<p>Hey! Something about me. I'm an international student going to college this fall. I've been accepted to Wesleyan, Bowdoin, and Middlebury. Perhaps I'll major in history, foreign languages, or economics.</p>
<p>To me, all of them seem quite alike. All in New England. All have great humanities programs. All in small towns, etc. etc. Actually, here in Singapore, people usually don't recognize liberal arts colleges - perhaps except for Williams. To most of the students here, the only difference is a slight difference in ranking and geological locations (Maine is COLD!) </p>
<p>Since I haven't been able to visit any of them and am not likely to have the opportunity to visit them in this April, I just get my feeling of them from websites and alumni interviews. But it seems like I still need more information to make a decision. I have to make up my mind by the end of this month, so please help me with the knowledge you have about these schools! Is there major difference among them? How do people in America think of them? Can you guys give me some advice about choosing schools?</p>
<p>Thank you so much!!!</p>
<p>(Oops. I just found out I posted it in the wrong place...)</p>
<p>They are all excellent schools, and you can’t make a bad decision at this point. Wesleyan is the most liberal of the three, and Middlebury and Bowdoin are fairly similar. Do you have any specific questions that you would like to have answered?</p>
<p>I would go with Middlebury. All three schools are very strong academically, but I’d say that Midd is slightly stronger than Bowdoin and Wesleyan. The location/atmosphere of Wesleyan is not so great and I know that I would not like to attend there, but the upside is that it is slightly more diverse than Middlebury and Bowdoin. Middlebury is a great place to study humanities, the campus is beautiful, and the facilities are amazing, but you may find it to be a very white/preppy atmosphere. However the white/preppy students at Midd are still extremely accepting and liberal, unlike at schools with white/preppy students who are conservative and intolerant. Bowdoin is also beautiful and has a very intimate campus, though is quite isolated (not to say Middlebury isn’t, but the atmosphere isn’t as claustrophobic.)</p>
<p>It depends on how long the OP expects to be in the US and how much of the country she wants to see while she is here. Wesleyan is the most university-like of the traditionally small, New England colleges. It’s the closest to New York and Boston (Middlebury students like to boast that the closest, big “American” city to them is Montreal.) Wesleyan students have tended to be more diverse than Middlebury’s or Bowdoin’s.</p>
<p>And, Wesleyan is located in the biggest of all the host towns in which the OP might be living. In fact, it’s probably the most typically American town of the bunch since it contains white-collar professionals, blue-collar workers and some poorer families, all living within the same general downtown area. If the OP is interested in meeting a cross-section of Americans – not all of whom work for the local college – they will more likely meet them while at Wesleyan.</p>
<p>^^^^based on johnwesley’s comments, this looks like a Wesleyan situation</p>
<p>Thank you all!!! I really do. You’re most helpful!</p>
<p>I have a specific question. Since I want to major in history/pre-law AS WELL AS foreign languages, and I heard Bowdoin has the most competitive pre-law program while Midd’s language programs are irrefutably the best, which school do you suggest me to choose? Does Bowdoin also have good language programs? Thank you!</p>
<p>Hi!</p>
<p>I was also admitted to all three. The following stuff I have to say comes from my own (limited) experiences as a fellow prospie and my 3-day visits to each. </p>
<p>My favorite by far is Bowdoin. This really just comes down to personal preference, however–all three schools are about equal in academics etc. </p>
<p>To me, Bowdoin had the most “laid-back” feel of the three. Students are pretty casually dressed and such, and seem pretty happy with the school. The campus is more enclosed and has a smaller feeling. I visited in the fall and it was absolutely beautiful–tall skinny trees, mist, lovely red buildings. The dorms are also IMO the best of the three–pretty spacious, and they have this pretty cool setup where there’s a bedroom + a common room (essentially two rooms). Also their cafeteria food is awesome and they have this thing called Super Snacks where you get to go and eat late at night a few days of the week. On weekends, it seemed that the most common thing to do was party–Bowdoin students seem to enjoy drinking. The classes I visited ranged from good to amazing. The surrounding town is small but cute and has some interesting places and good restaurants. The maine coast is BEAUTIFUL. The government & legal studies department is great. </p>
<p>For me, Middlebury was my least favorite of the three–something about the vibe. But the facilities were all nice and shiny–best of all three–and the campus was really spread out. It’s surrounded by mountains and fields and cows, and the town is as smaller than the other two. Languages are extremely strong. I got the “white homogeneous” vibe strongest from Midd, but the students all seemed friendly. Almost all the buildings are gray and similar-looking–the architecture is very unified. I also felt that Midd had the strongest prevalent campus culture–as in, there was a pretty specific “Midd” type of person. The classes I visited ranged from terrible to amazing. </p>
<p>Weselyan does have the most university-like feel, and is the biggest of the schools. The architecture is very eclectic, and I would say the campus is the least aesthetically pleasing of the three (though it definitely isn’t ugly!). The dorm I stayed in was pretty-run down, and the school doesn’t exude the newly-renovated and polished feel of both Bowdoin and Midd. Wesleyan is definitely the most diverse of all the schools by far and the students I talked to were all cool and interesting. There is more of an “urban” vibe than the other two–seemed like there were more hipsters etc at Wes. The classes I visited ranged from okay to good. </p>
<p>Hope this helped somewhat :)</p>
<p>Languages at Middlebury are extremely well taught and I think you will find more international students than at Bowdoin (not sure about Wesleyan). Compare the course offerings on their websites in the languages you are interested in to see how many levels there are and how many courses are taught in the language. I’m sure the admissions offices at these schools can set you up with am international or other student to talk to by Skype or otherwise if you can’t visit.</p>
<p>Bowdoin has a VERY strong history and economics department. Also it’s government department is tremendous. I’m not sure what Middlebury is strong at, but probably languages. Bowdoin has a lower acceptance rate, and although it is ranked one slot below in the US News & World ranking, there’s a strong chance it will match up or go ahead of Middlebury this year, or next. Bowdoin is a hot school right now.</p>
<p>Also since you are from Singapore, which is very metropolitan, you might want to be close to a city of some sort. Bowdoin has it’s own town, a REAL town, which is very close by. Also it is a 30 minute drive from Portland, a city, and a 15 minute drive from Freeport, a big outlet shopping area. In a year or 2 Bowdoin will have a train that goes directly to Boston, just across the street from campus. Students will be able to experience Boston frequently. For some, this will easily seal the deal. Middlebury has Burlington, which some would say is a big city. But compared to Portland and Boston it cannot match.</p>
<p>Congrats on getting into Bowdoin! It is no easy feat. Also Bowdoin students are very laid-back, very intelligent, and there is a egalitarian feel to the school in my opinion. The other schools might be a bit too preppy, or a bit too out there. Both of those are good, but it depends on what kind of person you are. As some say, “Bowdoin – ‘the best four years of your life’”.</p>