LookingFoward

I've read much about how Hamilton tends to be full of rich old money preppy kids who care about economic class more so than actual people and blah blah blah generic preppy terms. Now I have never been a real prep, more of a laid back Californian, and was wondering if I would actually fit in with the general Hamiltonian students. I know that much of the "preppyness" quotient of the school is probably vastly overblown, but I was looking for some input here. Thank you very much.

Naplesgirl

My D was accepted and she is a Florida girl, laid back and not real preppy. We met members of the softball team, and all were really nice. As far as campus visits go, would describe Colgate, Union and Skidmore as far more preppy.

lacigam04

when i visited, i didn't feel the preppy vibe AT ALL. im sure some preppyness exists, but definitely not to the extent that certain people claim.

jelomom2003

My D was accepted last year at Hamilton and really wrestled with this exact issue. She went back to Hamilton several times and did a sleepover too, because Hamilton had always been top on her list. She liked the people she met, but ultimately she decided , among other things, that she needed a campus that was more "grounded". This is a very personal decision and was extremely hard for her to make. She ended up attending a University where she encounters many kids who wanted to go to Hamilton but are very happy not to be there now.

She also had Union and Skidmore amoung her choices. Skidmore is unique in its extremes - prep to artsy. She really liked Union and thought the student body was extremely focused more than preppy. She thought that Middlebury was the preppiest and most arrogant place she considered.

This is such a personal decision that ultimately, it will probably come down to a feeling. Just wait, and you thought getting accepted was the hard part.

icy9ff8

Hamilton College is not excessively preppy. It is a small, academically demanding LAC that is well respected by graduate schools. Preppiness runs strong at some of the nation's best schools such as Dartmouth College, Colgate University, Bucknell University, St. Lawrence University and a number of large Southern flagship state universities. All of these named schools tend to attract highly motivated students, many of whom attend graduate school. A concern with respect to Hamilton College may be collegiate drinking as it is a small, somewhat isolated, cold weather institution. But, just as with Dartmouth College, if a student is going to drink beer, it is probably preferable to do it while bonding with other intelligent, motivated, high achievers during a time of substantial growth & maturation. A more important difference between small LACs and large--even very elite--universities is that your son or daughter will be known and given a great deal of attention during & after their college years versus a large university where a young adult has to learn to stand up for themselves and accept disappointment. I have never heard of Hamilton College being referred to as snobby--52% of the students qualify for financial aid--and wonder if those suggesting such actually meant "cliqueish". Although my impression of Hamilton students is hardworking, ambitious, graduate school oriented students who write well.(And drink lots of beer.)

LookingFoward

Wow, thank you very much. I will be visiting on the admitted students day on the 21st, and will see what I think. But your words definitely have made me happier for getting in. Now the big problem will be affording Hamilton. I don't qualify for finaid, but I am not sure if Hamilton is worth the 40k more per year than William and Mary...

icy9ff8

When considering Hamilton College versus the College of William & Mary, a substantial cost difference may be hard to justify. The freshman retention rate is 95% for Wm. & Mary, and 93% for Hamilton College. 47% of the classes have less than 20 students at Wm.& Mary, while 75% are under 20 students at Hamilton. 7% of the classes at Wm. & Mary have 50 or more students, while only 0.4% have 50 or more students at Hamilton. At $40,000 more per year, it might be difficult to justify attending Hamilton, in my opinion, based on the limited info. shared in your posts.

jelomom2003

LookingForward-
If you have the opportunity while visiting Hamilton, try to break away from the "song and dance" of the Accepted Student Day and wonder around the campus on your own. These Accepted Student days are run by the Addmissons office and are a sell job. You need to get honest feedback and observations.

We toured the Arts building on our own, and learned a lot about the friendliness of the employees who showed us around. We sought out a Professor who had been an undergrad at one of the other schools my D had under consideration and asked the prof for her views of the two schools. We wandered into dorms on both the "light and dark" side. We dropped in the outing club to see who was hanging around. We walked the halls of the science building, watching interactions. We even sat in a dance class.

BTW did you know that Hamilton actually does have requirements . . . . in physical ed and swimming!

However, the money factor is real

aBeautifulMind

Why is Hamilton College cited as the second most "preppy" college in the United States in Lisa Birnbach's Official Preppy Handbook??? I'm getting scared.

kingkouture

That book was published in the eighties, and a LOT of schools have changed since then.

In my opinion, Hamilton LOOKS preppy, but doesn't FEEL preppy.

aBeautifulMind

^Then someone should take that off of Hamilton College's Wikipedia page.

pinkpineapple

If I am in fact looking for a preppier college, with a more conservative student body (knowing that most LACs are overall liberal), would Hamilton be a good choice?

colberTreporT

^I think Bucknell would be your ideal school. It is preppier, and a lot more conservative. I have read that Hamilton's ratio is 5 liberals to 1 conservative, while for Bucknell it is 2:1 (this is informal statistics). Even Colgate, from what I have read, is more conservative than Hamilton, and at least equally preppy, if not preppier. But Hamilton is by no means conservative; if you even go to the students review website, you will see current and past conservative students who complained about how their conservative ideology was often shunned at Hamilton.