<p>Whoa! I didn't expect to get into all these schools, and now i have a very hard decision to make.</p>
<p>hendrix is offering $19k a year which is very attractive, and willamette is offering $15k/year.</p>
<p>Ugh...I know that UVA will be a great place where I can get a great education for only $25k a year, but then there is always the chance that whitman, reed, or colorado will just be completely amazing...and I am really torn. My family can afford any school, but that doesn't mean that the price of the education is irrelevant to me...</p>
<p>Where would you go, and why?</p>
<p>also, if you'd like to see the commonapp essay I used then pm me. I have a 3.5 uw gpa 2160 sat and a bad disciplinary record (suspended for marijuana in sophomore year)</p>
<p>All of these schools will be amazing - for the right person. Rather than have random people rave or complain about each of these schools, why not describe the pros and cons of each, with a weighting on how much that matters to you. It might help you get some clarity.</p>
<p>And visit the forums for each of these schools to get more information. Some searches like Colorado College vs. Reed will turn up lots of pertinent information.</p>
<p>^ Right, I was about to suggest something similar. Say a little about what attracts you to each. </p>
<p>The conventional wisdom would be to go with UVa to get the most bang for the buck. It has all the advantages (and disadvantages) of a larger school. It is the only one of your choices that really offers all the elements of the traditional, American college experience (sports, Greek scene, great college town). However, judging from your taste in other schools, that’s not exactly what you want.</p>
<p>Reed, in my opinion, offers the best undergraduate academic experience not only of these 6 but of nearly any school in the country. So it would be my first choice for academics alone if money were not an overriding factor. </p>
<p>Colorado College has the nearly unique block plan and a fantastic mountain setting (my S is there and loves it). If you are an outdoorsy type, CC and Whitman are two of the best choices you could make.</p>
<p>So it really depends on what you want. If you’re in Virginia, do think about the implications of going all the way to the PNW for college (although, once you’re on a plane, whether it lands in Denver or in Portland may not be a huge difference for you.)</p>
<p>True, tk21769, once you’re on the plane you can go pretty far. My son goes to Whitman and he decided on it for the academics + social fit + outdoor program+ strong club and IM sports+ a bunch of other stuff. He’s very happy with the challenging academics and the close knit Whitman community. </p>
<p>Reed is more intellectual and perhaps hipsterish, at least that’s how many people dress. It has a great reputation, however, I believe it’s pretty intense academically. I’ve always wondered about that low graduation rate.</p>
<p>I know even less about UVa, Colorado College, Willamette and Hendrix except that they are really good schools. What are you hoping for?</p>
<p>Hendrix - Sorry but it’s too close in price to UVA . I’m sure it’s a great school I think it’s gotta go.</p>
<p>Willamette - More expensive than hendrix, but I don’t like it as much. Gotta’ go.</p>
<p>Whitman: - HMmmm. Great school, but it’s all the way up in washington (I’m in VA) and it isn’t in a super cool city like Reed is. I’m pretty sure it gotta’ go</p>
<p>Colorado - Amazing location. Great outdoors atmosphere. I think I would be the poster child for the block class schedule. I think I will need to go visit</p>
<p>Reed - Amazing school. I am a reed child from birth, I’ve always been about what the school is about. </p>
<p>UVA - Everyone I know has fun there. Perfect balance of academics and social life, but perhaps way too “fratty” for me. I also give minus points for being on the east coast because everyone here is more materialistic and competitive than out west imo. I don’t just want to get rich, I want to find inner peace…</p>
<p>What I want out of a school is to meet lifelong friends, business partners, and to have an unmatched intellectual journey…The obvious choice here would be Reed, but then what if I go and I decide it’s just too much, I can’t handle it etc? That’s such a gamble to take…UVA is the safe bet, but damnit - I am blessed that I can afford a private school and maybe I just need to say what the heck and do something wild and never look back?</p>
<p>Then there are also my transferable credits to consider, which I think will help me narrow down between reed, cc, and uva. I have 11 ap credits and 3 community college class credits. UVA will probably accept all of them, but reed and cc - probably not so much.</p>
<p>I would decide between Reed and UVA. You sound like you want a Liberal Arts College experience. I am a big believer in the ability to make “big U” small if you will, by keeping a good circle of friends and opting for the smaller classes. I don’t think you can make a bad decision of course. I might personally opt for UVA because of all that it has to offer as a major university.</p>
<p>Have you visited Reed and Whitman? I thought my son would love Reed. After visiting both, he loved Whitman and didn’t even apply to Reed. (Ended up at Carleton). Go see for yourself, is what I’m sayin…</p>
<p>Well, it’s too bad that more Whitman students don’t hang out on CC to chat it up, they’re probably too busy and don’t much care about the prestige factor. I can understand that Whitman is off the beaten path which seems like a big draw back, but visiting has a way of changing people’s minds. My son chose Whitman, even after being accepted to more selective schools (including Bowdoin, Boston College, Tufts, UC Berkeley, Macalester and Colby) so it’s hardly just a school of last resort . The campus is gorgeous, the town charming, the academics rigorous, the faculty and administration are available and involved with the students, in their studies and their lives. Whitties are gregarious people who bond with each other ferociously. </p>
<p>Whitman understands that people have to make an effort to get there so the breaks are a little longer than other places. A week for Thanksgiving and two weeks for spring break. My son came home for a week and is now on a road trip in British Columbia with 3 other Whitties before they return to school. One of the guys is from Connecticut.</p>
