You’ve got a ton of great schools - didn’t you say earlier that Bowdoin and Bates were off? When you’ve got a list this big, don’t hesitate to pull the trigger 
(And you’ve got a lot of great ESS schools here.)
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Concerning subtracting from your list, I would keep Bowdoin on it. My S24 was focused on environmental science programs mainly in the Northeast and Upper Midwest. We did a tour of New England schools last summer. At UNH, we had a meeting with the department chair of Natural Resources and the Environment. I told him about our planned itinerary and asked him which ones he’d recommend and which programs we might be overlooking. As a place we hadn’t considered, he gave a ringing endorsement to Bowdoin for environmental science. All the other schools he mentioned were mid to large public universities across the country (e.g. Oregon, Colorado State, UVM, UConn).
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If she’s visited small liberal arts colleges and is thinking of two ED options as small liberal arts colleges I’d be inclined to eliminate U. of Orgeton and U. of Vermont, especially since she thought that Dartmouth was too big. That being said, though, she hasn’t visited any schools that would be considered sure things, and those are the most important schools on the list, so I’d be hesitant to eliminate them until she found some she likes.
I’ve updated my chancing based on the latest colleges you’ve added (or switching of EDs), and put some comments by a few of them. I acknowledge that I tend to chance conservatively (and could understand if people put most of the toss-up schools in the likely category).
Extremely Likely (80-99+%)
- U. of Oregon (86%)
- Willamette (72%) – If Bates felt small with around 1800 undergrads, this might feel super small with about 1400 undergrads. Of course, she liked Amherst with around 1900 undergrads, but Willamette is still a fair bit smaller.
Likely (60-79%)
- Lewis & Clark (59% non-ED)
- U. of Vermont (46%)
Toss-Up (40-59%)
- Clark (39% outside of ED)
- Colby ED (42%), foreign language requirement
- Dickinson (34% outside of ED)
- Mount Holyoke (38% outside of ED)
- Oberlin (35%)
Lower Probability (20-39%)
- Amherst ED (32% ED)
- Colorado College (14% outside of ED) – How does your D feel about only having 1 class at a time?
- Macalester RD (19% outside of ED), foreign language requirement
- Scripps (27% outside of ED)
Low Probability (less than 20%)
- Amhest RD (7% outside of ED)
- Bates RD (14% outside of ED) – seemed small
- Bowdoin (7% outside of ED) – must have a second major, too
- Carleton (16% close to next category up)
- Colby (8% outside of ED), foreign language requirement
- Middlebury (13% outside of ED)
- Pitzer (16% outside of ED and it’s test blind, but leaning towards lower probability)
- Pomona (7% outside of ED)
I would definitely keep Macalester, Colby, and Amherst, as those are her favorites, unless having a foreign language requirement is definitely a dealbreaker. But whenever she finds things that she doesn’t like about a school, especially if they’re in the lower or low probability buckets, I’d eliminate them.
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Although you just posted about trying to eliminate colleges off the list of schools under consideration, I’m about to propose more schools to potentially add. Why? Your D found Dartmouth too big and U. of Oregon and U. of Vermont are two of her 4 likelier schools. Her other extremely likely school has more than 20% fewer students than a school she considered feeling “small,” so I’m not sure how happy she would be if that ends up as her only option (even if it’s a highly unlikely circumstance). So I think that Lewis & Clark is a likely, but I don’t know if I’d call it extremely likely, and finding at least one or two extremely likely admits that your student would be happy to enroll in and attend is very important, far moreso than pretty much all the other schools on this list.
So below are six schools that might be of interest to your D. If your family is planning a trip to visit the Claremont Colleges this summer then California Lutheran and/or U. of Redlands would be easy additions, if either of them appeal.
I do not mean that all six of these schools should be added to your D’s list. I am simply saying that I think she needs at least one extremely likely admit (and all of these would be, IMO) that she’d be happy to attend, and I currently have concerns about that aspect of her list right now.
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California Lutheran: About 2500 undergrads
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Gustavus Adolphus (MN): About 2100 undergrads wseems as though it has the academicky vibe that your D is seeking.
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Keene State (NH): About 2700 undergrads and it’s considered New Hampshire’s public liberal arts college.
