Hi, I’m a senior applying to colleges and I’m deciding between Sarah Lawrence and Oberlin for my early decision. I’m more of a creative person than an intellectual, so I’m looking for a college with a large queer community, along with a more hippie/alternative vibe rather than a preppy vibe. Location isn’t a huge factor, but I do think Sarah Lawrence has a better location due to it being 40 minutes from NYC. The most important factor is the community. I know both colleges have what I’m looking for to some extent, but if anyone has any further knowledge on either please let me know!
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Are you able to visit when there are students on campus?
I mean, I think not only is it true to some extent, I think you are talking about two colleges that are really extremely good fits for what you are describing. I personally am a little more familiar with Oberlin, and so know that is a great fit, but everything I have heard about Sarah Lawrence (which others know well) seems equally on point.
In that sense, I really doubt you could go wrong with these choices. As an aside, I also think you could just not apply to either ED, if you feel like you are not ready to decide between them. But if a favorite emerges, that is fine too.
OK, so given that, I personally think you can form a preference for any other sort of reason you like. For example, while I will note that Cleveland is very much a real city, if you would prefer to be in the New York City area, then that is a perfectly fine criteria to use.
Or if you have visited both (or can), just pick the one that “felt” better. Hopefully they both feel good, but I think there is a lot to be said for going with your intuition in cases like these.
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Oberlin is significantly bigger than SL, especially with the conservatory. It’s still a small liberal arts college, but SL is quite small (1600 students vs 2500). Oberlin is a small town - and the college and town are very well integrated - while still within striking distance of Cleveland, SL is in a more urban environment, and a more self-contained campus, with NYC within striking distance. Oberlin’s campus is larger and there seems to be a lot happening there. My D considered both schools but definitely preferred oberlin (in the end she attended neither).
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Another vote for following your gut. It sounds like you prefer Sarah Lawrence, and it is a fine choice. In my circles, Oberlin is perhaps a bit better known. Is that why you are wavering? That’s not a good reason!
If you expect to have more and better information to make a decision in spring, it may not make sense to ED. In your case, with 2 schools, you can probably make this decision in time to pick your favorite in time to ED. Can you visit both this fall while students are on campus, possibly sitting in on some classes, chatting with folks in the dining hall/student center? This often makes a preference clear.
In any case, I don’t think you can go wrong with either.
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What are your stats ? Can you afford both ?
No one has to apply ED. That’s a choice.
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Based on students I know, I think SLC has quirkier students and perhaps a larger proportion of gay students. Oberlin definitely has quirky kids too, but I think it’s probably a bit less quirky and a bit more social justice-y.
Have you also looked at Bard?
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What makes you think you have to apply ED?
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Just guessing but perhaps OP wants their “best” opportunity to attend one of the two schools in question and believes the conventional wisdom that at schools like SL & Oberlin the ultimate display of “interest” is ED. I would also suspect that given OP appears to have done diligence and narrowed it down to two schools they want the opportunity to be “one and done” so they can enjoy senior year without going through the effort and stress of an application cycle.
I commend OP for working through the process early so that they have options.
In terms of the specific schools in question, I attended Vassar, had a kid that went to Brown and have visited SL and Bard numerous times. (I think Bard was an excellent option mentioned up thread if you go RD). These schools; Oberlin, Vassar, Bard, SL, and Brown are often described similarly and grouped together for the “hippie vibe” and sense of creative community you describe as a fit.
I would caution OP however that while they share many similarities they are different. It seems you are being thorough so please try and visit both schools, talk to students and do everything possible so you don’t look back and question the decision. Assuming you can do that and it is affordable go for it and good luck.
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D24 and I visited both.
Oberlin - high quirky vibe, large, visible LGBTQ presence. Tappan Square was designed by the same guy who designed Central Park, and it’s really lovely. Town area is tiny by D24 and my standards, but you can walk to independent coffee shops, bakery, a couple of bars, super quirky vintage shop called Ratsy’s, art and art supply stores. The library has funky orange chairs and a coffee shop on the main level. They have their own art museum. D24 liked this school much better, and I’m not going pretend I’m not also biased.
