Schools like UChicago

<p>Emory doesn't have a "core curriculum". It has distribution requirements, similar to most elite colleges and universities. Basically like a Chinese menu: two from column A, two from column B, etc.</p>

<p>A "core curriculum" generally refers to specific courses that must be taken by all students. The downside of a "core curriculum" is that these mandatory courses often end up being huge.</p>

<p>
[quote]
I don't think that "core curriculum" is a code word for teaching "white European culture and history".

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</p>

<p>Not generally speaking. But, that's the way the "The Right Guide" and Bill Bennett use it.</p>

<p>I went to the websites and Emory calls it "General Education Requirements" and UChicago calls it "Basic Course Requirements". Both of these look like what you referred to as "distribution requirements". It would be up to the OP whether he/she would prefer the idea of everyone taking the identical courses or just being required to take courses from a wide range of fields. That would certainly be something to find out about, and I would be interested in how common each approach is among the colleges. </p>

<p>Actually, I think that most people who care about core distribution requirements are probably just making sure that they don't exist. The idea of wanting to go to a school where everyone has agreed to be academically well rounded seems a good criteria. The OP might also start a thread entitled "Schools where students study hard?" or "Schools with positive peer pressure?".</p>

<p>You also might want to consider the big city thing. New York and Chicago are major metropolitan centers, and while that definitely has its advantages, cosmopolitan big city life is not for everyone at this time of their lives. On the other hand, I know others that thrive off of the energy of the city and love their urban schools. I'd visit both types of schools and see where you feel more comfortable.</p>

<p>I-dad:</p>

<p>from the Yale Guide: If there is one thing I could change about Swarthmore College, "I'd bring in some conservatives because it is such a liberal campus."</p>

<p>From Princeton 357 Guide..This social idealism manifests iteself in a pervasive political leftism; almost everyone is so far politically/idealogically that the Democractic party seems right-wing."</p>

<p>From Choosing the Right College; In class, the political atmosphere can be oppressive and hostile for those who don't subscribe to the left-liberalism... A professor confirms the overwhelming impression that the Swathmore faculty and administration is not only left-liberal but self-consciously left-liberal....The general feeling is that non-leftists have something wrong with them....</p>

<p>IMO, where there is smoke there is fire.....</p>

<p>There is sometimes an impression among liberals that liberals are very tolerant of other people's views. There is a great line in one of the guides about a liberal college (NOT Strathmore that I remember) where one of the students said that the student body was very tolerant of political views that were to the left of Lenin. :)</p>

<p>I did not argue that Swarthmore is not a "liberal" campus. However, you said that libertarians would not have company on the campus. That is not true.</p>

<p>In fact, Swarthmore has a long history of telling the government to go jump in a lake when it comes to intrusive policies and I believe that tradition would carry over to many of today's students.</p>

<p>The problem I have with hanging labels on colleges is that today's superficial popular political discourse insists on black and white definitions. IMO, the reason that much of the American electorate has said "no thanks" to both major political parties is that these simplistic one-dimensional labels do not fit with many of our views, or even fit with the reality of the two parties' policies. For example, has been the "conservative" party when it comes to fiscal restraint and balanced budgets for the last 25 years? Which party is a proponent of keeping the government out of people's bedrooms and/or decisions about their own bodies?</p>

<p>You will find little or no support at Swarthmore for "Christian Right" red-meat issues like anti-abortion and anti-gay rights. You will, however, find quite a bit of support for many "libertarian" ideals.</p>

<p>I think anyone so insecure that they feel the need to pick a college based on support for superficial political "issues" would probably not be happy at Swarthmore, where discussion of current events and world affairs is probably going to be more nuanced than CNN soundbytes. For example, a hot issue on campus right now is the genocide in the Darfur region of the Sudan. This is not an issue that lends itself to simple partisan soundbytes. The Swarthmore student organization has support from both Republican and Democratic members of Congress. Their chosen avenue is fundraising for an armed African Union peacekeeping force, something that runs counter to the traditional Quaker/Swarthmore anti-war sentiment. Most issues have similar complexities and shades of gray.</p>

<p>how bout carnegie mellon? good stuff or bad stuff?</p>