I’ll be applying to colleges in the fall and I am considering applying to a few liberal arts schools, particularly Pomona, Swarthmore, and Hamilton. I’ve visited each of them and I love the campuses, class sizes, and overall student life. However, I’m concerned that I won’t fit in. I know it might just be a dumb stereotype, but I feel that a lot of students at liberal arts schools are sorta weirdos, queer, and/or super-liberals (I don’t mean to offend anyone, my dad went to Pomona). I also think it might be harder to find my fit of people since the student body populations are so small. Can anyone confirm or deny this?
“I feel that a lot of students at liberal arts schools are sorta weirdos, queer, and/or super-liberals”
If you have issues with getting along with all types of people and judging them for things other than their personalities and intellect, they might not be the best places for you. Not trying to be flip, just honest.
" I also think it might be harder to find my fit of people"
How would you describe your fit of people?
And what other schools are you considering besides the 3 LACs you’ve mentioned?
What is it about the student life at these LACs you found compelling?
If you like pretty campuses and small class sizes, there are LACs that are more conservative and conventional, for lack of a better descriptor.
@drwprz, having had a brother who went to Swarthmore he always said the students were either over stressed or very liberal - my student-athlete DD did a recruiting overnight there last Fall and she said her host was up at 5:00 to study before team weight training, so it definitely felt stressed for her.
I don’t know anything about Pomona other than its impossible to get into from the East Coast.
My twin DD’s are going to be attending Hamilton in the Fall. They were accepted to 8 similarly selective LACs in the NE and Midwest, and in the end they felt Hamilton most met what each was looking for (and they initially had no intention of going to the same school). They felt Hamilton was more diverse than most - ethnically, socioeconomically and politically - yes liberal, but not in your face activist. Overall, they felt like it was a smart, accepting and caring group with both great science and poli sci programs (their individual areas of interest), so the best fit.
It is helpful to get the fit right, especially at a smaller school. If your sense was that these 3 schools might not fit you, you need to keep looking.
I’ve seen others express concern as to whether they would fit in with the athletic, preppy student bodies at some schools of this general type, particularly at NESCACs where varsity athletes may comprise 35-40% of the students.
You indicated on the Middlebury and Wesleyan forums that both of your daughters are attending Hamilton because one of them didn’t get accepted off the waitlist at either college.
You might find your fit at LACs in the South or perhaps Midwest. You need to visit some places and decide for yourself if you fit in. No one here can decide that for you.
What exactly do you mean by ‘weirdos’ and ‘queers’. Do you mean you don’t want to attend a school with gay students? If that’s the case you can cross 99% of schools in the US off your list.
A little friendly advice- you will soon be writing essays, interacting with admissions counselors, interviewing with schools etc. If you give off the vibe you do in your post, come April, you’ll find yourself looking at a handful of rejections.
Now to answer your question- not all liberal arts schools are alike. Some are more liberal, some more conservative, some more crunchy, some super competitive, some more chill, some more sporty. There are certainly different flavors with the common thread being small class sizes, individualized attention, sense of community, emphasis on critical thinking. Do your research.
OP, have you visited any state flagship honors colleges? They would give you some of the benefits of an LAC, but a larger student body from which to find your people.
OP - once again I’ve had to resort to looking at someone’s past posts because I couldn’t quite figure out what they were getting at in a particular post. You describe yourself as a “Hispanic, Pacific Islander, White”. Which of those do you most identify with?
Weirdos, queers, and super-liberals? Haha! I would say that stereotype applies to only a few LACs, and none of the ones you listed. If you feel that those schools have students like that, why apply? I think you are better off at a traditional four year university where you will blend in with the masses.
If you don’t feel you fit in with the students at the schools you mentioned, then keep looking. There are a number of LACs that have different vibes if that is more of what you are after. Have you looked at schools like Bowdin, Bucknell, Lafayette, Davidson to name but a few?
OP: are you looking at LAC’s because you actually like them, or because your father went to one and is a fan? Pomona has a very diverse student body which is overwhelmingly super liberal, and is definitely LGBTQ friendly. Not sure what to make of “weirdo” but Pomona is not one of those schools that tout being “quirky.” And even though the student body is overwhelmingly liberal there are a few people willing to openly identify as conservatives and/or Republicans (some of them are also queer, or students of color, or all of the above – queer SOC conservatives). Pomona is definitely not preppy, and athletics do not dominate the culture there. But it sounds like the OP needs to keep researching and expand his list to include larger schools and universities.
@CrewDad, you must have read the other forums incorrectly - last week, DD2 was offered a spot on Wesleyan’s much smaller summer melt waitlist, but she passed on it.
@Chembiodad, I assume that you didn’t notify Middlebury to remove your D from the waitlist?
I ask because a couple of friends’ kids are on the wailist. It would be advantageous if they had one less applicant to compete with.
Nope, DD2 is still leaving the door open for Middlebury as that was her 'other" ED choice - still wonders what would have happened if she hadn’t swung for Brown, but like everything else in life it will all work out…
