<p>Well, I may be a late-bloomer, but I just kind of discovered Bowdoin this week, but I think it was love at first sight. Can anybody say anything about the school/town/whatever? This is a really general thread, but any info- any- is appreciated.</p>
<p>well as you probably know it is a small liberal arts college...the campus is really pretty very outdoorsy...the town is small and rather isolated but from what i hear the students find ways to have fun</p>
<p>I don't think the town is "isolated." It's a few minutes to Freeport and LL Bean, less than a half hour to Portland, which has developed into a pretty hip place, there are shuttle buses, kids go to concerts in Boston and good concerts come to Maine (Wynton Marsalis, many cool groups!) and besides, the town itself was rated one of the "Top 40 College Towns" by Outside magazine.</p>
<p>My son is a sophomore and likes the school a lot. The town of Brunswick is, I believe, the largest town in Maine. There is a downtown movie theatre, lots of shops, and ethnic restaurants. For one of my son's music classes, the students went to Portland for a performance of Don Giovanni. The administration brings in a lot of outside entertainment, speakers, etc. Good luck to you!</p>
<p>I just started here, and so far, it's been great. Brunswick is actually a cute little town. I've been out to Brunswick to pick up groceries, music, ice cream, and movies so far and nothing has been more than a 10 minute walk off campus. I've also gone running off campus, and the surrounding areas and roads seem very safe. The culture here is definitely a mix of preppy and outdoorsy. I went on a pre-orientation trip canoeing and hiking (as did 76% of my classmates), and the Bowdoin Outing Club is really popular. Being active (not necessarily athletic) is a big part of the way of life up here, it seems. I've been to almost all of my classes, and the work load seems like it will be intense, but manageable. The campus is small and very pretty, and pretty much everything on campus is within a 5 minute walk. The food here, as I'm sure you've heard, is excellent. There are really a lot of options for healthy eating every day. The social house system (each first year is assigned a house based on which dorm they're in) is set up to be very inclusive, and parties are open to everyone. So far, there has been a lot of support for freshmen--every floor has a proctor, who kind of oversees the dorm and is there to answer questions or talk to you and everyone is assigned an upperclass "buddy" from his/her social house to help introduce the social house. Everyone is also assigned a pre-major academic advisor who can help you pick out your courses and explain things to you. All in all, it has been a pretty smooth transition so far from high school to college and I'm really enjoying it up here.</p>
<p>That's good to hear. Good luck by the way.</p>
<p>geniusriki, may i ask if you submitted your sat scores and if so, what were they? at the moment bowdoin is my favorite school but i'm not sure if i should submit my sats (i have a 2030). thanks so much and i'm really glad to hear that you enjoy the school.</p>
<p>I am a freshman at Bowdoin too and I would agree completely with her assessment of Brunswick. Its a quiet suburban town with a cool downtown along Maine Street. I also have been running in the nearby neighborhoods, which seemed pretty typical suburbia to me. This definitely isnt a college town that shuts down June-August because the kids arent there. Brunswick is also along a sizeable river with old mills and a hyrdoelectric dam dotting its shores. All in all, its everything you could want in a college town.</p>
<p>Momoney-I really dont know the translation of old to new SATs, but a general rule of thumb would be if you SATs drastically differ from the rest of the app, dont send them. I wouldnt get too hung up about the SATs for Bowdoin. Its just a test of your mutliple choice ability, and Bowdoin recognizes this, and thats why the test is optional. If you send them, it just allows them to see a different dimension of you as a person.</p>
<p>Yes, I did submit them. I had a 1480 on the old test (800V/680M). From the very brief time at the beginning when some people were still talking about SAT scores, it seems that people with scores under a 1350 decided not to submit. If you think that your scores enhance your application, send them-they seem to be pretty good so they probably won't hurt you, but of course, I'm not on admissions so I have no way of knowing for sure.</p>