Took S2 and his best friend. Helped by visiting on the nicest day in the history of February. When we arrived at admissions they had their forms pre-printed and made them feel extremely welcome. Everyone was almost too nice. We waited in room that was like a movie set of a college admissions office with all original Stickley furniture.
Presentation in gorgeous Nott Memorial given by the director of admissions, who was – and I cannot stress this enough – excellent at it. She really engaged all the kids directly and made them feel wanted and welcome. A total pro.
Campus old and beautiful but everything we saw had fantastic new interiors. Very compact and convenient layout. We knew about the engineering they had but didn’t know they were so strong in physical sciences and research. Academic opportunities were fantastic and a lot of focus was given to internships and career assistance.
Minerva System seemed great too and the Minerva House we visited was like something out of House Beautiful.
Schenectady was far less “grotty” (sorry could not resist) than we were expecting. Bit of a dodgy walk to Jay Street but nice once you got there, and you do walk right past the police station.
Cherry on the cake was taking two HS hockey players to see the arena and finding the D1 7th-ranked team practicing. This was the kind of happy accident that raises a visit to another level and we could not have planned it! We watched for an hour and they were in awe of the skills. Had their picture taken with the 2014 National Champions trophy.
They loved it. And best of all, their stats are in range! On the list for sure.
@RustyTrowel Agree regarding University of Michigan. We were amazed by this university. Ann Arbor is fantastic, the breadth of programs was astonishing, and everyone was very friendly. And they have a financial aid policy that embraces OOS students. Not at all what we were expecting and didn’t feel at all “huge”.
I can actually add to this discussion now:) D is only a soph, and we have looked at college campuses before, but never toured before this week. On Thurs we visited Dickinson. It was a lovely, peaceful campus. D came away thinking that they provide a very personal education and they seem to care about the students. The students seemed serious and studious, the facilities were very updated and everything was very clean. There were only some downsides: the campus seemed kind of quiet and from what she heard the social scene is not as vibrant as she would like. Also she felt that it may be too small for her.This is a school she will consider down the road though and felt she would fit in well. Loved the red adirondack chairs! Carlisle was a cute town, but there were pockets of poverty here and there.
The next day we drove to State College, because she wanted to see a huge school. We all hated Penn State. We didn’t tour or walk around, just drove by. There were hoards of students walking on the sidewalks. It seemed too crowded and felt extremely urban even though it’s not in an urban area. It just seemed so big and impersonal. I was thrilled that she realized that a huge school is not for her. She also wants to see more green and less cement.
After Penn State, we drove through farmland to Bucknell. We struck gold. After the tour, D was beaming. She said she wanted to go here and felt like it was the perfect school for her. It was beautiful and despite being around 3500 students it seemed bustling and lively. One thing I noticed is that it was not what I expected. I had heard about the preppiness and display of wealth. What I saw were a bunch of normal looking kids. Most were wearing athletic/workout clothing. Lots of girls were wearing casual dresses since it was so warm yesterday. The boys looked a little more preppy, but most looked sporty. What I didn’t see was piercings, dyed hair or anyone who looked Goth. I would say it was fairly maintstream. Everyone was nice and it seemed like a happy place to go to school. The downtown was cute and seemed safe. The only downside according to D was there are no sorority houses, but it seems like she can get past that, thank goodness.
So now that we know what she likes we are on a mission to find similar schools to bucknell. Medium sized, beautiful campus, lots of kids around, but not too chaotic and a vibrant social scene. She also realized that she wants smaller, discussion based classes. Great trip.
@Postmodern , Union was such a surprise for our family too. The more we learned, the better it got! Really a great school (that is not on everyone’s radar.) Your post made me smile.
@citymama9 , if you liked Bucknell, Lafayette and Lehigh may be 2 other PA options that will appeal.
@gardenstategal We actually looked at Lehigh and Lafayette last yr, but didn’t tour and not many students were around. We loved Lafayette and are planning to seriously look at it again. Lehigh didn’t make the cut. Pretty school, but those hills!!! We have seen Union once before on the way to somewhere else and were pleasanty surprised. That is another school we are planning to see again, formally. Thanks:)
Oh, have you seen Gettysburg? Do you think someone who liked Bucknell and it’s energy would like this school?
@wisteria100 Do you or anyone else know if Gettysburg has a more similar vibe/energy to Dickinson or Bucknell? Don’t want to go off topic, but hopefully this question will help others too. THanks!
@citymama9, I would recommend that you visit Gettysburg. I think it might appeal to your daughter. I’d put it in between Bucknell and Dickinson in terms of vibe, but closer to Bucknell maybe.
Glad you’re visiting Union! Would strongly recommend Colgate if you’re in the neighborhood as well - as noted by others, similar vibe to Bucknell. This group overall has a nice range of selectivity as well.
Crossed Off: Reed
I thought this was a slam dunk for my D. Not so much. It’s a nice campus, and the dorm rooms (some of which feature fireplaces) are pretty sweet. New Performing Arts building is really nice. But the rigid class requirements and the discouragement of double majoring didn’t sit well with D. And going around, we only saw students studying alone, even in the dining hall.
Moved Up: Lewis & Clark
Like with Reed, it was POURING rain when we visited, so the fireplaces in the Admissions Office were welcome. Students seemed happy and cheerful. Lots of chatter and groups talking excitedly in the dining hall. Very different vibe from Reed. Despite the dorms being pretty bad and some of the facilities being underwhelming, it moved up.
If you would have asked me before we went, I would have thought the exact opposite would happen. Which is why campus visits are important, I suppose.
This didn’t really move onto or off any of our lists, but we were at Berry College today, and I’d been expecting Hogwarts-level awesomness, since Berry regularly makes the “most beautiful campuses in America” list. It was nice, but I think my expectations were set way too high from the ranking. I kept thinking “where’s the hogwarty stuff???”
@MotherOfDragons, I think a lot of mountain (and oceanside) campuses get a thumb on the scale simply because of the panoramic shots they can put up on the web.
@MotherOfDragons, I thought “Hogwarty” meant like “Duke in the mountains.”
What are you looking for?
Curious because I know my daughter would like “Hogwarty!”
Do you know of any schools that do meet that description?
@dragonmom3 (sorry I tagged you @dragonmom) the two schools I have seen in person that feel “hogwarty” to me are Yale and Oglethorpe. Berry had a lot of stately red brick southern buildings (like Duke), and I was expecting more gray gothic.
@citymama9@Postmodern
Like you we were very pleasantly surprised by Union. We went up that direction mostly to look at Skidmore (lovely school but my D felt it was too artsy for her) and we ended up cutting the Skidmore visit short to spend more time at Union. The science/engineering facilities are particular impressive. We made two visits to Union and were impressed both times. Union ended up as my D’s second choice (and a school she would have been happy to attend). In the end Lafayette was her top choice (where she attended and loved). The two other schools where she felt she would be happy were Franklin & Marshall and Dickinson. If F&M isn’t on your radar, you may want to look at that school as well.
Hmmm as a University of Washington alum it doesn’t strike me then, or now, as remotely Hogwarty. Lovely campus, plenty of old gorgeous buildings including the quad where I spent most of my time, but not Hogwarty.