bethievt

And there are great Halloween parties too!

merepoule

My daughter and boyfriend (from Grinnell, both juniors) are both in London this semester with the Grinnell-in-London program. They have both been extremely happy with the program and are being as active and engaged with it as possible...but they actually also miss Grinnell in Iowa, if you can believe that! So 'nough said?

bethievt

OMG!

My son has missed his Grinnell friends no matter what exotic location we take him to. He's polite about it, but he can't wait to get back to Grinnell--this is not about the cornfields--it's about the campus. And the people.

aplomb

I know no one has posted in here a while, but I just wanted to say thanks to you guys for so much "inside" information on Grinnell!

I was also wondering, how much alcohol/drug use goes on on campus? I know some people say this is a problem at other LACs, particularly the more left-leaning ones.

Keilexandra

I have heard that alcohol use is a problem at Grinnell--maybe no more than at Carleton, but worse than, say, Macalester or Oberlin (though drugs are more prevalent at the latter).

bethievt

I'm pretty sure all of those schools are similar re: alcohol use.

Keilexandra

^ All similar? I would disagree. They all have a problem, but even relatively small distinctions are relevant. Anecdotally, I have had friends complain about excessive drinking at G and C (while being overall and otherwise very positive); another friend-of-a-friend has characterized Mac as less purely alcohol-oriented because of the city, and the Oberlin drugs>alcohol paradigm is well-known and admitted by current students.

bethievt

I know current students at all of these schools. I'd say they are similar, but you are free to differ.

Artfulmom

We just visited Grinnell and were impressed. The next day we heard stories of two students - one witnessed a sports team being given beers by the coach during the practice (when visiting the school before attending) and another who left after a year due to the drinking.

My biggest concern is the pressure to drink, especially by coaches. I don't know if it's co-incidental but the coach of the sport in question won't be back for the fall term. DD and I both liked Grinnell until we heard this. Can anyone shed any light on this?

phishsticks

I think your concerns about pressure to drink in college, ESPECIALLY at Grinnell, should be the least of you and your DD's (by the way, what does DD mean?) worries. In every college, with the exception, of course, of religious or more conservative institutions, students will be faced with drinking and that I know of, no college/students threaten other students to drink against their life. So, personally, I think pressure to drink is nonexistant -- it's more of a decision from the student to choose whether they want to drink or not. The student has to have a strong and independent character to face this. As a sub-free student myself, I have never once heard from any current or past Grinnell student that there is or was some sort of pressure to drink or to do drugs. At Grinnell everyone finds their niche and if your DD decides to attend, they will quickly realize, like I did, that there are plenty of people to share a sub-free lifestyle. Even if I would have attended the U of FL (notoriously known for it's parties and drinking), either way I would have never felt pressured to drink because I'm sure of myself and of my morals. Please don't let the "coach" incident deter you and DD from Grinnell. Grinnell is truly spectacular.

Even though I have yet to experience Grinnell as a current student (one more week!), I am sure that everyone agrees that drinking/drug use "pressure" at Grinnell is no problem.

M's Mom

S chose the substance free dorm option and is returning to the same dorm this year. He did not feel socially isolated nor find it awkward because he doesn't drink although he did say that after attending a few alcohol-laden parties, he opted to hang with friends who had a different idea of what constituted a good time. There were plenty of people who fell into the latter category. He said there are students that party hard but they are a minority. Tthe work load is too intense to party during the week and those few who do generally end up on academic probation.

james28

so can anyone tell me why grinnell would be a better choice than other great LAC's to which I'm applying such as bowdoin, davidson, and carleton?

bethievt

It's a matter of fit. Visit if you can and also do overnight visits if you're so inclined. My son was admitted to 10 great LACs including Carleton, Vassar, Haverford, Reed, Oberlin, Mac and Pomona. He looked at them all very carefully, attended classes, spoke with students and in the end chose Grinnell, where he is very happy. He probably could have been happy at any of them, but I do brelieve he found his best fit. For him it was the best blend of intellectual, unpretentious and maybe what another parent here described as "come as you are". There's a great feeling of differences being not just accepted but celebrated.

Only you can decide which is a best fit for you. Grinnell would not be everyone's first choice. I will say the resources at Grinnell are top notch and the services provided to students are great. Everyone who wants one can get an on-campus job and the school will often fund unpaid internships, for example.

mythmom

It's almost mystical how kids pick one LAC over another, but they seem to be able to tell which is their best fit.

I think "come as you are" is a very user friendly and spiritual philosophy.

M's Mom

I agree with bethievt. S visited Bowdoin, Haverford, Carleton, Pomona, and 6 others. He liked most of them-and probably would have been happy at any of them because the LAC environment is right for him-but Grinnell's low-key, understatedness made him feel at home. Fit really comes down to very personal factors.

If you search "Grinnell vs. Carleton" or "Carleton vs. Pomona" on CC, I'm sure you'll get tons of comparative information.