Having just returned from S18’s first non-local college tours, I’ll chime in. We visited three colleges that participate in the Ohio Six College Tour. As a result, lovely refreshments and lunch after the morning visits were served. We’re used to hot SoCal summers, but the heat/humidity combo really sapped our energy, so cold refreshments were really welcome.
Went up:
College of Wooster
Great academics, lovely campus, great people, good food. He went in thinking “meh,” came out thinking “this is the kind of place for me.” COW was the only college we visited that my rising college sophomore said she regretted taking it off her list without researching it further. She’s extremely happy where she is, so there’s no regret about her choice. I used that statement with both of my kids to demonstrate that there really can be more than one right college for a student.
Stayed the same:
Denison University
Nice community, nice campus (maybe a little too pristine). The most memorable experience was the free t-shirt for having traveled the farthest to visit. Came away feeling like it would be fine, but nothing special. Does at least want to visit again with students on campus (which can happen because he definitely wants to revisit COW and Earlham for the same purpose).
Went down:
Earlham College
Loved the school, loved the facilities, hated the town (especially since we arrived on a Sunday afternoon and no local restaurants were open after 5 pm: ended up at Chili’s, adequate but not our fave). Though he loves the program offered for one of his major interests, College of Wooster has come out on top.
Off the list:
Case Western Reserve University
Too big, too urban. Confusing campus layout…couldn’t figure out where the campus ended and the city began. Stronger focus on areas outside of S18’s interests. We were in Cleveland anyway, so we went mostly because he’d already rejected USC and we wanted to see whether a mid-size school might be more to his liking. He hated it even more than USC.
Oberlin College
His words were: “this place is for Ivy-League wannabes.” Not bashing the Ivy League schools, it’s just that it was too intense for him. I didn’t like it for him because much of the focus of the tour was on their loud social and environmental activism rather than the academics. My son is not a loud activist, so he would not find his peeps there. Also, their freshman seminar program and capstone program are not required (90% and 60% of students participate, respectively). I sat there and thought “if it’s not required, he won’t do it.” In discussing things afterward, he said (without me mentioning my thought) “I think I should go to a place that requires the freshman seminar and capstone because if it’s not required, I won’t do it.” I was so happy that he knows himself so well and that he also sees the value of participating in those types of programs.
Oh, we also made a short detour to Gambier on our way from Granville to Wooster just to see Kenyon and the town because we’ve heard so much about how there’s nothing there. Both of my kids took one look at the place and said “no way!” They have a really great athletic facility, though.