What type of school would be best for me?

College Search & Selection
1

Hi there, I’m a new poster here so sorry if something along the lines of this has been posted before.
I’m a high school sophomore (hardly applying yet) but I’m trying to get a feel for what colleges would be best for me.
A little about me: I would say I’m a pretty intellectual kid who loves culture. I do orchestra outside of my school and I am fascinated with opera and classical music. I also enjoy literature and discussion of literature in small class settings. I like to have intellectual discussions but I’m not the most diligent student; I can get sidetracked easily. I am not really interested in the whole partying thing for my whole college experience but if it was the basis of social life I think I would partake.

My mother went to Columbia. She doesn’t think she was ready for the degree of weird she saw at Columbia, and she doesn’t think I am either. Columbia really fascinates me however, with their core curriculum and the amount of intellectual discussion that happens there. My father definitely favors more of a New England college (he went to Bowdoin) and thinks I would too. I am interested in NE LACs but I feel like they’re somewhat detached from the metropolitan experience I know and love. I’m not really outdoorsy which seems to be what those LACs require.

I visited Dartmouth today but I was stricken by the hands on approach that they seemed to be advertising. For me I kind of want to be having small class discussions with my peers about the books and stuff we’re reading, not researching incessantly. Maybe they’re trying to push STEM to girls more or maybe the tour guide I had didn’t have a literature background, but I got the feeling Dartmouth was more science oriented than Columbia, UChicago, and some other schools I’m considering. I really love the environment but I’m just worried that with Dartmouth I would feel out of place, since everyone there seems to be really driven but also very social. As a somewhat socially awkward and unpopular person in high school, the “Animal House” aspect intimidated me a little bit and made me feel as if I would be left out of the social life there, even though I’m sure college is completely different from high school socially.

I guess the end of this rant is: based on my background and (initial) impression of Dartmouth, would you recommend it to me? Or would you suggest I look for more urban/university schools? Any help is appreciated!

2

Based on your post which started this thread, Dartmouth College does not seem to be a match for you. Too much partying & too rural.

3

Thank you.

4

Based on your interests and personality, you sound like a great fit for Swarthmore, Haverford, and Bryn Mawr (if you identify as female). These are all intellectually stimulating small colleges that are in the suburbs of Philadelphia, home to one of the country’s best orchestras. My Haverford roommate, now a professional violinist, was able to take private music lessons with a member of the Philadelphia Orchestra along with playing in the Haverford/Bryn Mawr orchestra.

5

With respect to colleges suitable for your literary interests, these articles could serve as a source for ideas:

https://www.flavorwire.com/409437/the-25-most-literary-colleges-in-america

https://contently.net/2014/11/06/resources/tools/training/10-best-colleges-creative-writers/

Vassar, for example, seems to match much of your criteria.

6

“As a somewhat socially awkward and unpopular person in high school”

Many very smart students feel out of place in high school because very smart people are relatively rare in high school. In any “top 100” university or equivalent LAC, very smart people will be a lot more common. I think that you will find that university or college is better than high school.

Of course the other side of the coin is that when students go off to university, this is the first time that they are out from under the supervision of their parents. Some do react by going into a “drink and party” mode.

There will be a lot of thoughtful, quiet, and highly intelligent students at any good university. However, since they are quiet they can be harder to find than the noisy party animals. You can find them with some effort.

We toured Bowdoin twice. There is a lot to like about it. The cost was rather intimidating (I ran the NPC twice and did not like the result either time). Brunswick is a rather small town and it is not obvious what a student does there if they do not like the outdoors and do not have a car. There is of course the train to Portland but it would be a effort to get there. There can be a bit of an “elite” vibe which I interpreted as pretentious, but this is probably true at Dartmouth as well.