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Mudder, We know about heat here!!! We are having an unusually hot early summer and with humidity as well. It is normally dry. Horrors.
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Sorry, not sure where you are, overseas (but will assume, for some reason, that you're... well, overseas :) )</p>
<p>All I can say is that there's heat and humidity </p>
<p>then there's Houston heat and humidity, the kind that lassos you tight, womps you smack in the face, rassles you to the ground, and then stomps on you for good measure. EVERYthing's bigger in the great state of Texas. :)</p>
<p>Overseas, we are also overseas and well understand the pervasive mystification that non-Americans have with the U.S. liberal arts system. A liberal arts degree from a big name university is a little easier to understand but the appeal and benefit of an LAC is incomprehensible. I think youve had some good advice on big and medium universities (I like the idea of Dartmouth, Brown, Duke and Tufts) so I will concentrate on the small LACs.</p>
<p>Questions: Whats her ethnicity/religion? Is her interest in museums related to an interest in studying art history? Or were you just using museums and cafes as shorthand for a lively community?</p>
<p>The reasons I ask:</p>
<p>Non-whites, from non-Judeo-Christian cultures, are in greater demand than those from more familiar countries/cultures. Her Arabic piqued my interest here as any exposure to Islam is a valuable trump card these days. </p>
<p>LACs especially seek kids from multi-ethnic, international backgrounds as they have a harder time recruiting and admitting diversity than big universities do. Having international experience but with an American passport is an added plus as the school can gain a student with global perspective without visa issues. This would also mean that she would fall into the US category for aid if thats at all important.</p>
<p>If shes interested in art history or museum work she shouldnt overlook Williams in spite of its isolated location. There is simply nothing like it in the LAC category for art history including first hand exposure to museum work (plus it offers excellent science, great medical school admissions potential, all of her languages, an athletic culture and a very safe environment). </p>
<p>Other LACs that have access to good museums on or nearby are Swarthmore, Haverford, Bryn Mawr, Skidmore, Wellesley, Smith and Wesleyan. </p>
<p>If on the other hand shes just looking for a school that has a pleasant college town atmosphere and no particular interest in actually studying art, then Id add Amherst. These all have good to excellent science departments as well.</p>
<p>Momrath, part of the family is from Jerusalem environs, Christian Palestinians. The other part is Greek. She is very keen on being able to "dabble" since she has been in a very restricted old fashioned British school environment. She's a very keen learner from what I have been able to observe. When she said cafes and museums she meant, I believe, a lively learning place. When she said friendly, I feel she meant, peers who are accepting of each other and happy to be where they are and happy to share. When I asked her about the type of sports she played and I said "volleyball, fencing, rowing?" She said, "yes, yes and oh do they really have that...so cool!" As I remember I think she said she wanted to study politics,art and science. That is why we need to talk with Dad. :) And help him understand.</p>
<p>Christian Palestinians! That's a background that would be VERY appealing to just about any college that I can think of. Sounds like the makings for a great essay.</p>
<p>Good luck with Dad. I recently congratulated an Asian parent on her child's acceptance to UMich (my alma mater). When I told her my son was at Williams I could see the pity in her face. :)</p>
<p>I hope your young friend will have a chance to visit some of these LACs with her family. Seeing the calibre and character of the students and faculty plus hearing about opportunities on campus and post graduate is the best persuader.</p>
<p>hi everyone :p i'm the student in question, just wanted to say that actually my dad is Moslem and my mom is Greek Orthodox.. so that makes me a cocktail :p
and thanks all for the info i'm checking out every single uni you all mentioned and fingers crossed i'll get into the good ones! :)</p>
<p>I am another Brandeis fan--my D will be a freshman there soon--this school will meet all of this student's criteria-- could be a good second choice after Stanford or Princeton-and, as indicated above, there is a good chance of financial aid and the advantage of access to Cambridge-Boston.</p>