<p>I have been basing my college search on areas that I like, and I am very fond of the west. I've been looking somewhat in Colorado and Washington, not really in California. I don't know specifically what I want to study, but my thoughts right now are Visual Art, Physics, French, and English. I'm really clueless about colleges and how to find one, I don't get much out of descriptions in books or online. I'm freaked out obviously.
I guess my question is for those who know a smallish college in that area that is strong in both academics and arts, and has a comfortable environment/approachable people and professors. </p>
<p>I've looked a little at the University of Puget Sound, can you tell me anything about it, I mean the students and campus life?</p>
<p>It would be very useful to have your stats (GPA, class rank, SATs, ACT). There are few private schools in the Rockies. Colorado College is an LAC that may match your interests. St Johns of Santa Fe has a great books curriculum that is of less wide interest. University of Denver is a smallish non-LAC that may match your interests.</p>
<p>I feel a very comfortable environment + approachable people in the west would be small liberal art colleges like Occidental College and Pomona College. </p>
<p>At Occidental specifically, you can cross enroll at one of the best art schools in the nation for a few of your classes, which would be Art Center. It's smack dab in a residential area of Los Angeles, and it's definitely the opposite of its big school neighbors of USC and UCLA.</p>
<p>Pomona college if you have the stats for it can be also a good school for u. It is after all one of top 10 LAC in the nation, and excells in the humanities/liberal arts. It is also 40 miles or so east of los angeles. if you dont have the stats for it you can find Pitzer College to be a more reasonable match, which is considered the more artsy Claremont College from the Claremont Colleges(which happens to also include Pomona College). I may be wrong, but i think all claremont colleges, you're able to pursue a dual major, where it's essentially 2 majors at once to create one degree(don't confuse it with double majors, or a major+minor), which could be a great option for you if you want to combine Art+French or English, or Physics.</p>
<p>PS What state are you located in, and is your interest of visual art specifically practice as in studio art or more theory/history which would be art history?</p>