<p>It takes a certain type of person to go to Haverford. They are, indeed, unique.</p>
<p>I think that Haverford is unique and to me that makes Fords special. </p>
<p>If Haverford were for everyone, it would no longer be unique and Fords would no longer be special.</p>
<p>Same holds true for Tufts.</p>
<p>The idea that there is one type of person at any given college is really stupid. I’m not the typical “Tufts student”–quirky, etc. I’m more the typical “Georgetown” type. but I have loved every second of my time at Tufts and cannot imagine having had a better time. Something appealed to me about Tufts-an openness,I guess-and my impression turned out to be predictive, at least for me.</p>
<p>^^smartgrad: </p>
<p>I can’t agree more with your post. Well said. There has been much discussion of the word “quirky” and the negative conotation it subscribes to. My S1 is currently finishing up his freshman year at Tufts and I would NEVER describe him as quirky.</p>
<p>AdminDan: Maybe you could have Tufts seriously consider a new marketing campaign and stop using that word! Many bright kids who would otherwise consider Tufts are not because of some preconceived notion of quirkiness.</p>
<p>Time to adopt a new slogan…this one just doesn’t sit well with many prospective students. My S ignored that slogan and is very happy…but how many kids do you think turn Tufts down because of this reason? A stupid reason, imo, but still it makes a lasting impression.</p>
<p>I don’t think they mean every student is that way, just the majority maybe. Don’t you think every school has a different “feel” to it? I think that’s what people are referring to. It’s not necessarily a bad thing - I kind of like “quirky”! :)</p>
<p>have to weigh in to agree with smartgrad and chocchipcookie—Tufts really needs to drop that “quirky” description----it lost a student that it accepted because s/he found it too quirky—maybe that’s what the OP really thought about the school or maybe it was a case of meeting expectations since Tufts, for reasons inexplicable to me, keeps employing that description</p>
<p>I think the quirkiness is great for some kids, but not so great for others. I’m not a “save the world” type, so NU was a better place for me. I was also tempted to go to haverford, and my dad went so I had some pressure, but I just couldnt. BUt it looks like it will all work out in the end though – just got called up by Middlebury and was accepted off the waitlist…talk about a curveball!</p>
<p>Wow, congratulations - another great school! What are you gonna do now?</p>
<p>Just in case people didnt realize, this thread is being recorded as the basis for a new reality TV show :-)</p>
<p>Quirky can be a loaded word but I dont want to get distracted by that right now. As you can see from the *****s lead-in sentence for each college, Haverford actually shares several cultural attributes with Tufts and is also considered both quirky and socially aware. It is not as activist as Tufts, though. So, the OP is being consistent by ruling them both out. </p>
<p>Quirky has a creative component to its definition. At Northwestern, they keep all the creative types safely locked away in the South Campus, while the conservative, non-creative types are relegated to the North Campus. At Tufts they allow the creative types to roam freely throughout the entire campus. Tufts also looks for a creative component in all their applicants as it is considered an element of overall intelligence. I have no direct experience with Haverford, but I am going to guess they allow the creative types to roam freely as well. I have no idea if they screen for creativity. So, Northwestern does have a different feel that could appeal to the OP.</p>
<p>If the OP factored name recognition into the decision, then he/she is going to be disappointed. My spouse was a Tufts undergrad and went to Northwesterns highest ranked grad school and still found the lead statement from ***** to be true.</p>
<p>In terms of Middlebury, it is a liberal college like Tufts (one of Tufts founders was from Middlebury). Middleburys crusade is to save the environment rather than save the world and as a result it has one of the top environmental studies programs in the country and a measurable population of tree hugging granola types. Unlike Haverford and Tufts, Middlebury also has a measurable population of pretentious preppies drawn from the New England prep schools and wealthy suburban high schools. </p>
<p>Middlebury actually invented Quidditch. They have been the top team in the country since it’s invention and they take it very seriously. Therefore, Middlebury must be very “quirky” as well :-)</p>
<p>Middlebury is strong academically and you can get a good science education at any of the NESCAC schools, but Middlebury is not known within NESCAC as a science school. If you are considering it, make sure it has the breadth and depth of courses in your area(s) of interest. Unlike Haverford (which has more of a science reputation), there is also nowhere nearby to take additional courses.</p>
<p>Are you an outdoorsy type?</p>
<p>Good Luck</p>
<p>From *****:</p>
<p>Students at Northwestern University may be frustrated with the lack of name recognition outside the Midwest, but they arent disappointed by the stellar academics and beautiful campus </p>
<p>A top ten liberal arts college without much of an ego, Haverford provides four years of sensitivity training to a small pool of bright, quirky, socially aware students</p>
<p>Nestled in one of the most beautiful sections of the northeast, Middlebury college is an environmentally-conscious liberal arts school with a rich history</p>