<p>It sounds like your mind is made up, and you have truly wonderful choices, it’s an exciting time. I couldn’t resist the last little plug for Whitman. Best of luck to you!</p>
<p>^^^^ Yep, it’s fun. And the fact that you’re having fun is a good sign you’re doing a great job with this process.</p>
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<p>Whoa. Don’t assume. Ask.</p>
<p>My S got the equivalent of nearly 1 full year of credit from Colorado College for his IB program. This (plus merit money) made it easier to turn down an in-state honors college. He still probably won’t graduate after only 3 years (he’s having too much fun, I’m afraid, and trying to cram in a lot of course work). However, it has given him an advantage in housing choices and more flexibility in study-abroad programs.</p>
<p>Think about the Block Plan not only in terms of your personal learning style, but also in terms of how it might facilitiate (or restrict) what you want to study. The BP gives students a lot of flexibility in when and where they can study (especially good for off-campus field work). Another advantage is that every course gets its own dedicated classroom, lab, or studio for the duration of the 3.5 weeks. This means discussion and team projects do not necessarily require a hard stop. Many classes seem to be project, task, and team oriented. So think about how a relatively intense schedule, combined with much collaboration and interaction, might work for you personally.</p>
<p>Like Whitman, CC gives students a little extra break time, including 4 days between each block. Road trips seem to be popular at these Western colleges. My kid has been out to wilderness areas in Utah, up the California coast to LA, and down to Santa Fe on a Habitat for Humanity project. The West is a whole 'nother world.</p>
<p>He thought Reed oversold its rigor and intellectualism. He was definitely looking for a place with academic rigor (which Reed certainly has), but wondered why they had to keep repeating this over and over. Also thought some of the people he met were a bit pretentious. Bottom line, he was annoyed by the time we left. We then drove to Whitman, which to son felt like a breath of fresh air - people doing things at an extremely high level of excellence, yet relaxed and completely without pretense.</p>
<p>Personally, I remain a big fan of Reed (and wish I’d known about it back in the day.) Since you have such a great in-state tution option in UVA, I wouldn’t pay extra for a private unless it can offer you an experience UVA can’t. Reed arguably does. So does CC, with the block plan and the mountains. </p>
<p>You have some great choices! Keep having fun!</p>
<p>You do need to visit and check out the schools. My son turned down in state Cornell for Colorado College because he felt like CC was a perfect fit for him. He loved the block system and felt that many of his frustrations about school were based on having to juggle too many things at the same time. The idea of focusing on one discipline at a time was exactly what he wanted to try. And it has fulfilled every bit of what he wanted. For him it was a very clear choice, but he did spend a few days in Colorado Springs since it is so far from home and so different from the way his life had been in a very traditional, rigorous prep school. CC offered him a merit award which softened the financial blow a bit and he asked admission if it could be increased a bit, and they did oblige. Still more to go there, but he was sure it was the place for him, and he has been right.</p>
<p>thanks for getting your thoughts on whitman out there! I spose I will have to add that to the visiting list! I’ll also call up these schools and see which of my credits they will accept. If I could get even like $5k / year at any of the private schools (though reed doesn’t award merit aid) I think it would really tip the scale…would it be out of line to ask CC or whitman for merit aid consideration?</p>
<p>Yeah, that is one of my biggest concerns about reed and this isn’t the first i’ve heard of it. I feel like reed is a dream, a pretense almost, and that it might not live up to what I think it is - some sort of intellectual paradise - but it’s actually <em>just</em> a school. Then again, for such a small school, I think that reed’s list of notable alumni practically speaks for itself, I mean, wow…</p>
<p>Top two choices for S are Reed and Whitman. He visited both and will probably revisit to decide. </p>
<p>He liked both a lot, and Whitman’s location did not seem to bother him even though he is not a huge outdoor person except for snowboarding. </p>
<p>I think he likes Reed because intellectual discussion is his thing- about philosophy, politics, history, neurology- whatever, and much of what he has learned he’s learned on his own. Kids at school have referred to him as “Google.” He may thrive at Reed, but it seemed a bit of an odd place to me. I worry a little because he isn’t nerdy in the traditional sense, and he is not ultra liberal except with respect to issues such as gay rights and legalizing marijuana. On the other hand, he is not a student driven by grades- i.e., he will get a B in a class but a 5 on the AP exam- and that seems to fit with Reed.</p>
<p>I thought Whitman felt more like a traditional college and its campus is gorgeous. Also, the students looked more normal.</p>
<p>Luckily, it’s not my decision, but any input would be appreciated.</p>
<p>If you don’t try, you definitely won’t get it. So why not fax Whitman & CC your other offers? They’d probably want to know and have a chance to respond instead of being turned down without your asking.</p>
<p>DoinSchool, if you think of yourself as a “Reed” type of person, but you might be attending UVA instead, check out Brown College. It’s chock full of UVA’s geeky and artsy kids. My rather, um, quirky S has found it very much to his taste.</p>
Since you have such a great in-state tution option in UVA, I wouldn’t pay extra for a private unless it can offer you an experience UVA can’t. Reed arguably does. So does CC, with the block plan and the mountains. </p>