Which ivy league/top school fits my interests best?

College Search & Selection
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<p>I'd like to know more of the subtle differences between the ivies and other top schools so I can decide which ones I really want to go for. I'll just list some info and let you guys give input on matches. I'm a conservative Christian ( I know the ivies are liberal, I can deal with it). I hate big cities(no Columbia obviously). I love the outdoors and wilderness. I play soccer and golf. I will probably be looking for an air force ROTC program. If you have any further questions, ask. So, which top schools would I like best? Thanks for any help!</p>

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<p>Cornell? It’s liberal but big enough you can find people like you, you can’t get more “outdoors” than in the gorges and waterfalls of Ithaca, and they have an air force ROTC: [AFROTC</a> Detachment 520](<a href=“http://www.afrotc.cornell.edu/]AFROTC”>http://www.afrotc.cornell.edu/)</p>

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<p>If you don’t like cities and love the wilderness then I guess I would suggest Dartmouth, Cornell, Amherst, Williams, Middlebury, Bowdoin etc. You might want to figure out a size range, as Amherst at ~1600 students is a vastly different place from Cornell at ~13000 students. There are also many schools which are not exactly rural or wilderness-y, but also not in big cities, which would be like Duke, Princeton, etc. Also if you have a particular interest in some major or subject, that could help you decide, although I would give that the least weight considering these schools are all so good that they excel in most departments. It might be a factor though if you want to do engineering, which I don’t think is offered at all liberal arts colleges.</p>

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<p>Probably looking to major in physics/engineering or premed (maybe dual major)…thanks for the replies!</p>

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<p>I would suggest Cornell (in NY but also in Itaca- not a very crazy city), Brown, and Washington University in St. Louis (also known as WashU or WUSTL)…WashU is a good bet for premed as it is one of the best premed schools in the country. </p>

<p>Northwestern might also be a good choice…it’s in Chicago but I don’t hear stories that it’s too crazy social scene-wise.</p>

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<p>Dartmouth for the outdoors and wilderness.</p>

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<p>Northwestern’s not in Chicago. It’s in Evanston, a suburb that’s about 40 min by car from Chicago. The social scene involves some significant Greek life.</p>

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<p>oops sorry to OP and schrizto
Ok then…that might make Northwestern even more ideal since it’s not too close to a big city but you can still reach it.</p>

<p>So again…some top schools for premed/science (OPs desired fields)
Cornell/Brown
Washington University in St. Louis
Northwestern</p>

<p>all great schools all around with superb academics and top-ranking as well</p>

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<p>What about Pomona? It’s a smaller LAC in California, part of the Claremont Colleges. It’s really outdoorsy and such, and yes it’s more liberal in terms of students but, since it’s part of the Claremont Consortium, there are enough students on the 5 campuses that you are not going to feel like a minority.</p>

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<p>I haven’t posted this around recently, but here’s something I love from bluedevilmike :slight_smile: Duke seems to be an option.</p>

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<p>And to answer your question,

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<p>No real difference, to be honest. “Ivy” seems to be synonymous with “good school” presently. The difference would be that the Ivies are all within the same athletic league. Nothing more. It’s kind of sad when we beat them… haha jp :)</p>

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<p>Oh yeah, I forgot that Pomona also has high med-school acceptance rates. I don’t know exactly, but you should look into it for sure.</p>

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<p>Dartmouth or Brown, but it depends on “how tolerant” you will be of American Liberalism…</p>

<p>If Ivies are liberal, then those two are commi…</p>

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<p>I think golf=Stanford</p>

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<p>I believe Princeton has ROTC, it’s suburban rather than urban, and has a reputation for being a bit more traditional socially than say Harvard, Yale or Stanford. </p>

<p>I don’t think the LACs you’ve suggested, Jackpot, are a good fit-they have wilderness but they are socially more homogenous because they are so small, and a conservative Christian is going to feel marginalized at lot of the time. And they don’t have ROTC, so far as I know-lack of interest, perhaps, because of the lack of fit culturally.</p>

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<p>If ur limiting ur search to only AFROTC schools, the list is pretty slim. Depending on your goals, you might want to expand your list to ROTC/NROTC schools as well if you want to keep your options open.</p>

<p>[U.S&lt;/a&gt;. Air Force ROTC - College Life - College Locator](<a href=“http://afrotc.com/college-locator/]U.S”>College Locator | U.S. Air Force ROTC)
[GoArmy.com</a> > Army ROTC > Overview](<a href=“http://www.goarmy.com/rotc/]GoArmy.com”>Army ROTC | goarmy.com)
<a href=“Naval Education and Training Command - NETC”>Naval Education and Training Command - NETC;

<p>I’d also check to make sure if the schools you are looking at have ROTC programs and how active they actually are (if they exist). Like I know Bates and Colby (2 top LACs in Maine with good outdoor programs) offer ROTC, but its a pretty large commute to the host University (I think its U of Maine). Since very few (you might be the only one) students would be taking ROTC classes, you would have a hard time accommodating your schedule at these schools. If you don’t already know, ROTC, NROTC and AFROTC programs have ‘host universities’, where the Military Labs and Leadership classes take place. If you don’t attend the host university, but attend a partner university, you must commute to the host university for class. Also, I would check to make sure the school accepts ROTC/NROTC/AFROTC scholarships if they are a host university. Most do, but I know for a fact that the ROTC program at Pomona requires the student to pay for tuition in full, and THEN have the army reimburse him. Pomona is a rather stiffing environment for ROTC, even if it is a great school.</p>

<p>Schools to consider: Richmond U, College of William and Mary, Davidson, Claremont McKenna (a consortium partner with Pomona), </p>

<p>All these schools are host universities for ROTC</p>

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<p>Also, I wouldnt completely trust med school acceptance rates bc some schools doctor them with weed out courses. I’m not saying this is the case with Pomona or Duke, but I’m not sure if its a good determinant of quality. (They measure the med school acceptance rate out of how many applied to med school, NOT how many were freshman premed students).</p>

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<p>This might seem completely out of the blue, but for a backup (and a potentially nice scholarship as well), take a look at Clemson. It’s not nearly as selective as the other schools being mentioned, but it has nearly all of the other things you are looking for. </p>

<p>Conservative Christians welcome? Check
Small city? Check
Lots of outdoorsy things around? Check
Soccer and Golf? Check
Air Force ROTC? Check (and they’re even welcomed on campus!)</p>

<p>And school spirit at Clemson and in its alumni group is as strong as you’ll find from any college in the USA.</p>

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<p>Cornell is excellent for sciences, premed, and Engineering, has an active Christian Fellowship</p>

<p>[Index[/url</a>]</p>

<p>and active Outdoor Education</p>

<p>[url=<a href=“COE | Student & Campus Life | Cornell University”>COE | Student & Campus Life | Cornell University]Welcome</a> to Cornell Outdoor Education](<a href=“http://www.ccfiv.org/]Index[/url”>http://www.ccfiv.org/)</p>

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<p>Holy Cross-great pre-med program, nice campus, NROTC, 1 hour from Boston.</p>

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<p>Dartmouth had army rotc</p>