<p>Recent alumnus here to offer some insight into the student body, academics, and overall culture at Skidmore (from my POV).</p>
<p>I am not affiliated in any way with the College, and will try to provide as unbiased information as possible. I will say, though, that I had a wonderful experience at Skidmore, which could influence my feedback ever-so-slightly. :)</p>
<p>How would you describe the "overall culture"?</p>
<p>The culture at Skidmore is a bit more difficult to describe than other "peer" colleges with predominant cultures (Hamilton: preppy, frat for instance.) There is a palpable "laissez-faire" attitude on campus which, in essence, means that people truly do what they want: outdoors clubs, sports teams, frisbee on the Green, etc. Although the sports teams have vastly improved over the past 10 years, to the point where some are actually winning championship titles, Skidmore is not the place for one who seeks a "ra-ra all for one" atmosphere. </p>
<p>The students are more "liberal" than at some of the other NE liberal arts colleges, but only marginally: They still tend to be from the NE themselves, somewhat (if not extremely) affluent, white, etc. </p>
<p>But, to contradict myself, there is diversity among the student body. Many business students are also following one art form or another, for instance.</p>
<p>I apologize-I had to cut off quickly on the earlier thread.</p>
<p>To continue, the diversity among the students manifests in the widespread interests which are followed: The clubs and student organizations, for instance, are a center of activity and allow people to bond over similar interests. I would liken it to the bonding one gets in a fraternity/sorority, without the pledging and indoctrination processes.</p>
<p>It makes for an interesting atmosphere, therefore, when your peers are ardently pursuing their interests in debate, environmentalism, diversity issues, business/entrepreneurship, media (radio in particular), a capella singing groups-all of which the College strongly supports. </p>
<p>As I have said in other threads, the party scene is what one makes of it. There are larger campus-wide parties which take place on, and off, campus, and there are smaller. more intimate gatherings. There are those who smoke pot (a seriously overrated phenomenon at Skidmore) and those who drink like at any other Colleges. I actually ran into more teetotalers at Skidmore than at any other college I visited in my four years. </p>
<p>And, of course, there are cliques: prep's/jock's (maybe 40%), Prada-wearing city kids (20%), granola's/artie's (35%), and minorities (5%). The last is not as integrated into the social scene as many of us would like. </p>
<p>Finally, the "culture" on campus is greatly affected by the proximity to: a) Saratoga b) NYC c) the Vermont slopes and d) Boston and Montreal (I would say in that order.) When campus life can get small, many students take off to one of the aforementioned for a weekend away.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot, travelrr. Skidmore is on my daughter's list --we visited this summer--not many students around.</p>
<p>But your clique breakdown adds up to 100%. Is there any space for a non-minority kid (in the ethnic sense) who is none of the above--non Jock/prep, non-Prada-wearing, interested in some of the arts--theater, film , journalism but not really "artsy"--more curious about the world, reads the newspaper, follows politics-- likes good conversation and a good sense of humor? Also teetotaler and no pot. She is an individualist rather than an easily recognized type and serious about academic work--politics are liberal, not poor but not especially affluent. Would she fit in , feel comfortable, find friends?</p>
<p>Most definitely. What I was trying to stress is that there truly is a lot of liberty to be an individual at Skidmore. But, young adults will be young adults, so there are cliques (I maybe should not have added the groups up to 100% as there are plenty who do not fall into that simplistic categorization).</p>
<p>I highly advise that you visit the campus while the College is IN session so that you can get a better sense of the atmosphere. </p>
<p>I highly advise that you visit the campus while the College is IN session so that you can get a better sense of the atmosphere.</p>
<p>travelrr, what can you say about formal and informal Art, Foreign Languages offerings?</p>
<p>indydukie-I am not sure I understand the question. Does "formal" mean academic and "informal" mean extra curricular?</p>
<p>Art Major, Studio facilities, exhibit spaces, reputation, etc
Foreign Language Majors, study abroad, language dorms</p>
<p>yes formal = academic, informal = ec Not that ec is not important</p>
<p>The Art offerings, whether formal or informal, are undoubtedly one of Skidmore's strongest points, paticularly with the new $14M Tang Museum. Beyond the Museum, which is used for interdiscpilary teaching purposes, there are smaller exhibit spaces where both alumni and current students exhibit. </p>
<p>Although I was not an Art major, I knew a number of people who were-they were quite happy with the facilities and offerings. </p>
<p>I was involved with the language department, as I minored in German (and speak French fluently.) I spent a year abroad, as a huge porportion of the student body does, and had a tremendous experience. One can either go through a Skidmore program, which is preferred, or through another university's program, though that can be more difficult to justify to the Administration.</p>
<p>hello, skidmore is currently my top choice... i'd appreciate it if you could answer a few of my questions...
