<p>How does it fit into the scheme of the LACs? It was in my college selection book for the top 20 happiest campuses, really pretty, rated well academically, on the waterfront... so I applied. </p>
<p>I can't visit it yet, but I was wondering if someone could orient me in how their prestige measures up. I think 4 people have applied from my high school in the last 10 years. </p>
<p>Also, what is the "stereotypical" student like there? In case you can't tell, their part of CC is pretty dead...</p>
<p>Oh, and can you compare it maybe to Whitman or Kenyon?</p>
<p>It’s a really great school. I don’t know about rankings or anything like that, but people seem to have lots respect for the school. It has a pretty big name for an LAC. </p>
<p>I’d say that it’s on about the same tier as Kenyon, and academically speaking, it actually seems to stand out more than Whitman.</p>
<p>Rumors? Anything? I just feel like a thread like this about Amherst would be pages in an hour or so and even though i know SMCM isn’t that well known, this seems to bode poorly…</p>
<p>It’s a public LAC, and a very good one. It is not part of the University of Maryland system, but has its own governance. It’s in a pretty remote location, if that matters to you. Nice campus.</p>
<p>St. Mary’s is a public honor’s college in a beautiful waterfront location. Excellent academics,intelligent, motivated, laid back students. Its reputation lags St. Mary’s stellar academics. Kenyon College in Ohio is gorgeous with great facilities. Kenyon is in a rural location within a one hour drive of Columbus, Ohio-- which is a very nice city. Best athletic/multi-purpose facility for a small college in the U.S. Great theater-in-the-round style performance center. I have never been to Whitman College but it is highly regarded by those in the know in the Pacific Northwestern U.S. Of the three, Kenyon College is the most highly regarded, but its isolated rural location might be difficult to enjoy after two years or so. May want to take a year abroad, or a semester at another college/university if permitted. St. Mary’s offers a great deal of outdoor recreation. All three are very small rural colleges with excellent,well deserved academic reputations. Great choices!</p>
<p>It is similar to a good private LAC, but at a much lower price, if you are from the state. Classes are small, with the exception of one freshman seminar that has class size 90. People that I know have visited, and current students affirmed that this is true, it really is just that one large class. It’s in a scenic historic area. If it was closer to a city, it would be much more competitive, in my opinion.</p>
<p>OneMom brought up a very good point about price. Keep in mind how that affects the dynamics of the classroom. Most LACs have an hourglass shape when it comes to socioeconomic diversity. Due to total costs for most liberal arts colleges being around $40k, you get a lot of students whose families can afford to write that check and you get students that receive a lot of financial aid. Yet, the middle class gets squeezed out. How can you have discussions about middle class issues when you have squeezed the middle class out of your classroom.</p>
<p>As a public institution SMCM is much more affordable and has a wider range of socioeconomic diversity. I studied Sociology and Economics at SMCM and am confident that the discussions I had in my classes were definitely enhanced by the level of socioeconomic diversity. When considering colleges one must redefine diversity so that it includes such things as geography and SES in addition to how it is traditionally defined.</p>
<p>In higher education, SMCM is seen as the role model for public liberal arts colleges. It has a very unique governance arrangement with the state that has allowed it to be very successful. </p>
<p>I highly encourage you to visit the campus.</p>