First daughter is a freshman at Flagler College in St.Augustine, Florida. Absolutely perfect fit for her and thrilled at how much she loves the school, genuine concern by faculty, wide range of classes and activities for a smaller school. Daughter #2 is in 10th grade but we live overseas so we need to start our searching sooner than many. Perfectly fine HS student with 3.5, varsity basketball, student government, plays the guitar, sings, liked by all…will have fine test scores but nothing off the charts. Looking at smaller to mid-size liberal arts. We are out of state for everywhere and we are US citizens. Looking at a road trip to start in St. Augustine and head north…College of Charleston because it’s on the way, Appalachian State, UVA, William and Mary, UNC Wilmington…any more ideas?. Looking to give dear daughter a look at many different locations, sizes, and vibes. Not necessarily " pick one of these schools". We don’t want DD2 to feel like we have already been thru the trenches with DD1 so we don’t need to do the road trip with her. Bring on some more ideas to add to the list…hitting the road in late March.
How about Mount Holyoke? My Ds both loved it when they visited and applied, even though ahead of time they weren’t sure about it. Both attended other schools, but D1 is still abut wistful and says she sometimes wishes she had gone there. Beautiful campus, solid academics, part of a consortium with UMass-Amherst, Amherst, Hampshire, and Smith for social variety and occasional cross registration for classes.
St. Mary’s College of Maryland might be another one to check out. It is the public honors college for Maryland, but is LAC-like and has a summer-camp like feeling.
If you’re going to Appalachian State, take a look around Asheville, at UNC Asheville and Warren Wilson.
Berry College in Georgia?
Emory in Atlanta?
For comparison, visit a college town like Chapel Hill or Charlottesville or Athens
University of Richmond
Goucher College outside Baltimore
Juniata for the college in the middle of nowhere
Swarthmore for the intense wealthy private college
Haverford for the less intense version.
Bryn Mawr for a women’s college.
Lehigh, Lafayette
How far north? Can you go west? There are options: Rhodes in Memphis, Hendrix in Arkansas
As you can see there are plenty of options.
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While in SC, I’d recommend Furman Univerisity In Greenvile and Wofford College in Spartanburg( within 45 minutes of each other) and can stop on the way to Appalachian State.
The College of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, VA has more of a “smaller to midsize liberal arts feel” than either UVA or W&M. It’s also a VA public school, but less difficult admissions-wise.
How about Muhlenburg near Allentown, PA? It’s a wonderful campus with a true LAC feel. Visited several times and liked it more with each visit.
Thanks for the great suggestions…there are soooo many schools that we just don’t know about (yet)! DD2 is not interested in sun where DD1 wouldn’t go anywhere with a chance of snow! Thinking to add in a stop in Hartford, CT for a big college fair too…wish CTCL had an event anywhere during our 16 day window but no such luck. Keep the suggestions coming…I am writing them all down and have the map out!
If you’re willing to venture into Ohio, you might look at Ohio Wesleyan, College of Wooster, or Denison. Your daughter might have a shot at merit aid there.
We did a similar road trip in 2004. Our trip was comprised of University of Richmond, university of South Carolina (our kid wanted a smaller school too…but this school was her second choice at the end), college of Charleston, Elon, UNC Greensboro, and Davidson (a reach for our kid…but a great school). We also drove through Wake Forest campus because we were there.
Do you have a copy of the Fiske Guide to Colleges? It has very helpful write ups on most of these schools.
For schools with a more urban feel, if she decides that’s what she likes, then American University, George Washington University and Georgetown - all in DC - are good choices, with the selectivity increasing in the order listed.
You might narrow it down by adding information here about what her intended course of study would be - DC moves up on the list if she’s into political science, international relations, etc…and down if she’s more of a STEM kid (for example).
Eckerd (other side of Florida) sounds like it might fit. You could probably hit a few in Atlanta pretty easily–Agnes Scot comes to mind.
Roanoke College would be a nice stop between Appalachian State and UVA.
I loved Vassar and U Rochester. Swarthmore and Haverford are very small and very, very selective. I believe that UVA is highly selective for out-of-state applicants.
Love this board and the supportive parents! Several of the colleges listed were on DD1 visited list and we love Denison for their great programs, fabulous acceptance package so I was thinking to scoot out their way too. I had Roanoke on the check out list too. She is a liberal arts kind of gal, maybe psychology, education, but not math or science although she does fine in these courses in HS. We spent a week next to GWU and loved the area but she feels it would be a reach for her. This is the “hey this is what a bunch of colleges feel like, look like, and have to offer” tour with the “which one is the best fit for you?” tour the next year. Keep the suggestions coming…
Denison will always have a sweet spot in our hearts. DD1 received her first acceptance package from them and it was absolutely magical. The package read" look what YOU GOT IN the mail" on the outside…then when pulling out the thick folder the words you got in were in red on the front. Brings tears to my eyes even now! Lovely merit aid offer and very informative admission counselor.
Kenyon is a very charming campus and not far from Dennison.
Also in MD is Washington College, a small LAC in Chesterstown on the Chesapeake Bay. Lovely school and could be an interesting match or safety possibility depending on her stats (gives good financial and merit aid).
I second the suggestion for Agnes Scott College, an all-women’s school just outside Atlanta.
How about Fordham? It’s a medium sized school in New York and seems to have a liberal arts like curriculum
In NC, consider Elon and Guilford (probably a safety for your daughter). Temple, if she’d like a big, urban college. If NYC appeals, don’t overlook Eugene Lang/New School. Drew, in Madison, NJ, is another often-overlooked college. It is very expensive, but she might qualify for merit aid. University of Delaware would also be convenient.