student life at W? How much of a presence is Greek life at W?

joecollegedad · 01-16-2008, 02:26 PM

Can you someone tell me what the typical students are like at Wooster?

How much partying? Do students talk about material outside of class, or when the next party will be be?

Also, how big of a presense are frats and sororities there?

How far is the the campus from town?

OldinJersey · 01-17-2008, 08:56 AM

this is based on my visits to the school, and my daughter's feedback.
College of Wooster in set in the middle of the small town of Wooster Ohio. For a small school it has a very large campus, with large lawns, big trees and pathways. It also owns a large number of older mansions and regular homes that were donated to the campus.
The typical student is bright, kind, sharing and interested in other people's opinions. While a few small sets of friends are very preppy in dress this is not the norm, and where you shop for clothes has no bearing on who will be your friend.
Kids often talk about material out of class. As freshmen they are put into small 15 student groups with a writing/thinking class. If you like you can live with your 15 classmates, which my daughter did. There are two big old homes that house the kids who do this, both with 2 fifteen member class groups. They have had a WONDERFUL time together.
There are no national fraternities or sororities. There are a few that are ummm not sure the term, but just at the school. They are a small part of life there and as near as I can tell are not a big part of the school party life. On or two may party a bit more than the rest of the school, but among themselves. More are very service oriented, which is a common theme at the school. You can even live in the See-Eye Dog little dorm and help raise a puppy every year.
This in not a "party school" with wild drinking a constant problem on and off campus. That's not to say they don't throw a wild party once in a while but it is not the Thur-Sunday party hard scene of the big football schools.
I'm sure a few other students or parents will also fill you in on Wooster. It's an amazing college and 100% right for my daughter and her friends.

northeastmom · 01-17-2008, 09:44 AM

oldinjersey, I am so glad that you came back to these boards to fill us in on how your D is doing! I am very glad to learn that she is so happy at at COW. We plan on visiting this school, but my S has some time still (he is a hs soph.). How does your D get back to NJ from COW? As you may remember, we are from NJ too.

joecollegedad · 01-17-2008, 04:23 PM

thanks, jersey, for the great info. You OK with the name 'Wooster'?

In Jersey, have people heard of this school?

OldinJersey · 01-18-2008, 08:57 AM

My dd sure does love Wooster. We drove her out there and will pick her up in the summer, but otherwise she has flown back and forth. There are, at the moment, two main flights from north Jersey. AirTrans from LaGuardia in Queens NY flies into Akron airport. The prices can drop as low as 150 or so. We haven't tried it yet. From Newark airport Continental flies into Cleveland airport. That's now $222 roundtrip for most flights, and close to our house.
JoeCollege - sorry to say most folks have not heard of Wooster. Of course in my neighborhood they haven't heard of Tufts or Davidson.
The main mixup is that Wooster, sounds like the correct pronunciation of Worchester Mass and confuses people a good bit.

northeastmom · 01-18-2008, 09:17 AM

OldinJesey, thanks. LOL, I would never have thought of Worchester and Wooster getting confused, but from our area, I can see how that happens.

OldinJersey, does Wooster provide tansportation to these airports, or how does your D get there? Thanks for the flight info.

I honestly had heard of Tufts, and Davidson prior to frequenting college boards. I had never heard of Wooster, or for that matter many other LACs, especially those in another part of our country. For example, I had never heard of Denison, which is another excellent school in Ohio.

OldinJersey · 01-19-2008, 09:38 AM

the college provides 1 or 2 buses both to drop off and pick up the students. I think they pay $20 round trip.

College of Wooster Dean of Students Office | Transportation

northeastmom · 01-19-2008, 04:13 PM

OldinJersey, Thanks for the transportation info! That's great!

onetiredmom · 01-19-2008, 09:39 PM

thank you for all the information, OldinJersey. My son will be starting Wooster in the fall and reading your description made me feel like he will be going to a school that will provide the type of community he is looking for. We are from the Boston area, and it seems like he gets a lot of questions about going to school in Worcester, MA.

OldinJersey · 01-20-2008, 01:18 PM

onetiredmom - your son should love wooster. Of all the students she's met DD only knows of two who didn't do well. One was homesick and the other had some personal issues and was not happy on arrival. Everyone else just loves the place.
There is a little online board via Wooster for the admits to sign up, but most of them went on to Facebook. I think someone set up Wooster Class of 2011, and they all "met" online and chatted all summer. imho this kind of intro to each other eases the worries of incoming freshmen. have him log on to facebook and see if there is a page started for incoming freshmen. It may not really get going to mid-may.

onetiredmom · 01-21-2008, 02:47 PM

OldinJersey, I really enjoy reading what you have to say about Wooster. I never had the chance to visit the campus. My son went twice, once with my husband, and the second visit he went on his own for an overnight. He just loved the school, but I can only go on what he has told me and your input is very helpful as it fills in the details. I get a sense that the people--the faculty and students--make Wooster a very special community. We have a friend, who is near 70, who graduated from Wooster and is still very close to her college roommate.
Any more stories/details you want to share will be appreciated!
Thanks!
--I do think my son has 'met' some of the other incoming students through Facebook. It does help to have those connections.

politicaljunkie · 01-21-2008, 05:58 PM

For those of you that know, how active is the political scene at Wooster? Are students knowledgable and interested? Any insight would be appreciated.

rhsmom · 02-03-2008, 03:04 PM

My D is a freshman at Wooster and really loves the school. The sense of community is what she seems to enjoy the most. She was willing to give up Florida weather to go there. As far as political climate, I can tell you that this year the school has had a large focus on the environment. The freshman class read The Riverkeepers, Kennedy then spoke at the college. Ed Begley Jr and others have also lectured.

OldinJersey · 02-04-2008, 10:08 AM

This is a caring community, from what my D says. The focus has been on giving, contributing, helping. This is not a school where the vegan is 1. laughed at 2. torturing burger eaters at dinner. It's not a school where a Democrat is yelled at (Notre Dame) or a Republican is yelled at (Columbia?)
I do not know enough about the political feel, though, since this D is not highly political, for our "politics is a contact sport" family.

FLVADAD · 02-04-2008, 11:31 AM

It's been a long time, but my experience was that all views were fairly well represented. Professors did not attempt to force their views, and in fact, I don't recall actually knowing the political persuasion of most. Students at Wooster follow politics, and some are much more active than others. However, there was never a contentious presence one way or the other around campus or in the classroom. There were open debates. There were disagreements, of course. However, nobody got persecuted for their particular beliefs. Like I said though, it's been awhile since I spent much time there so my perceptions might be a bit dated.