen.</p>
<p>Being a Virginia hs student, my D received a lot of mailings from both schools. She applied to neither. IIRC, SB pinpointed its marketing on tradition and legacy, which my coworker thought was a much smarter focus than what they were doing in the late 90s.</p>
<p>How rigorous academically are each of them? What would you consider their peer groups?</p>
<p>There is a admissions video on Goucher's web site that is well done and plays to the strengths of the school, I recommend that you download it - after viewing this (and because of the study abroad requirements) D is definitely going for a visit and probably will apply early action....</p>