<p>My DS (I have twins, in case anyone has seen the thread about DD), has been accepted to 10 schools and has narrowed his list down to the ones in the title. He is a quirky/indie type kid, has some executive functioning/aspie's issues, but that is improving. He wants to pursue zoology/biological sciences with a possible pre-vet track or research, and also wants to pursue theatre. He goes to a very small high school, and has visited all but Goucher.</p>
<p>Any thoughts out there about these choices? I realize it isn’t Harvard v Princeton, but would still appreciate hearing from this community.</p>
<p>Hofstra seems to be the odd man out in that list. The other three are LAC’s–not among the very top LAC’s but all reasonably good schools that offer a fine education with a liberal arts focus. Ursinus is, I believe, the best of the group in terms of academics. It is known as a good pre-med school, similar to Franklin & Marshall, Muelenberg, Dickenson and Gettysburg. It is part of the Centenial Conference which includes stellar places such as Johns Hopkins, Swarthmore, Haverford, and Bryn Mawr. That’s pretty good company.</p>
<p>Goucher and Wheaton are similar to each other in everything but location. Both are former women’s colleges which went co-ed some years ago but each retains a rather lopsided ratio of women to men. Both have reasonably good academics.[I went to Johns Hopkins and took classes in Russian language at Goucher because Goucher’s Russian Department was and is better than the one at Hopkins]. Both Wheaton and Goucher have pretty campuses–with Wheaton’s campus primarily Georgian style and Goucher’s primarily made up of modern, stone-walled buildings which makes for a quite unique campus. But Wheaton is in Norton, MA–stuck in a very small town between Providence and Boston. Norton is a pretty town and a nice place to raise a family but I wouldn’t necessarily want to go to college there. There clearly isn’t much going on in Norton. Goucher, on the other hand, is in Towson which is actually a pretty good college town (Towson University, much larger than Goucher, is there also and many Hopkins and Loyola students spend time in Towson). Towson is also readily accessible to Baltimore. perhaps a 20–25 minute drive to the Inner Harbor. Goucher is also part of Baltimore’s Collegetown Network which is a consortium of Baltimore based colleges and universities which allows cross-registration between schools(with some limits) and bus transportation between the schools. Wheaton, to my knowledge, has nothing like that.</p>
<p>Hofstra is a different kind of place entirely. It is much much larger than the other three and, how can I say this without getting into trouble,—it has a very strong Long Island flavor. That’s fine I suppose if you are from Long Island but many people from outside the area (even those from Manhattan and Northern New Jersey) find it somewhat difficult to tolerate. Hofstra also has far less of a liberal arts focus than the other schools with, for example, a large number of business majors. Hofstra also has a lot of commuter students, and those who live on campus often leave for the weekends (i.e., it is somewhat of a “suitcase” school). You won’t find that at the other three schools. </p>
<p>I hope this helps. Good luck.</p>
<p>He’s visited Ursinus, so I assume he realizes how small it feels and how it is NOT right outside Philadelphia! I spend a lot of time in that area (family) and there isn’t a whole lot to do in Collegeville. I assume the school runs shuttles to King of Prussia and to the train station to get into the city. I agree that Hofstra doesn’t seem to fit. I have not been to Wheaton and agree with the above Goucher comments.</p>
<p>Thank you, bonanza. Wheaton does have a relationship with Brown, he could take classes there. As he is interested in zoology, both Wheaton and Goucher are near zoos where he might be able to intern/do research. I have to check on Ursinus’ proximity to a zoo and what opportunities are there.</p>
<p>MomofWildChild, he goes to a very small HS - there are 14 kids in his graduating class. So he is used to small. Hofstra, although large, actually feels small and class sizes are pretty small. I do believe there are shuttles from Ursinus to King of Prussia and the train station.</p>
<p>He won’t be able to get to the Philadelphia Zoo too easily from Ursinus, but there is the Elmwood Park zoo in Norristown that is much closer. Ursinus is small, but it is a cute little town and there is enough to do. Back in the day I did not leave my little Collegville-like town at all and I survived.</p>
