<p>I’m confused. Why is it so many people think Reed is the right academic fit for this student? </p>
<p>If he or she wants to study the West and/or native Indian culture, Reed seems a very poor fit. I took a look at their history faculty, and not one member lists native Indian or frontier America as their field of inquiry. I took a look at their course offering this year, and not one addresses these topics. One of the history faculty cross-lists in American studies as having an interest in Native American studies. There is one faculty member in AS who teaches Native American literature and culture and another from Anthropology who lists “Native North America” as an interest.</p>
<p>When a school is demonstrating its investment in the fields which the OP has an interest in, Reed’s might be considered the bare bones of an investment.</p>
<p>Middlebury has at least a History of the American West course and another called Native American/Imagination (what that is I shudder to think), an upper level course called Modern American Indian Social History, and two upper-level readings courses called US History American West and American History: Cultures-Contact. I have no indication how often these courses are taught. There is one professor, among the few who name their fields of interest, who says she follows the history of the West.</p>
<p>I am not proposing that the OP go to Middlebury, but that she find a university that can offer her more than one faculty member whose expertise is in her areas of interest. In fact, most LACs are not going to be able to provide an in-depth experience in these fields because they don’t have the faculty to do so. I’d also suggest that the OP investigate any potential study abroad school for the quality of its holdings in materials and artifacts concerning the West and/or native American culture. These holdings will be in the rare books rooms of their libraries but also in institutes specifically dedicated to her topics. Hers will be a much stronger dissertation if it deals with primary materials.</p>
<p>Reed satisfies all of the OP’s requirements besides native indian culture. The OP also mentioned that they were possibly considering the cascadia movement as a topic of interest. If they don’t mind writing about that instead then Reed makes sense.</p>
<p>I’m glad to see that you’re considering Middlebury, which is a top five liberal arts college with a very international focus. The college’s location in Vermont’s Champlain Valley, surrounded by mountains to the east and west, is ideal for those who like to explore the outdoors and appreciate the natural beauty of Vermont. The closest major city (1 million or more) is Montreal, which is about 2.5 hours away by car. Boston is 3.5 hours and NYC about 5 hours. If you want to be in a major city, however, Middlebury is not the best choice for you. The academics are superb, and the facilities among the best of any small college in the country. </p>
<p>You might enjoy being in an urban area – like DC if you go to Georgetown, and doing an internship as part of your studies. You might look into interning in an organization in DC, or the Library of Congress or on the hill. You could even perhaps find a way to link the paper you have to write to an internship that you undertake. THat would look good on a grad school application.</p>