<p>Looking for a school in the northeast that does not have a lot of core requirements. Would like a medium to large size school perhaps a step or 2 below the ivies. Would major in science/neuroscience</p>
<p>It’d be more useful to us if you posted at least some of your stats. It’s really hard to tell what a “step or two” below Ivys is supposed to mean.</p>
<p>If you are female, take a look at Smith.</p>
<p>He is currently in 11th grade. Unweighted average 93 but in all honors and a few AP classes. PSAT Math 68 Verbal 63 Writing 58. No SAT yet.</p>
<p>If your son is going to be a science major he will certainly have significant math/science core requirements wherever he goes. He may be able to get some limited AP credits with good scores. Neuroscience has core requirements generally very similar to biology. If he is considering premed he will have additional requirements on top of that. There is really no such thing as a “light” science major.</p>
<p>When you say not a lot of ‘core’ requirements, do you mean distribution requirements? Take a look at Brown in Providence.</p>
<p>Brown and Amherst are the only schools without core requirements in that region. But one is an Ivy and the other is a LAC ‘Ivy’ (which is what you’re looking for I guess).</p>
<p>Hampshire has no core requirements and access to all colleges in the area, so the science depts. at Smith and Amherst would be available.</p>
<p>Vassar has a fair amount of flexibility within its requirements, but would be a reach, although being male gives an admissions advantage.</p>
<p>I guess i am confused about the difference between core and distribution requirements. He is fine taking all science classes. I meant not having to take classes in other subjects like english, history, etc. Also, what does LAC mean?</p>
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<p>If he doesn’t want to take anything he doesn’t want to take, he would be limited to Brown, Grinnell College (IA), Smith College (MA) (women only), Amherst College (MA), Hampshire (MA), and Eugene Lang College, a division of the New School (NYU). </p>
<p>Here is a link for your research:
[College</a> Lists / Open Curriculum - schools with more flexible curricula](<a href=“College Lists Wiki / Open Curriculum - schools with more flexible curricula”>College Lists Wiki / Open Curriculum - schools with more flexible curricula)</p>
<p>I would go through that list and look at the admissions websites for schools in the region of interest.</p>
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<p>No. There are very few schools in America with a true “Common Core” program. The most famous are Chicago and Columbia. This refers to an integrated set of courses that all undergraduates take in the first two years.</p>
<p>Most schools have distribution requirements. This means everyone has to cover all columns from a “Chinese Menu” that spans courses in several divisions (typically Humanities, Social Sciences, Natural Sciences). There may be additional math, writing, or language requirements … and specific requirements for each major. But the distribution requirements usually can be met in 4 years. The courses have no tight, thematic integration (for example, sequenced coverage of topics raised in the “Great Books” from several perspectives across several courses, with an expectation that after 2 years, any successful student could hold an informed conversation about “Core” ideas.)</p>
<p>Several colleges in New York and New England have what is called an “Open Curriculum”. This means virtually no core or distribution requirements other than what is set by each department for the major, possibly with the exception of one or more generic skills requirement(s) (say, for writing). OC schools in this region include Amherst, Brown, Hamilton, Hampshire, Sarah Lawrence, Smith, Vassar, and Wesleyan.</p>
<p>“LAC” means “liberal arts college”. LACs are small schools, typically 1000-3000 students, with no (or few) graduate departments, and an educational focus entirely on the arts & sciences. Usually this means no majors in business, architecture, agriculture, nursing, etc. A very few LACs, like Swarthmore and Trinity, do have engineering programs.</p>
<p>debindob, for a student with your son’s qualifications and interests (science/neuroscience, flexible curriculum, medium size, Northeast), one school that seems to be an excellent match is the University of Rochester. Others to consider: Brown (much more selective), Wesleyan (more selective), Hampshire (less selective, smaller, experimental, but with all the resources of a 5-college consortium).</p>