<p>Many schools talk about being Ivy equivalents, but Tufts University really does deliver an education on par with some of the best schools in the country</p>
<p>^^My S had Middlebury and Northwestern on his original college list. After a visit to Middlebury, he ruled it out immediately, for many reasons that I’m sure are different than the OP’s. It’s definitely in the middle of nowhere with an emphasis on the outdoors and lacrosse. Very crunchy granola liberal if you’re into that. My S wanted more of a univ. than a college, and definitely near a large city.</p>
<p>He ended up applying ED to Tufts, so we never did get to visit Northwestern. However many people told us at that time that the two colleges were similar and that many students apply to both.</p>
<p>If this post is not reason enough for Tufts to drop it’s “quirky” thing I don’t know what is. Let me post this loud and clear: at every good school (NU and Haverford included) there will be quirky kids. Tufts has a quidditch team, Peace and Justice Studies as an academic major, and that awkward handful of kids who burst out in song in the dining hall. However, so does Middlebury, NU, Haverford, Harvard, BU, etc. etc. </p>
<p>The only difference is that Tufts specifically markets to this odd subset of kids, much to the dismay/bewilderment of non-quirky, completely typical Tufts students/alums/parents like momiac, smartgrad, chocchipcookie, and me. AdmissDan and Dean Coffin, if you’re reading this (which I know at least AdmissDan is), how much more proof do you need to drop the quirky label? We just lost a very competent student (20120137) to Northwestern because s/he ‘thought’ Tufts was too quirky. I know your argument back will be that Tufts “wasn’t a good fit, then” but in reality it probably would have been a great fit if s/he had been able to see the full scope of Tufts people, not the 5% that dominate the marketing for the school.</p>
<p>The OP said “I’m not a “save the world” type, so NU was a better place for me.” Sounds like that was the bigger issue, not the quirkiness. Global awareness is pretty much Tufts’ backbone.</p>
<p>“Global awareness is pretty much Tufts’ backbone.”</p>
<p>Maybe that is what should be marketed…</p>
<p>Tuftskid, I have been saying this for a while now. These threads are proof that Tufts marketing may have hit a wall in terms of effectiveness. I know that in NYC a lot of top students don’t apply because they think Tufts is “too quirky” and “not fun”–the opposite of my experience there. They will go to Johns Hopkins instead. Makes no sense. It frustrates me that admissions feeds the negative stereotypes so relentlessly. I know that Tufts had a low admissions rate this year but the raw number of applications went down, so I don’t know what to think of that. There’s not doubt its a super selective school but it’s not just about numbers and SAT scores…it’s also about attracting the students you want to attract and getting them to attend. Better aid and better dorms would help too.</p>
<p>@classclown, when I applied to Tufts “global awareness” WAS their biggest marketing tool. I just graduated, and was home for a week after graduation. I was cleaning up my room and found my notes from my first tour at Tufts (June 2006) and the boldest underlining in my notes from the info session were about active citizenship/global awareness and the student/professor relationships. Not a single mention of quirkiness.</p>
<p>Even now, I tell younger kids from my high school and family friends that active citizenship is truly what sets Tufts apart from our peer schools. </p>
<p>Perhaps SlithelyLove, you’re right that OP wasn’t right for Tufts. I’d not noticed that comment that you quoted… but still, I’m sure OP (and others) would have found their place at Tufts if the school hadn’t limited its marketing approach.</p>
<p>I don’t think it was the marketing, seriously any student could find a way to fit in at nearly any school. But it is simply the type of environment a student wants that determines where a student goes. I will be going to UChicago, what do you think when I say that? Probably quirky, intellectual, where fun goes to die, strange, core curriculum, anti-social. I found students there friendly, fun, smart but not sophisticated, weird but also many normal teenagers, and a huge variety of types of people who all “fit” UChicago in their own way, not simply cause they were quirky or intellectual.</p>
<p>I agree with tuftskid about the encouragement of the “quirky” thing. Its time has passed, although it seems to have taken on a life of its own. If you want proof, just go to youtube and look up “Tufts admission video” to see all the (optional) submissions from prospective students. I know some kids who spent DAYS on theirs–going for the most clever, quirky version of themselves as possible–only to be rejected (even with Tufts-worthy stats). Maybe they were not quirky enough? The university is enjoying a buzz right now, but the downside is what you see in this thread.</p>
<p>I think Tufts’ greatest attraction is it allows students to be an environment where they can think outside of the box. Sure other schools have that, but I am talking about with both peers and professors (the essays are indicators of this). Perhaps this is what is meant by ‘quirky.’ But really, this skill set is paramount to be successful in any field–business, politics, engineering, law, etc. That’s why I think Tufts has a good alumni base. I also think that’s why recruiters are attracted to Tufts. You can teach anyone the basics, but it’s very difficult to push someone to think creatively.</p>
<p>This is actually a big complaint I have heard about Wharton kids for business-like jobs (finance, consulting, etc.).</p>
<p>Just my two cents.</p>