I ran into reps from these two colleges at the Big Apple College Fair in NYC.
They don’t get a whole lot of press, though Susquehanna is in the Fiske Guide and both are featured in the Princeton Review best colleges guide.
Some things I noticed:
Susquehanna seems to be strongly market driven and has solid outcomes. The rep emphasized 96% of it’s students are employed or in grad school 6 mos after graduating. It’s got 800 more students than Lycoming, but has a smaller endowment.
It seems Lycoming might be stronger in the sciences, but Susquehanna has a solid creative writing dept.
Any insight on these schools? Strong programs/departments? Overall vibe?
I’ve worked with Lycoming students through a summer research project and have visited campus several times (I’m happy to elaborate through PM). I was more impressed with the humanities at Lycoming than its science offerings, especially compared to some of the other PA LACs (Allegheny, Bucknell, F&M, etc.). I’d say the typical student is middle class and nerdy but not too offbeat/quirky. Williamsport is a fairly cute town and just big enough to meet students’ needs for four years. My impression is that high-achieving students have a pretty decent shot at good merit aid.
Overall I wasn’t too blown away like I was at Rhodes, but it seems like a good school with academically engaged students. Hopefully a current student or parent can weigh in with more info.
We visited Lycoming with S17. Definitely lots of merit for average (or slightly below) students. Greek life but they live on campus. Lots of sports for a small school (including football). Dorms were meh. Just too small for him.
Susquehanna is on our list for D21. For a good student, you can get it down to in state costs (at least NJ in state costs). Required study abroad, everyone lives on campus. Definitely strong creative writing. Also has Greek life and lots of sports. Honors college for a 3.9 and 1300 SAT. Hoping it’s big enough for D.
@Theoden, my daughter is a senior at Susquehanna, studying photography and art history. She has enjoyed the school a lot and we feel that she’s getting an excellent education. Her only complaint is the food!
There is a very active Greek community. Most of her friends are in fraternities or sororities, but she’s not interested. She attended one rush event to support her friend. DD got an invitation to join and her friend didn’t!! When she declined, the friend got her spot.
The school has a fabulous art gallery with an impressive collection. DD works in the gallery. She’s met artists from all over the country and helps put together shows.
She also has a music scholarship for non-music majors which includes free jazz piano lessons.
Her writing skills have improved greatly. I think it helped that she’s been in the honors program. She had some challenging classes through that. Her professors have been engaging and supportive.
Selinsgrove is a cute little town. The Susquehanna River is gorgeous and I enjoy exploring it when I visit.
Not far away, there is a HUGE commercial strip, one of the largest I’ve seen anywhere! I can’t think of a single chain store that’s not represented, ha.
I should mention that we discovered the school when we hired a consultant for our oldest (he was a recruited athlete so we felt like we needed some help). This guy liked SU so much that he sent his own son there. As a result of his recommendations, there are quite a few kids from Maine in attendance! Made it easy for DD to get rides home before she had a car.
Visited Susquehanna and the drive to the university was somewhat sad. The college itself seemed okay in the middle of nowhere. Any suggestions on this college?
Suggestions as to what? I know several very happy kids at Susquehanna. Great merit, some consider it rural but I guess that depends on where you’re coming from. I’ve heard nothing but good things.
