<p>My son was in a graduating class of less than fifty! He also was avoiding “large” schools, but what seems large when you are a junior in high school deciding where to apply, isn’t large once you are 6 months out of high school. Once you get out into a bigger world your perspective shifts totally. Tufts undergrad population is only a little over 5,000, and the campus is not huge. And once you go through the freshman orientation, you feel at home pretty quickly.
My son chose a smaller school and now he thinks it is a little too small ;-)</p>
<p>I hate to see when kids get too hung up on size, relative to other factors. </p>
<p>Vassar and Tufts are both excellent schools, so there is no wrong choice. Let us know how it goes.</p>
<p>My son is a sophomore IR major. I’m pretty sure a lot of the big classes have breakout sessions.</p>
<p>At the Jumbo day we were at, they gave sample lectures. My son and I attended different ones. I really enjoyed the one I went to, though I arrived late since too many people showed up for my first choice one! It’s one of the things I don’t like so much - a few schools let you attend real classes which allows you to see the students as well as just one sample prof who has presumably been chosen for being an entertaining lecturer.</p>
<p>hobbes216, eeamama: After a long weekend and overnight at Haverford, my d decided Tufts is absolutely for her! Finally! eeamama, how was your experience at Tufts for the overnight and Jumbo Days? Haverford felt REALLY small and Tufts seems to have more emphasis on global citizenship, diversity and student passionate involvement. Haverford kids are really “chill” and all the ones she met are not that involved. And at the overnight, the whole hall was super nice, but smoking dope, (on a Sunday night), and she felt uncomfortable. Does Tufts have an alcohol/drug free dorm? I need to find out.</p>
<p>tolstoy2 - that’s great news! Our d’s sound very similar - mine chose Tufts over Haverford for the same reasons as yours. I am very happy with her choice as is she.</p>
<p>While my son had a good time at Tufts and we felt that they did a very good job of organizing the Jumbo Day, in the end I think his heart is with Vassar. His host was nice and there were lots of activities. But he said that when he stayed overnight at Vassar he felt like he belonged and when he stayed at Tufts he felt he was visiting. I think he was so lucky to have two such fabulous choices. From the beginning I knew it would come down to how he “felt” rather than what he “thought”. Both schools are wonderful academically, but the social aspect of college is such an important factor. I do think that Tufts would be PERFECT for my younger son. So I will probably meet some of you back here in a couple of years. Best of luck!</p>
<p>@ Tolstoy </p>
<p>Welcome to the Tufts community!</p>
<p>Yes, Tufts has a “substance free” dorm as one of the housing options</p>
<p>@twoboys</p>
<p>Best of luck to your son! I’m sure he will love his time at Vassar; it’s a great school and it sounds like it is the best fit for him.</p>
<p>strictly speaking, all of the dorms at tufts are free of drugs and alcohol for those who can’t legally possess them. There is, however, a substance-free dorm which takes the prohibition more seriously.</p>
<p>Massachusetts has very lax laws regarding marijuana. for possession under 1 oz, it’s at most a $150 fine. As such, many students at tufts use pot and do so rather openly. But of all the folks I know who use, their marijuana consumption is far from the biggest thing that defines them.<br>
Alcohol use is something that your child should be careful of, especially if he/she doesn’t have much experience with it. A lot of freshmen come in and drink without knowing their limits, leading to some rather regrettable experiences. Drinking is quite prevalent here, but nobody ever pressures you to do so. Folks here are cool with whatever you choose. </p>
<p>That being said, your child would benefit from learning about how they experience drinking because it’s something that is responsibly enjoyed by many adults from college on up.</p>
<p>Regardless, welcome to the Tufts community! We have a really fantastic group of people here, and we’re thrilled to have your student join us!</p>
<p>tolstoy2, hobbes216: My d and I had a great visit to Jumbo Days last week, and I think she’s leaning strongly toward Tufts, though she still loves Haverford and it’s hard to let go of the idea of going there. But the vibrancy of life on the Tufts campus really excited her. She had a terrific overnight host, and they went from one great activity (a lecture on electric cars in Israel) to another (delicious dinner) to another (parties and painting the cannon with the wilderness preorientation group). The people she met were fun and nice. The next day we both went to very impressive biology lectures, and she later bumped into the head of the biology department, who was warm and encouraging and gave her some advice about the major. The weather was gorgeous, so the campus really made a great impression. She didn’t get a chance to go into Davis Square, but I did while she was with her overnight host, and it’s a fun area that will appeal to her.</p>
<p>Her Haverford overnight was also fun, but not as successful. Her host had a dinner obligation with family and was a little sick, so my d was passed off to one or two other hosts with other pre-frosh and did a lot of somewhat aimless wandering around campus. She enjoyed going to an art thesis exhibit, and she liked the current students she met–she appreciated that they spent a lot of time with her telling her what they loved about Haverford. She saw some dorm parties that seemed fun, but also went to a dance that felt awkward. She loves the beauty of the campus, and the biology department and labs seem fantastic. She spoke to several professors at the faculty fair and is very attracted by the close mentoring on offer there. She likes the idea of being close to Philadelphia and to the family we have in the area. But in the end, she’s worried that the small size of the school will make her feel that she’s missing out on the college experience as she’s been imagining it. </p>
<p>So she hasn’t made her final decision yet (I envy you both that your daughters have decided!), but she’s feeling her way toward choosing Tufts. We’ll see!</p>
<p>eeamama - would love to know which she chooses! It’s a good thing there is a deadline. I really thought that my d would still be agonizing over her choice until the last second but thankfully her overnight at Tufts brought her the clarity she needed. I hope your d feels happy with whatever decision she makes - there really isn’t a wrong one.</p>
<p>hobbes216 - yes, thank goodness for the deadline! The indecision is really beginning to weigh on her, but I know that she’ll feel happy with her decision when she makes it. And I’ll report back when she decides!</p>
<p>So sorry we missed the Tufts days. Her Haverford overnight sounds familiar. My d was shuffled off to other freshman as well with another spec, and they did nothing at all but hang out in the apts. And watch the kids leave 2 at a time to go outside and smoke pot. Some freshman went to a Palestine night with free food and hookah, but my d and the other spec weren’t interested in smoking. So, sat there doing nothing the whole time. Everyone that came in was nice- but it was dull and awkward. Not how she envisioned college. Let us know what your d chooses! And thanks everyone for the info on Healthy Living option at Tufts. I already contacted Res Life about it! My d is proudly wearing her Tufts sweatshirt to school today!</p>
<p>It’s official: my d chose Tufts yesterday! She’s very excited, and we are too!</p>
<p>Go Jumbos! Funny all 3 of us were in the same boat, and all of our kids chose Tufts! Excellent!</p>
<p>Congrats to all!
Hopefully this thread can be read by some students next year who are grappling with the same decision. Perhaps there will even be some updates about how the students feel after their first semester?
:-)</p>
<p>That’s 3 for 3! Go Jumbos! Hope our 3 D’s run into each other next year on campus.</p>