<p>So I'm putting together a list of schools my dad and I should visit this summer and would appreciate any input. We are thinking of flying into Boston or DC, renting a car and driving up/down the coast. Haven't made any reservations/appointments yet (like everything in my family, its going to be pretty ad hoc), so practical info is appreciated too. But mainly I want to know what people think of these schools and places I've overlooked. Basically I'm looking for a school (large or small) with an overall strong liberal arts curriculum (still undecided but tend towards humanities), small classes, good intellectual life (but also good social life) that is in or near a city. I was in Boston a few weeks back and saw Boston College, Tufts, Brandeis and Harvard. I'll probably revisit Tufts and BC (which I really fell in love with). Besides that my list so far ...</p>
<p>Brown
BU
Columbia
Duke
Georgetown
George Washington
NYU
Penn
Swarthmore
Trinity
UNC
Yale</p>
<p>two other schools that would be "safeties" to the ones you have on your list, but have somewhat similar "feel" to BC are Providence College and Fordham. You might want to add Holy Cross also.</p>
<p>By all means visit, if summer is your only opportunity, but, realize also that most LACs don't have lots of students hanging around in the summer; they're going to look empty and a bit forlorn compared to the uni-docs which are teeming with married students and TAs all year round.</p>
<p>Just remember when planning that it is often difficult to get to two admissions sessions in one day if they are not very close to each other! We had planned to visit more schools than we actually were able to do as session times and distances were often incompatible.</p>
<p>I would strongly suggest you save it for a time when school is in session. Most of these campuses are populated in the summer with summer campers and others that are not regular students. It will be hard to get any feel for the campus atmosphere.</p>
<p>Hi jedipsohn, small world ... go trevs! haha </p>
<p>I actually visited Boston College and Tufts so they're already on the list (see above). Good advice, bandit, and I agree. But unfortunately this is the only time my dad and I have off to make such a trip. As for the schools mentioned so far:</p>
<p>Wesleyan and Haverford: Added, thanks for these suggestions.</p>
<p>Fordham: Added, looks great. Strange I've never heard of it before. Good safety.</p>
<p>Providence/Holy Cross: too conservative/Catholic.</p>
<p>Cornell: too isolated. I want to be in/near a city.</p>
<p>Princeton: Added, though I'm not sure how many "reaches" I need. I'll probably be applying to Harvard, and I'm not sure how close Princeton really is to New York (in terms of lifestyle not time/distance)</p>
<p>UVA, W&M, Wake Forest: I've decided to visit these along with UNC and Duke on another trip (if at all). Seems like Charlottesville, Williamsburg, Winston-Salem, and Durham/Chapel Hill aren't really what I'm looking for in terms of cities.</p>
<p>American: Might stop by since I'll be visiting Georgetown and GW, but doesn't sound too promising. But maybe a good safety as you say.</p>
<p>DEFINITELY add Dartmouth if possible. One visit and I was sold on the school (I'll be attending next fall). It may not be in/near a large city, but offers an unparalleled undergrad experience and family-like student body.</p>
<p>good luck on the trip --- i visited 11 schools in one week and I was soo drained by the end of that week. You may want to get them done ASAP, but then again make sure there's enough time between each school before some of the schools end up looking exactly the same....</p>