Suggestions for colleges, please.

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hello, I just recently stumbled across these forums and they appear to be a very helpful. I decided to post, in hope that someone would have college suggestions for me. I'm not entirely sure of the ettiquette of these forums, so feel free to smack me upside the head if I've posted this somewhere where it souldn't be.</p>

<p>I'm looking for a small, liberal arts college in the East Coast area. I'm intending to major in Anthropology with a focus on Linguistics, but there is always a possibility of that changing.</p>

<p>My verbal SAT was 780 and my math 680. I recieved a 720 on the writing SATII and a 690 on the U.S. History SATII. My results on the Math IC SATII are not yet known.
I come from a ridiculously competitive high school that is well known for it's academic agressiveness and grade "deflation" as one college representative I met with assured me.
I took the U.S History AP test and recieved a 4. I also took the English Language AP and recieved a 5.
I have averaged around two or three AP/Honors classes each year.
My GPA is not out of a 4.0 scale, and I am not entirely sure how it translates. Somewhere between 3.4 and 3.7 most likely. Which I realize is quite a drastic range.</p>

<p>The schools I am looking at are:
Bard
Brandeis
Bucknell
Connecticut College
Dickinson
Franklin and Marshall
Hamilton
Wesleyan</p>

<p>The issue is, I'm relatively left-leaning in the political and social sphere and a bit of a, well, let's go with "individual", to preserve my ego. I really like the programs at Franklin and Marshall and Hamilton, but I fear I might not mesh well with the student population. On the other hand, I'm not sure I would get accepted to Wesleyan, where I feel I would fit in quite well. And on a much more shallow note, I like Bucknell, Franklin and Marshall, and Dickinson because they aren't as cold and likely to be mistaken for someplace where polar bears and Santa Claus would enjoy living.</p>

<p>So, I was hoping that someone might have some suggestions for other colleges I would be more likely to get into or resurrances that at places like F&M, Hamilton, Bucknell, and Dickinson aren't as conservative as I've heard.</p>

<p>Many thanks to anyone who actually read through the entirety of that rambling post.</p>

2

<p>How about a few of these colleges (although some are not in the Northeast):</p>

<p>Bates
Reed
Skidmore
Grinnell
Macalester
Oberlin
Colby
Sarah Lawrence
Earlham
Lewis & Clark
Whitman
Hendrix</p>

<p>You'd be surprized how little being on the East Coast means once you get to college. I'd suggest looking at Grinnell, Oberlin, Macalester and Reed especially, though all the other schools are awesome too.</p>

<p>Hamilton is less conservative than F&M and Dickinson, although a better school for balance would be Trinity C (CT), and Colby. The first three (Hamilton, F&M, and Dickinson) have fraternities, so if you do not like greek systems...you might want to think twice, although if you are good at creating your own fun with friends then it might not be a big issue.</p>

<p>Just my 2 cents.</p>

3

<p>Skidmore's really liberal. It is rather cold in the winter though. Look at Haverford maybe?</p>

4

<p>Your list is kind of schizophrenic - places like Bard and Wesleyan are the polar opposite in terms of student body from places like Dickinson and Franklin and Marshall.
If you're looking for a liberal, artsy and intellectual feel, you want places like Bard and Wesleyan. Dickinson and F&M (and Bucknell) tend to have more "preppy" students who are very career focused. If you're worried about "conservatism" I wouldn't consider any of the three a fit - even though they are all excellent schools academically.</p>

<p>Blaineko gave an excellent list and Rabo's suggestion of Skidmore is also good. I'd also add: Brown, Wheaton College (Mass), Haverford, Swarthmore if you only want to focus on the northeast.</p>

5

<p>Academically, all the schools on your list are solid, but you are wise to consider the social and political climates and factor them into your choices. I think you'd be okay at Hamilton, Dickinson, F&M and Bucknell, in that order, but the other schools would be be a bit more compatible. You might think about replacing one or more of Hamilton, Dickinson etc. with or one or more of the Midwestern options Blaineko lists, like Macalester or Grinnell. Another Midwestern LAC, Carleton College, has an excellent Linguistics program. (Macalester has a very good program; Grinnell has a concentration.) Beloit College would be a safety in the Midwest; Anthropology is a star department there.</p>

<p>I prefer small liberal arts colleges for undergraduate study in most discliplines but some students with your interests select larger schools to get larger departments and more course offerings. So if you have not already done so, you might fine-tune your list by checking the websites of the schools on it to see which ones have the Anthropology course offerings you are looking for and the greatest number of Anthropology faculty members per student. Also, not many of the schools on your list have full majors in linguistics should you decide to go that direction.</p>

6

<p>Thank you very much blaineko, RaboKarabekian, carolyn, and reidm for your suggestions. I will look into them all in more detail, especially the midwestern ones as I before had limited my previous searches to the east coast since I was not too eager to go that far from home. But, really, if the fit of the school is perfect it doesn't matter that much how close to home I am. Again, thank you very much for your responses.</p>

7

<p>My niece was an anthropology major at Skidmore.....she graduated about 5 years ago......loved the program and loved Skidmore's location.......(she's from a cold weather climate,though)</p>

8

<p>You might also want to look at Whitman in WA, ) almost forgot about that one. :)</p>

9

<p>Holy Cross is a very good LAC with a more liberal student body than Bucknell and F&M. Also Holy Cross is only 1 hour from Boston.</p>

10

<p>2 other schools out East that you may take a look at are Sarah Lawrence (previously mentioned and Vassar. While I think that you would have a decent shot at Vassar, I have no doubt that you would be accepted at Sarah Lawrence. I believe that the academic and intellectual environment may be more suited to your tastes than is Bucknell, Dickinson, or Franklin & Marshall. Particularly when it comes to liberal arts colleges, finding a place where you fit is exceptionally important. </p>

<p>I second reidm's suggestion that you also look at Beloit if you are interested in anthropology and linguistics. Some ridiculously large number of anthropology PhDs around the country went to Beloit (the admissions office can probably give you the percentage). They have great opportunities for fieldwork and research, as well. (Full disclosure -- I am a Beloit grad. I did not major in anthro, but had many friends who did) Anthropology is considered by many as the signature major at Beloit.</p>

<p>Good luck with your search.</p>

11

<p>acciotiara:</p>

<p>I had a very similar background, and faced many of the same dilemmas in picking colleges five years ago. Rest assured, you can make a place for yourself at any college.</p>

<p>Having said that, I needed a real break from the high-power, militaristic boarding school environment. My selection was reduced to schools like Hamilton and Bates, and Skidmore and Vassar. </p>

<p>I ultimately chose Skidmore because it was not wildly liberal, and offered enough social diversity that I was not facing a cookie-cutter environment. The lack of fraternities leaves room for autonomy and self-exploration.</p>

12

<p>Check out Reed. Of course, it's on the other side of the country, but you might fit in well there.</p>

<p>Also Oberlin.</p>