<p>My D would like to attend a small, (under 6,000), LAC in the northeast. I think she needs a few more safeties/matches.
Her stats are: GPA 3.99W taking a rigorous course load, CR 720, M620 and W 780. SAT II's BIO 720 and USHistory 740.
D would prefer a school w/out strong frat/sorority presence. She doesn't drink,( so far), so she'd also like a school where she could still have a sociallife if she didn't drink.</p>
<p>So far she likes: Lafayette
Bryn Mawr
Hamilton
Connecticut College</p>
<p>School she likes but is unsure about having social life if she didn't drink or join a sorority: Bucknell
Colgate
Dickinson
I would really appreciate if people could comment on her choices and maybe add other suggestions.</p>
<p>no Greek system
Amherst
Bates
Bennington
Boston C
Clark
Connecticut C
Georgetown
Goucher
Haverford
Holy Cross
Skidmore
Vassar
Williams</p>
<p>Many colleges have healthy-living or "wellness" options for residents or non-drinking residential options. Drinking is otherwise hard to avoid unless you go to a religious college or a college with very intense academics.</p>
<p>collegehelp, I think Georgetown, Williams and Vassar are probably out of D's league, but i'll check on the others, thanks. </p>
<p>huskem55, "from your mouth to God's ears", I hope you're right. Do you know if kids who don't drink feel out of place at Bucknell and/or Colgate?</p>
<p>Mr.B, my D is thinking of applying to Hamilton, she likes what she's read about it and we'll visit next week.
She's afraid her stats aren't strong enough for Smith or Wellesley.</p>
<p>My D was also concerned about too much drinking and ruled out Hamilton, after visiting, because the relative isolation of the campus made for more alcohol-centered social scene than she wanted. To be fair, this view might have been related to the specific student who hosted her. She did find the students very warm and friendly.</p>
<p>Vassar, Bates, Trinity, Skidmore were all more comfortable for the feeling of "plenty to do besides drink." </p>
<p>Of course, drinkning is very common anywhere but a "dry" school.</p>
<p>SBmom, Thanks for the heads-up on Hamilton, and I do know how easy it is to be influenced by the host that you have. D will check it out, but I do agree that rural schools seem to have more drinking i guess because of the "what else is there to do" school of thought.
My D is afraid that Skidmore and Vassar would be a bad fit since they have been described to her as having "artsy, left-of-center" students and D is a preppy and middle of the road type of kid. She is a non-athlete, more of a marching band type of kid.</p>
<p>"preppy middle of the road"-- look at Hobart; definitely a level down in selectivity so a good match/safety for a kid reaching for Vassar-level. St. Lawrence is another that's very like Hamilton, but less selective.</p>
<p>And BTW I went to an "artsy left of center" school (Brown) and believe me, we had our share of pink-shirted, Darien CT, "lockjaw" preppies! These schools are all too expensive to truly exclude preppies.</p>
<p>"These schools are all too expensive to truly exclude preppies.''
SBmom, too funny, and so true.
I guess I may be going overboard in trying to help D find "just the perfect fit".
I think she will find her niche in any of the schools on her list.</p>
<p>sarha, How non-drinkers fare at colleges that have reputations for being party schools is a perennial topic on this board. From my sons personal experience at Williams (and from the commentary of many, many other students and parents of students at similar schools) I can say confidently that there are many non-drinkers and light drinkers at ALL of these LACs and plenty to do for those who choose not to imbibe. The best route is to visit and see how it feels, which sounds like just what your daughter is doing.</p>
<p>Your daughter has very good statistics and Amherst and Williams while definitely reaches are within her grasp, depending on her overall profile. They certainly fit the preppy and middle of the road type of kid description. Marching band is always a valuable EC. </p>
<p>I see Lafayette and Dickinson as safeties and think all of the others varying degrees of matches. Smith would also be a match (though as you say it may be too liberal for your daughter.) I would also take a look at Bowdoin and, if shed consider going further afield, Kenyon.</p>
<p>Your D has excellent chances at all the schools you list except for Colgate and Hamilton, where she has a good chance of acceptance.</p>
<p>Based on the greek and alchohol concerns, I would steer clear of Colgate, Bucknell and maybe, Lafayette. All good schools, and non-drinkers at all of them, but drinking is a very big part of the culture of all three.</p>
<p>I think Dickinson and Hamilton would be slightly better bets, and would second the addition of Bates to your list. (I visited a bunch of these schools with my nephew two years ago and Bates was my favorite.) Bryn Mawr and Connecticut College would be good schools for her too.</p>
<p>More visits and conversation should bring these schools into focus for both of you.</p>
<p>Again, thanks for all the replys. It is very helpful to get "outside" opinions since it is so easy to get overloaded with info.</p>
<p>WS17, Wheaton definitely sounds worth visiting, thanks for suggesting it.</p>
<p>momrath, I appreciate your insights on college drinking . My D and I know that drinking is a part of almost all colleges, she just wants to be sure that it's not the dominant social scene.<br>
We've visited all the schools on her list and she likes them all. Paranoia sets in when you start reading the guidebooks and read comments here on CC, especially about Bucknell and Colgate.
There seems to be a strong connection between frats on campus and having a strong drinking culture. Please correct me if I'm wrong.</p>
<p>reidm, I didn't realize Lafayette had a strong drinking culture. That's a worry because D really liked it when we visited.</p>
<p>PR says at Lafayette: sororities 45% (!), fraternities 28%.</p>
<p>Kids from our HS who attend Bowdoin say almost everyone drinks and those who don't drink have no social life, they just stay in their room alone.</p>
<p>As a Bowdoin student, I disagree strongly with the above statement. There are many kids here who either don't drink or drink lightly and they are practically indistiguishable from the rest of the community. There is almost no pressure to drink whatsoever.</p>
<p>sarha, you will find as a general statement that the people (kids AND parents) who are the most vehement about drinking issues at specific schools are those who don't actually attend the schools. If you ask students or parents of students who are actually enrolled their responses are similar to insertnamehere's. You could insert the name of many other schools as well.:)</p>
<p>Now, some may say that they're trying to cover up problems or that they're brainwashed or that they're heavy drinkers themselves. In otherwords this debate doesn't show any sign of ending in the near future. I guess kids have different tolerance levels. For some ANY drinking (or drugging) is too much. For others, fun equals substance abuse. Most fall in the middle. </p>
<p>Bottom line, visit, overnight (Thursday is good advice), talk to current students and families and draw your own conclusions.</p>
<p>One thing that does seem to be a recurrent issue is the fit for a socially conservative kid who wants to avoid a party atmosphere and also wants a smaller school. It seems except for the ultra-conservative, religious oriented schools that the schools that tend toward the middle also have reputations for more partying. When you start eliminating the "indicators" like rural, cold climate, fraternities, etc., etc. you might as well cross them all off your list and this would be a real shame. The good news is that they also have reputations for less drug use than the more artsy, liberal schools. </p>
<p>Good luck and let us know how things turn out.</p>