Ginger

Trying to decide between Colgate and Trinity (CT). I've heard it is very tough to get an A at Colgate. I work very hard but don't want to kill myself getting grades; I'd like to play sports and enjoy the area. I loved Colgate when I visited but I loved Trinity also. I could really see myself at Trinity and heard that it is not as competitive as Colgate. I have been accepted in Guided Studies there and it seems ideally suited to my Poli Sci interest. Anybody have thoughts? My parents think Colgate is more pretigious but I loved Trinity where they think I'll get mugged.

gellino

At least when I was there, it was pretty tough to get an A, but that's not necessarily a reason to not go. I think the avg GPA has gone from 2.9 to ~ 3.2 since I've been there, but Colgate is well known of having relative grade deflation compared to most schools. I think I saw something on one of these threads that Berkeley law school did some calculation to compare LSATs w GPAs and determined that Colgate had the fourth lowest grade deflation after Swarthmore, Johns Hopkins & one other that I don't remember. That being said, Colgate students are not at all competitive among each other. I know I regarded Colgate as a laid-back, enjoy life, campus & area kind of place.

stonecold23

im going to colgate next year, and from what my hosts said, it is very tough but the teaching is great and teachers are always willing to help out. you really earn your grades...

chexpartymix

They're both LACs but have very different atmospheres IMHO. D-I vs. D-III athletics, urban vs. rural, college vs. university, (does camp TrinTrin as it is affectionately called have a Greek system like Colgate?)...but great education at either school. I just said this to someone on another Colgate thread...why second-guess yourself? Go to Trinity if that's your gut feeling!

Mugged...ha, that's mommy and daddy for you!

jrpar

Take a hard look at the recent articles about Trinity's budget woes. My son looked at Trinity last year, and I think it's a fine school, but I wouldn't be too happy with some of the budget cuts going on at Trinity right now.

ticklemepink

From experience, you do NOT want to attend school with budget cuts- you have no idea what kind of plans they'll make in the next few years. The cuts can honestly affect students' lives and perhaps the traditions of what makes Trinity as it is. I met a Trinity grad- loved his experience but I take it from him that it's not much of a big deal to be from there (a-hem, he was looking at an intern from the US Holocaust Museum who went to Smith and was going to Colgate).

Colgate's grading is definitely tougher- you get what you earn. It's annoying because I'm also competitive... however, the academic experience is soooo amazing that I'm willing to forgive Colgate for the grade deflation. You really have to be taking classes that you're actually good in. It's possible to get a 3.5 GPA. Also depends on the professors too- ugh, one of them just announced to my class that she expects most of us to get B's on our final paper.

Grade deflation = more sympathy from grad schools, heh.

thetruth

>>>>>I work very hard but don't want to kill myself getting grades; I'd like to play sports and enjoy the area.

you just described colgate. the 'A' might be harder to obtain, but you're going for an education, not a gpa.

Ginger

Thanks for the info on both grade deflation and budget crisis. I come from a super-competitive HS in So Calif. with grade deflation. It's also ego deflating. Much of my class is going to Stanford, Ivies, Williams, Amherst, Midd, Chicago, Pomona/Claremont, Georgetown, Berkeley, USC and we have a grad class of about 200. I have a 3.4 unweighted (I fooled around in 9th grade), 2240 SAT, quality ECs, class officer, 6 hours homework a night and I still did not get into Midd, Dartmouth or GTown. I think I aimed too high with the perfect storm this year. My self-confidence is pretty deflated. Am not certain that I could take another 4 years of pounding. I work very hard, it does not come easy to me - I like a challenge but dread feeling like Sisyphus.

With the budget crisis, I don't know what to think. My parents have saved for college since I was born. College is PAID FOR! Yay! Thank god all I had to worry about was grades. BTW, I am sooo tired of the whining about aid...my friends are worried about financial aid and their parents drive huge SUVs and have designer purses and clothing and fancy kitchens. My parents saved like crazy so that I wouldn't have to worry. What impact could the budget crisis have on me?

jrpar

The budget crisis is affecting much more than aid: faculty are being cut and various programs eliminated. 6% of the courses offered at Trinity are being eliminated. Do a google search and read the articles.

Ginger

I did. I'm not as worried about the 6% of classes as the long-term. I don't know enough to know what to worry about.

ticklemepink

Even though I was barely given aid at Smith but it affects students who are on aid. Colleges will try to avoid cutting financial aid but sometimes they do have to take it away from the more wealthier students, figuring that they can make do with loans. Sometimes work-study will be cut back. Your friends might drop out for financial aid woes.

More importantly, a budget crisis can affect the academics, especially the smaller departments who are looking to expand and to attact more students with quality professors. For example, Smith's scaled-back budget would not allow the History department to hire another professor so they can offer Southeast Asian history. Professors are forced to pay for some materials or to fix the classroom equipment themselves. There's just not a lot of money to play with in order to bring in amazing speakers if there's a budget crisis. It can be tough to keep students that way if their department can't spend more money to provide "entertainment" for them.

Sometimes a budget crisis can wreck havoc on the SGA funding. The SGA, in respond to maintain its own budget, has to raise the student activities fee (a mere $20 or so). If the SGA can't get the funding that it wants for its budget, then the students groups have to find other sources of funding- mostly some kind of sale to raise profit for the events. If there aren't enough fun events planned, then the campus won't be... well... too much fun if there's nothing to do!

Budget crisis might not affect your financial aid status but can affect your life in college, especially if you have goals that are tied/depended upon the money that the school can provide for you. For example, Smith took away the airfare stipend that it used to give students in order to get to places. Now some students can't go abroad because they can't pay for the airfare- only the tutition that they pay to Smith, which in turn, will pay for the program itself..... but no airfare. Imagine that.

Now do you understand why it's important to look at the college's budget standing? Check out the specifics of Trinity's situation and think hard if they will actually affect you as a student.

Ginger

As I mentioned before, $$$ are not an issue for me. My parents both had to pay for their own college so they were determined that their kids would not have to. I know that I'm lucky! I go to a school that does NOT have state-of-the-art anything, so I do not have great expectations. I love my HS, love the personal attention from faculty and love the sports. I'm very low maintenance. So I want to be at a college where people are just happy to be there.

collegeparent

"I love my [school], love the personal attention from faculty and love the sports. I'm very low maintenance. So I want to be at a college where people are just happy to be there."

You've just described Colgate.

Oldhat

D is a sophomore at Colgate and raves about the professors. They are always willing to give help and very involved with their students. She also loves the small class sizes and feels she couldn't have made a better choice (was considering UCSD). She does maintain that A's are hard to get but was able to make Dean's List last semester. Will go abroad next fall and is thrilled with their program.

roadlesstraveled

Smith took away the airfare stipend that it used to give students in order to get to places]]

No they didn't. Smith paid for my daughter and two friends to fly to DC. just last month. I was happy!

Name a college that pays for airfare to study abroad.

No Smith student will be excluded from studying abroad b/c of finances. Smith always finds a way. You should know that.

TMP, how does it feel to be an honorary Smith student in absentia? You’re certainly liked by all, including me.