<p>Oberlin is a wonderfully versatile place for a wide variety of students. We hear a lot about "fit" on these threads but I must tell you that my son was not a traditional fit for Oberlin, rather was more in line for an athletic, preppy school. That said, he has found very smart and wonderful friends, classmates, teachers, coaches, and other role models at Oberlin. He is doing very well academically without extreme hardship. He enjoyed the January program and received credit while traveling abroad with other college students. The football coach is a stellar person and really cares about the kids. Even lacrosse and basketball teams are much improved this year. We don't worry about urban dangers on campus, yet Cleveland and its handy airport is under 30 miles away. The college town is a perfect size and walking distance from campus. He eats out several times a week or grabs a snack from the cool sandwich shops in town. Most importantly he has learned how to relate to various types of people on and off campus which he did not encounter in his elite prep school, ie the real world. My son says that more appreciative of his life and family because he has had this college experience.</p>
<p>I think you make an excellent point,that there is far more to Oberlin than a perceived stereotype… What I think students share more than anything (based on my own observations, those of a close friend’s and her S, and my D’s experience) is an accepting attitude and appreciation for eachother’s differences, and more than at some other institutions, an excitement and shared appreciation for learning not only with eachother, but from eachother.</p>
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<p>Thanks for sharing your story, nervedoctor!</p>
<p>I used to work for an Oberlin grad who went on to earn a PhD from Harvard and led a large NIH-funded research lab. She was laid-back but hardly fit the “Oberlin stereotype.” While it’s good to have a general feel where a school fits on the liberal-conservative continuum, it’s silly to try to pigeonhole all students as being one “type” or the other. No self-respecting college would admit an entire class of identical students!</p>
<p>The thing that form this parent’s perspective that differentiates the social climate at Oberlin is that it’s more libertarian that most LACs. That is, students seem to be more able to accomodate different kinds of folks than many other schools. Using the conservative/liberal dynamic has less explanatory power.</p>