<p>Towson is a nice area, lots of colleges as indicated above. I don’t know much about the other schools on the list.</p>
<p>Wheaton has a wonderful supportive environment, with its academics, beautiful campus which the students take pride in, athletics, many clubs, organizations etc. The proximity to Providence and Boston offers some off campus entertainment possibilities, with Providence being much closer. Students can enjoy some urban activities very easily either by car or public transportation. It is possible for a Wheaton student to take courses at Brown University. Wheaton also now offers a business major. The number of enrolled students is about 1,600 - only a little bigger than my S’s high school! Single rooms do not cost anymore than a double room, there is a housing lottery each March. No meal plans! Walk in and out of Chase Round Dining Hall all day long until midnight and just swipe your card-all included. This is a great dining arrangement for hungry students who do not have to be tied down to certain hours for meals.</p>
<p>I didn’t realize that Wheaton students could cross-register at Brown. That’s good to know. I guess the question is–how do you get to Brown? It is about a 30-35 minute drive from Norton to the East Side of Providence but that means you must have a car (there is no public transportation between Norton and Providence that I know of). And if you have a car then you have to find a place to park near Brown–which is very difficult due to the paucity of metered parking and few if any public parking lots. Brown students biggest complaint is the lack of parking availability. </p>
<p>That’s why the Baltimore Collegetown Network works–it not only has cross registration but a bus to take you from one campus to the next (although the buses don’t run as frequently as one might like).</p>
<p>As to zoo’s, the zoo at Providence’s Roger Williams Park is a real gem of a small zoo. The zoo at Druid Hill Park in Baltimore is also a good zoo–but the neighborhood near the zoo is pretty sketchy. You don’t want to be there after dark.</p>
<p>It looks like the Maryland Zoo is only a 20 minute drive from Goucher (not that he’ll have a car), but over an hour away by bus.</p>
<p>[MBTA</a> Train ? Student Activities, Involvement and Leadership | Wheaton College](<a href=“http://wheatoncollege.edu/sail/programs-services/transportation/mbta-train/]MBTA”>http://wheatoncollege.edu/sail/programs-services/transportation/mbta-train/) MBTA </p>
<p>[Cross</a> registration options ? Academic Advising | Wheaton College](<a href=“http://wheatoncollege.edu/advising/year-students/cross-registration-options/]Cross”>http://wheatoncollege.edu/advising/year-students/cross-registration-options/)</p>
<p>Link for cross registration options above</p>
<p>Thank you, SLUMOM.</p>
<p>I do not recall if S has ever used the public transportation or not, he has a lot of friends who own cars.
So not having a car has not held him back transportation wise.</p>
<p>SLUMOM, so is your S at Wheaton? If so, what is he studying there? And what are the dorms like (only thing we didn’t see on tour).</p>
<p>If he goes to Ursinus, I can help him out with the zoo part! My sister is always looking for pet sitters for her large menagerie!</p>
<p>Just a quick FYI on the Wheaton / Brown relationship. We were told by our admissions director last autumn that cross-registration at Brown is limited to major courses only and only with permission of your advisor.</p>
<p>My D was also accepted at both Ursinus and Wheaton and is leaning towards Ursinus because of their Common Intellectual Experience (first year program) which seems much better than what Wheaton has.</p>
<p>Ursinus has also given the best merit $ and with the lowest renewal requirement. STAmum, why does Ursinus CIE seem better to you than the Wheaton first year program?</p>
<p>I grew up on Long Island. Took classes at Hofstra many years ago. It’s a location with the worst kind of suburban sprawl. Very unattractive. Might be kind of a “bro” school, if you know what I mean. Very big lacrosse program. Merits further investigation about social atmosphere.</p>
<p>Pdkof13, I sent you a PM on Wheaton and impressions of our Goucher visit.</p>
<p>I’ve never heard of a Wheaton student taking classes at Brown, and I have several friends at Wheaton. Just want to say, it may be something that they advertise that doesn’t actually happen in practice.</p>