1) i want to apply early decision, and the only problem with that is the financial aid. my family isn't particularly wealthy, and will depending largely on how much aid i get. how good is skidmore with aid; i've read that they almost meet need...is this true? would it be wise to apply ed considering this issue?
2) how strong were your stats/ec's when you applied? no need to share specific numbers, i'm just worried because my sat is about one hundred points below the median (though i'm awaiting scores from a recent test, hopefully they will be higher), and my ec's aren't particularly strong (as in, only a few clubs, a few out-of-school classes, two or three awards, three honor societies) because i didn't know what i was doing my first two years of high school. my gpa is good (3.7 uw), and i'll have taken 8 AP classes.
3) any tips for interviewing with an alumna? especially if you're one of those people who has a list of good questions, but blanks and doesn't know what to say once they're in the interview heh</p>
<p>thanks! :)</p>
<p>Emizzly:</p>
<p>I have to admit that I have little-to-no knowledge on the financial aid situation at Skidmore, as I did not need it/seek it out. I have seen a number of conversations on this topic on this forum, however, which you may want to seek out. It seems, from these discussions, that Skidmore does "almost meet need." You may even want to call the College directly and try to speak with an admissions representative.</p>
<p>Also, not having a whole lot of information on the application process, I would suggest that if it is your first choice for school, go ED. </p>
<p>My stats were pretty strong (ps-I am a male), and I was accepted to colleges that were considered more competitive years ago (Connecticut, Bates, Hamilton), which I now think is less the case. </p>
<p>If I were you, I would do a little delving and try to illustrate the most interesting elements of you, your ECs. What makes Skidmore a unique and interesting environment is that the interests of the student body are very varied. If your stats are not stellar, but your grades are good and you can demonstrate an authentic interest in your activities, you may have a better shot.</p>
<p>As for the alumni interviews-don't sweat it. Remember: they were in your shoes, do not consider themselves professionals in college counseling, and are interested that you are interested in their Alma mater. Confidence, not arrogance, will go a long way.</p>
<p>I can offer the observations of my daughter's admission into this years freshmen at Skidmore.</p>
<p>We didn't necessarily need the financial aid but saw no reason not to apply for it. We have an upper middle class income that may describe your situation. The statement by Skidmore (or any college that is the least selective) that they will meet "need" has to be considered in the context that it is the college that gets to define what you "need". </p>
<p>The money that a college offers is made up of loans, on campus job, and outright grants. There may also be scholarships offered by the individual college. Loans are easy for a college to offer since you still have to pay them back. These should never really be considered part of "meeting need" but all colleges count them. Likewise with on campus jobs since they are paid at near minimum wage and you could readily work anywhere in town and make similar wages towards tuition.</p>
<p>That leaves only outright grants and scholarships. Note that this is the only place where real money out of the college's endowment is going to be spent. The total grant money provided by Skidmore on a $41,000 annual bill was around $4500, again on an upper middle class income. By the time you factor Income Taxes and similar, Skidmore would assume that it was possible to divert 30% of after tax earnings towards tuition. This level of payment would most likely never be possible unless your parents have made other plans to pay for your education. Remember, the college gets to define need, not your parents.</p>
<p>Skidmore is still a selective college. There are only around 125 colleges in the country (out of 8000) that accept less than 1/2 their applicants. That 125 selective schools include the 10% Ivies and the 40% Skidmore. What it means is that Skidmore doesn't have to give up it's (fairly small) endowment to fill a class. And they don't. Most of the selective schools need to offer money to attract the brighter minorities and show decent diversity numbers. Although Skidmore talks of attracting URMs, there aren't enough good candidates to go around and you will see the Skidmore class about as white as a shelf of Wonderbread.</p>
