Rigorous "Liberal" Liberal Arts Colleges

[quirkmeetsgirl]

<p>Hi, I'm a high school junior and I'm in the middle of my college search. I'm looking for small to medium size coed liberal arts colleges and with diverse ideas (both educationally and ethnically). I come from a very liberal, LGBT friendly city so any religious, conservative schools would not work. Also, I am looking for academical rigor. I want to be an English major with creative writing or literature focus, and possibly a philosophy minor. I'm thinking of these schools:
-Reed
-Pitzer
-Sarah Lawrence
-UChicago
-Columbia
-Stanford
If you could add any more colleges I would be so grateful. Thanks</p>

[happy1]

<p>First, the last three on your list are not LACs - they are universities. I might put Brown ahead of the universities on your list. I’d also look at Wesleyan and Vassar. Some other ideas would be look into the top women’s colleges if you are female, and a little less selective but still excellent schools to consider might be Bard & Skidmore</p>

[intparent]

<p>Hamilton and Kenyon both have strong creative writing programs.</p>

[chyakla]

<p>Perhaps consider Colorado College? Students range in opinions, but overall I would say there is a strong liberal climate and a pretty active LGBT community. It’s a lovely campus, very strong academically, and is located in a gorgeous area of Colorado. You will not find the city overly liberal, though.</p>

[OHMomof2]

<p>OBERLIN</p>

[jkeil911]

<p>I like your list and this is good advice you’re receiving, OP, but academical is not a word anyone in the States, not even the most liberal, uses. We speak of academic rigor. This from one English major to a prospect. I’d add Wellesley, if you have requisite DNA, and Rhodes, to change things up.</p>

[collegebound752]

<p>KENYON. One of the best english departments in the country.</p>

[collegebound752]

<p>Don’t go to rhodes, memphis sucks. I’m LGBT and I live here and I can’t wait to get out.</p>

[jkeil911]

<p>oh, yes, Rhodes can be slightly more conservative than most LACs in the north. </p>

[MWCDSS]

<p>Maybe Middlebury or Swarthmore. </p>

[MrMom62]

<p>Swarthmore, although top notch in academic rigor, kind of has a reputation of being rather hostile to any viewpoint that is not orthodox left-wing. If you want a true spectrum of ideas, Swarthmore may not be the place.</p>

<p>This is the attitude I’m talking about:</p>

<p>

At least that’s where Erin Ching, a student at Swarthmore College, seems to be coming down. Her school invited a famous left-wing Princeton professor, Cornel West, and a famous right-wing Princeton professor, Robert George, to have a debate. The two men are friends, and by all accounts they had an utterly civil exchange of ideas. But that only made the whole thing even more outrageous.</p>

<p>“What really bothered me is, the whole idea is that at a liberal arts college, we need to be hearing a diversity of opinion,” Ching told the Daily Gazette, the school’s newspaper. “I don’t think we should be tolerating [George’s] conservative views because that dominant culture embeds these deep inequalities in our society.”

</p>

<p>Just wow!</p>