Ah yes, Sorry @Publisher . It was @MWolf who suggested that a student go to Dartmouth instead of Midd if they want engineering. All good. I understand the point that one wouldn’t go to Midd if they want engineering. And having an engineering option is probably best for S19 but he didn’t really think about that until way after the list was made and still is very uncertain. Just knows he likes math and physics and did not want undergrad engineering because it’s limiting and he wants a liberal arts undergrad experience. Of course he could do that at Midd.
Since Middlebury’s 2-1-1-1 engineering option has not been mentioned, I’ll mention it here.
Thanks @merc81 I’ll look it up. S19 really looking for the true undergrad experience and wouldn’t want to be jumping around campuses during those four years. I suppose engineering grad school would end up being his path if he’s still interested after a couple of years of undergrad.
@homerdog: It may seem that way now, but rural LACs do get small fast.
Exchange programs & study abroad in addition to travel with one’s sports team help, but the idealistic image of a warm & cozy charming environment for a full four academic years is a bit unrealistic.
P.S. That is one reason for the creation of the Dartmouth Plan–a school with about 4,400 students & is also a, not “the”, reason behind February admissions at some LACs.
@Publisher I get it. S19 will most definitely study abroad. He’s well-traveled as we travel a lot as a family but he’s not super independent and hasn’t ever been away from home on his own. For boarding school kids or kids who have had a lot of time away from their parents, I can totally see how the small environment would get old quick. I just want to make sure (as best we can) that the personality of the school fits him because, with so few students, that will be important.
Note, however, that boarding school graduates tend to favor small liberal arts colleges, and commonly represent a higher percentage of students at them than at other types of colleges. Groton, as an example, sends lots of students to Bowdoin, Hamilton, Williams and Middlebury.
https://www.groton.org/page/academics/college-counseling/matriculations
Well I was not a boarding school student, although I did attend a private prep school & went on to earn degrees from both an LAC & from a National University.
@merc81: Doesn’t your Groton college matriculation list show that those boarding school graduates favor highly ranked elite colleges & universities ? Most of which were national universities ? (19% or 47 of the 245 students matriculated at elite LACs, while 81% went on to elite National Universities,) Bowdoin College & Hamilton College attracted the most Groton students among LACs. Middlebury College was third.
@homerdog: I think that your statement would suggest the opposite result. But I see your point & understand the logic. I think that it comes down to individual preferences.
Based on a quick review of college matriculation lists from the most prestigious boarding schools, Bowdoin, Williams & Amherst seem to be the clear favorites. Nevertheless, the overwhelming majority of boarding school grads from the elite boarding schools seem to prefer national universities (which include all 8 Ivy League schools, MIT, Stanford, Chicago & Northwestern.)
From inside these colleges, perspectives will be different. Groton graduates represent a greater percentage of students at Bowdoin and Hamilton, for example, than they do at Harvard, Princeton, or Yale. And at colleges such as Cornell or the University of Michigan, Groton graduates would be barely visible.
@Publisher I’m not following. What statement would suggest the opposite result?
While boarding school kids do spend time away from their parents, and that does require students to develop a degree of independence, the parent child relationship is intense & very respectful. Lots of meaningful contact & communication while sparing the child from the daily stresses of commuting in congested city traffic & of the stress regarding the parents’ professional work concerns.
Almost without exception, the boarding school students whom I know are kind, smart, hard working & talented. But most of my exposure was limited to students at the most elite & highly selective boarding schools. The kids really wanted to be there. Most seemed to regard their fellow students & teachers as family. This could suggest that many would want to continue their studies in a small, close knit environment such as at an LAC. But this seems to be the case only for a clear minority of students. Kids grow and flourish in a variety of ways at boarding school unlike anything I have ever witnessed for kids at local public & private & parochial schools.
Words cannot express how happy, excited & involved our child was while at boarding school. Just an incredibly positive experience. Gives the kids the confidence and adventurous spirit to seek out challenges academically & otherwise.
It may seem counter-intuitive, but boarding school families are very close knit, caring & respectful of one another. Education is highly valued.
@homerdog: I realize that this does not address your question in a direct manner, but I hope that it helps. So maybe you were correct, but I was unsure of the thought behind your statement.
@Publisher currently a first year
@lenafia: Do Middlebury College students go to Burlington frequently (once a month) ?
Both my wife and I went to boarding schools, though very different countries, schools and contexts. I went through the national religious system in Israel, which is a long story. My wife, on the other hand, grew up the USSR, and went to one of the Elite Physics and Mathematics School high schools established by Kalmogorov, specifically, the one in St Petersburg (still Leningrad back then)*.
Despite different experiences, we are both big supporters of good boarding schools for all the reasons that @Publisher writes. The only reason that we did not send our kid to a boarding school (which would have likely been IMSA, the sister school of my wife’s HS) was that none that we found provided the particular balance of science/fine arts/performing arts/social activism that is available at our very large public school.
Neither of us even knew what a LAC was when we came here for grad school. I think that some of the things that @Publisher writes about regarding the similarities are what helped us think that they would be good places for our kid. While it was our kid who decided where she wanted to go, our own attitudes did have a strong effect (though we didn’t really pitch any directly, because a teen will only listed to their parent if they have plausible deniability in the matter…)
So I do think that the background that my wife and I had at boarding schools had a lot to do with our kid going to a Liberal Arts College this fall.
- it was a bit of a shock that she was accepted, since they already had their quota of one Jew for that year...
@Publisher I think once a month-ish sounds about right if they have a car! I do not so I have been stranded here lol. Those who do have cars might even go more than once a month, esp. during January term when we have a lot more free time. The drive is honestly not bad at all, and Burlington has a lot that a small town like Middlebury doesn’t
Thank you for responding. I hope that you enjoy Middlebury College !
@homerdog Have we helped your son make his decision?
@MWolf lol. Well certainly nothing is decided yet. He applied to 13 schools and we won’t know anything until March but we are certainly hoping for a yes from Midd and, if he’s accepted, we will visit.
@homerdog My kid will be going to Midd, so I guess that I’m a bit biased 
Just visited my son this past weekend at Midd, went up for his swim meet.
This is my second son who attended Midd. Every time that we visit campus I am always amazed at the beauty of the area.
Great place to go to school
Good luck with the college selection process
Yes, as a double Middlebury mom, there was no difficulty for either of my children getting many incredible internships. One ended up doing research(and presenting his results in Oslo) for the Norwegian government. Both were gainfully employed in interesting high-powered jobs on graduation. The alumni network has been incredible.
And there is absolutely no more beautiful campus. One child skied several days a week in the winter, and both enjoyed all the beautiful outdoor opportunities.
@fleishmo6 and I go way back now-it was wonderful to be visiting a few times a year-and we all miss it.