<p>Skidmore offers only 10 scholastic scholarships. 5 for the Arts, 5 for the Sciences. $10,000 a year each. Not much to count on. My daughter had grades of 5 on all science APs, won all school science and math awards, did published, independent research at a university laser laboratory for a summer and never even made the list of alternates for the scholarship. Our guess was that they were being directed to the more needy candidates, which is fine.</p>
<p>The data show that you chances are definitely higher with an ED application. There is nothing binding if the college cannot deliver an affordable financial package. Skidmore has benefitted from the lower acceptance rates of the Ivies. Skidmore gets the spill overs, as was the case of my daughter. This is why Skidmore has seen a steady rise in the entrance SAT levels. When you look at any range of SAT scores offerred by a college you need to think of whether you have special circumstances that make you a very attractive candidate. If you are not a recruited athlete, a URM, a legacy, or similar candidate in high demand, you will have a harder time getting admitted with scores in the lower range of their averages.</p>
<p>All that said, you have the advantage of being interested more in their arts program which will bring your portfolio much more into play than just your SATs. Unless you live across the continent make arrangements for an on campus interview rather than using alumni. The on campus interviewers are hired college staff, not students. When you get through with the interview they will provide you with a real idea of your chances of admission.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>this is all really helpful, thanks :)</p>
<p>what do you mean when you say the oncampus interviewer will provide you with a real idea of your chances?</p>
<p>The interviewers are actual members of the admission staff, not just students that are taking notes. I cannot say if it is universally true but when my D was interviewed she was given information on how she stacked up to the "admitted candidate" profile as they went down her SAT's, High School courses, EC's, etc... At the end of the interview they told her she was a very good match and would have high liklihood of admission.</p>
<p>what are the chances of getting in with a 4.7 w 3.6 unw, 25 act, 610 v 590 m and 570 w? all aps and honors all 4 years. great leadership and ecs. #1 high school in Illinois. Its a college prep. Great recs and essays? I originally thought it would be a saftey, but then i looked more into it and found that it seems a lot more competitive then i thought. also, how is the social life there? theres no face painting running the streets i assume....</p>
<p>but i haven't filed an application yet, how would they be able to stack me up? should i bring a copy of my transcript & resume to the interview?</p>
<p>I think that the days of Skidmore being a safety are gone. The very low admission rates of the Ivies (and Ivy wanna-bes) has pushed some very good numbers into Skidmore's admission pool. I think about 5 years ago they decided to get rid of their reputation as an Art & Dance school for girls looking for a Mrs. degree. They put a lot of money and effort into their science facilities and the applicants are starting to follow.</p>
<p>Relative to chances, my observations of the process would be:
- when dealing with small class sizes, there are can be no assumption of admission regardless of stats. Small colleges need to first focus on the make-up of the class. You can only have so many Bio majors and still need to toss a couple at the German Dept.
- if the admission stats are within a very narrow range you need to have a really big hook to get the thick letter with stats that are below the mid-50%
- where ever your guidance counselor and parents think you will "of course be admitted" is off by one tier. By all means apply where your heart wants to go but don't assume any school < 50% admission rate is a lock.
- every school is concerned about the appearance of selectivity. They will advertise just to have more people to reject. They will reject 2400 SATs that they know will ultimately reject them. Like many things in life, people only want something if it appears unobtainable.</p>
<p>Check the application site but I'm pretty sure that Skidmore, like all of the schools who use the interview as evaluative, will only meet with those that have already applied. They will already have all of your records. </p>
<p>Good luck. It's a daunting process.</p>
<p>i told them that i havent applied yet, and they said it was fine. also, my friend interviewed last month before applying.</p>
<p>[btw, i really love Skidmore. im considering majoring in classics and going premed.]</p>