<p>"...but surely some administrations are less willing than others to turn a blind eye?"</p>
<p>Maybe, but don't count on it. :(</p>
<p>I applied to both Kenyon and OWU, but withdrew my application from OWU when I got accepted at Colorado College EA and University of Pittsburgh (honors program, GSIPA admission, and $2000/yr scholarship). I visited OWU back in September, so I'll just give you my impression of what went on there.</p>
<p>There's a lot of drinking. It attracts many average students who love to party. The frats dominated the social scene, but they weren't too crazy from what I could see. The academics are decent, but nothing special. I sat in on a biology class and a philosophy class. The biology was okay, but I learned much more in my AP biology class (faster pace). The philosophy professor was engaging, but I again learned more quickly in my college prep philosophy class. Overall, the classes were about equivalent in difficulty to high school level. The population was fairly homogenous, but embarrassed about it. The frat food was good, didn't eat at a cafeteria. The campus is pretty and open.</p>
<p>Kenyon has much better academics. Much lower acceptance rate. I haven't visited there, but I've researched it a lot. It's advertised as a "writer's college" emphasizing that no matter what career you choose, writing skills are essential to success.</p>
<p>I won't compare OWU's academics to other colleges but I can compare it to my personal experience of the graduate school academics of a top 10 large private university (whose academics are universally regarded as better than the ones at Colorado College). In the sciences and in mathematics, I can definitely say the rigor of OWU's academics was on par or prepared me quite well for the graduate school sciences. Perhaps in philosophy that's different but I can't comment, I was never attracted to that field as a major.</p>
<p>Well, it's great that you were so prepared for a grad school education. I'm just giving you the impression I got from my visit. Were you at the top of your class? </p>
<p>Colorado College doesn't have a grad school (except education) so that's not really comparable...</p>
<p>No, that's fair that you are providing your opinion. It is not a surprise that each school has its strengths and weaknesses. OWU has its strong and weak departments. For example, I wouldn't go there if I wanted to study sociology, education, religion or psychology (maybe even philosophy...I don't know about it) but will wholeheartedly recommend it for sciences, mathematics, english or humanities/classics. I would say I was a pretty average student. What were your scores, if you don't mind me asking?</p>