Sarah Lawrence - also quirky, etc. New student center is lovely but seemed empty (we were there 10am-noon on a Monday morning during the school year. D24 hates Tudor architecture, so thought campus was ugly - I thought it was charming. The campus didn’t look nearly as nice as it did in the online tour, though.
You only take 3 classes/semester - that is only ideal for sone students.
Yes, you can take Metro North to Grand Central Station, but our tickets were $19ish (it’s been a year) each way. Going into the city regularly would be $$$. The campus is in a residential area and surrounded by single family homes. On the tour, we barely saw any students. Housing was limited, and as of the beginning of last year, there were still people on the wait list for that year (not freshmen).
SLC, per the AO who gave our tour, really values the interview. They want to know that you really understand their unique curriculum and that you want that for yourself.
Honestly, I would do my best to tour both before applying ED. I think your preference would become clear. Tours are much cheaper than transferring! Also, honestly, I worry that 3 classes/semester at SLC (5 credits each) might not translate to as many credits at other schools.
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This is the main drawback to using ED as a way to “clear the deck” for the rest of the year; it comes down to either scheduling visits when there are no students on campus or trying to squeeze them in during your own mid-term exams. Is it worth it when the OP is likely to get into both next spring after things have calmed down?
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We don’t know enough about this student to make that judgment though. There’s still plenty of time to visit (if OP is able) before ED apps are due. I agree that visits can be important in helping choose a school, but of course many students can’t make visits for any number of reasons.
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I agree that Oberlin and SLC are a lot less alike than people are making them out to be. I’ve been to Bronxville and the SLC campus is one of the most uniquely situated I’ve ever visited; it’s pretty much landlocked with not much to do in the immediate vicinity. But it’s ideal, if you like getting to know people and that’s one of your criteria in choosing a college.
I’m actually kind of mad at myself that I figured out there is a possible scenario where ED II might be something my S24 would want to consider. Because how the heck are we supposed to visit all his possible ED II schools by then?
And, of course, the answer could be we couldn’t, and therefore who cares about ED II. Unfortunately, his answer is probably going to be more along the lines of, “Figure it out, Dad, just don’t interfere with classes, soccer, etc.”
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Just to be clear, I do think on paper they both match the OP’s stated criteria really well.
But I think we all agree that just means something like location, impression while visiting, or so on could be the decisive factor.
This thread is analogous to asking a waiter do you recommend the shrimp or the fish of the day and getting the response why do you want seafood?
OP asked a narrow question being the difference between two schools and the responses are focused on the wisdom of ED.
Seems like a great example for the why posts are down and kids shy away from CC thread.
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I think the better analogy would be a microbrewery. The bartender would just bring you a sample of both beers.
We’re just killing time until the OP gets back to the thread. No harm done.
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Hey OP–have you followed the Sarah Lawrence and Oberlin “anonymous” accounts on instagram or checked out each school’s Reddit thread? Both resources can give good insight into what’s on current students minds, which in turn might help you figure out which option feels like the best fit for ED. Another avenue to explore (and forgive me if you have done these things already) is to read the student newspaper from the last few months and see what kinds of issues are being talked about.
Lastly, while I have heard that Oberlin itself can be a progressive bubble the state of Ohio has a very different political landscape from that of New York. If you were to do an internship or find employment in the state where you attend college, how might state policies towards reproductive health, bodily autonomy and LGBTQIA issues impact your quality of life?
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I was going to say it was like a friend saying they could not decide between lobster or steak, and then pointing out to them there was surf & turf on the menu. I should not have worked through lunch.
But obviously the OP could reasonably decide to do ED. I think it remains good advice to try to visit both before deciding which (if the OP hasn’t already), if possible.
Although I think a reasonable Plan B would be to visit the current frontrunner, and if that visit went well, then go for it.
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Just a few notes from “flyover country”:
Not that other Ohio statewide politics and policies are irrelevant, but see recent coverage of the vote on Issue 1.
I also note Cuyahoga County (home to Cleveland) is your typical large-metro island of “deep blue” within the state map.
Finally, while Oberlin is “over the line” in more “magenta” Lorain County, last time I was in the area, they had not yet closed the border with Cuyahoga . . . .
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