Hemmed in?

tkm256 · 07-31-2005, 02:53 PM

I intend to apply to Colgate later this year. I live in CA, so it's difficult to get to NY to see the campus in person. I like the pictures, and I'm a nature-loving sort, but is the school really isolated? I'm mostly applying to big universities (Yale, Princeton, Duke), and the only other LAC on my list is Amherst. I visited Williams college but didn't like how closed-in it was; will I have the same issue at Colgate?

collegeparent · 07-31-2005, 06:15 PM

You might, but I don't think so. Of the top LACs, Colgate offers much of the feel of a big university especially in school spirit & pride. BTW, about 11% of Colgate's students are from CA.

mhc48 · 08-01-2005, 02:51 PM

It's kinda hard to know what you mean by "hemmed in" and would make you feel hemmed in. Size of the student body? (Amherst: 1600; Williams:2000; Colgate 2700). Having primarily a single liberal arts school vs. graduate schools? Not being within quick escape distance to a cosmopolitan city? (BTW, if you feel the need to get away, is the school really a good place for you anyway?)

If you're set on a big University, it's hard to think of any LAC that wouldn't feel very different. Whether you'd feel hemmed in by that, and like you're missing something or realize it was cozy and more than enough for you because you felt comfortable there is a decision you'll have to make.

shiningstar17 · 08-14-2005, 08:51 AM

If you're looking to access to a major city, then yea you'll definitely feel closed in because Colgate is rural and kind of isolated. Which is fine for some people but you need to decide if it would be right for you.

czechitout · 08-24-2005, 06:59 PM

Colgate has a gorgeous campus- it is as picturesque as the brochures imply.

If you are looking for an urban campus, Colgate is definitely not for you. Colgate is just about as rural as it gets. However, that said, Hamilton is a wonderful small (very small!) town. If you enjoy the all-too-cliche small communities with one post office, one coffee shop, one book store, one hotel, and one restaurant- you'd love Hamilton. I, personally, thought Colgate & Hamilton were both wonderful. However, I come from a town with a population of roughly 40,000, and want something that size or smaller.

Good luck figuring out where you want to go! Colgate is towards the top of my list

mhc48 · 08-24-2005, 08:42 PM

'Course, the one coffee shop is the Barge, at least as good as a Starbucks; the one bookstore is the Colgate University Bookstore, with a great selection and there are more than one restaurant: Sushi Blues, the Colgate Inn, as well as the regulation Pizza and I think a couple other places to eat. Oh yeah, and a movie theatre. No, not much selection but quality stuff.

indydukie · 08-25-2005, 11:22 AM

Having visited both Hamilton and Williamstown this summer with S, I would say Colgate is NOT as isolated as Williams. You can get to Syracuse in under an hour in most any weather; Utica, while not a cultural mecca, has prosperous suburbs (read decent eating & shopping) about 20 mins away.

As far as the 'university' part of Colgate, it is really a LAC, but with D1 athletics. They have a very small contigent of education grad students there but it is not a research university like Cornell or the others the OP mentioned.

ScoobyGurl · 08-31-2005, 10:27 AM

I know I'm kinda late but I'll put my two cents in anyway. I went to Colgate and visited Williams. Colgate is not nearly as closed in as Williams. Williams was just claustrophobic to me. Colgate is a lot bigger and so is the town of Hamilton. Hamilton is so cute at first b/c I had never seen a town so little except for on the TV show "Ed." The little coffee shop and the little restaurants just seemed adorable to me. However, I came from Philly and after about a week or two, I felt "hemmed in." The closest major city is Syracuse and to me that is not a city but more of big town. After a while I became very restless and I took every chance I could to get home (which wasn't too often since I don't have a car).

There is a lot of school spirit at Colgate and there are activities to do. It just wasn't for me. I need to be able to catch subways and travel. I like being able to walk downtown and get lost. I love seeing new people. After a week, that won't happen at Colgate. Some people love the isolation of the campus. I saw animals in person that I never saw in the city and when you go into the woods there a sense of peace that you never get in the city. I just don't like living in that type of environment for long periods of time.

So to answer the OP, yes Colgate is isolated. You might see more cows driving to Colgate than people. You just have to decide if that is right for you.