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Susquehanna (PA ): About 2200 undergrads. Some of the surrounding counties have allegedly not been considered the most progressive, but I’ve heard good things about the college itself.
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UNC - Asheville: About 2900 undergrads at North Carolina’s public liberal arts college. My impression is that a quirky kid would easily find their niche here.
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U. of Redlands (CA): About 2300 undergrads here
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Thank you so much! She felt that the campus size was too small at Bates, not the population. It doesn’t make sense though since she didn’t think Macalester was small. 
I think we are visiting Lewis and Clark, Williamette, and Oregon this summer. We’re trying to decide if we are visiting the Claremont colleges before she applies. She is concerned about the heat and the fact that because it is a 5 college major that she’ll have to take classes at the other schools vs it being up to her. I’ll definitely look at the schools you suggested.
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What category would the following be in? Puget Sound, Washington College, Allegheny, Juniata? Thanks.
She’s a high end student with a top test right?
Safety
Safety - at a school with a lot of budget issues although working through
Safety
Safety
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Bates, by design, has quite a bit going on in a relatively small footprint. It can make it feel more high energy and bustling, or it can make it feel small. (Personally, I felt the former.) But maybe that’s what your D was responding to.
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I agree with @tsbna44 that all of those would be extremely likely admits for your D.
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I just wanted to push back a little on the advice to take off the two larger schools (Oregon and Vermont). Kids change a lot over the next year. Mine both had large, small, and medium schools on their lists, and their top choices currently contain all three sizes. And I know I have read on here where other posters’ kids have gone from thinking they want one size to preferring the complete opposite (in both directions).
It seems like Oregon and Vermont both offer a lot that this student likes, so I would keep them on so that the student has a variety of options a year from now.
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This is a good point- my ds was sure he wanted a small school and applied to mostly smaller lacs, when it came time to choose he went with UVM- he just decided he liked the energy and activity of a bigger place and felt ready for it. It has been a great fit overall.
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Totally not unusual for feelings around this to evolve over senior year. Many kids have experiences at this time that make them feel more confident navigating a bigger school – or they go to a city and love the enrrgy of it.
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She might apply ED and EA and see where she gets in and then reassess if she needs any more safeties/targets or if she should just apply to a bunch of reaches.
EA:
Lewis and Clark (later notification)
Macalester
St Olaf
University of Oregon
University of Vermont
ED:
Amherst
RD:
Bates
Bowdoin
Carleton
Colby
Middlebury
Mount Holyoke
Oberlin
Pitzer
Pomona
Scripps
Skidmore
Vassar
Williams
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I still don’t understand the two Bs.
If I remember correctly, she didn’t like Bates campus and the Bowdoin double major (although with an ES major (especially studies - a double might be wise.
I don’t get why you’d include schools she wasn’t feeling…
But it’s a list of high level schools with some extras throw in for safety margin if needed.
So all good.
What are Skidmore and Vassar like? How do their vibes compare to the others? They are the two I know the least about. Thanks.
My D loved Vassar – stunning campus, cool housing system (sort of Hogwarts like – you’re selected into a house, each of which has a vibe and personality, and you stay there for at least two years, ideally four, and a lot of organized social activities revolve around the houses), a very creative and artsy vibe. I would say that the environmental studies program, while strong, doesn’t have quite as much depth as some of the other schools you’re considering. However, that may or may not be a downside – it’s still good, and the school includes a large arboretum that they use to support classes and research (sort of like what Colby has, but it’s more integrated with campus). They also have a very new science center, which could support more diverse environmental course offerings in the future.
My D didn’t love Skidmore and didn’t apply. I think the first thing that turned her off was that they really promoted the growing business major during the info session – she didn’t want to be anywhere with a significant pre-professional element. She thought the natural surroundings were beautiful but was turned off by the campus architecture and the housing system (most freshmen can expect to be in triples). Also, environmental studies (humanities and social sciences) and environmental sciences are separate majors at Skidmore, and my D wanted something more truly integrated and interdisciplinary. Frankly, I remember having the same reaction to Skidmore when I was looking at colleges eons ago - it was someplace I really wanted to love, and I just didn’t.
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So C25’s list hasn’t changed much recently. However, I am freaking out just a little about the election. I’m wondering if they should add some schools in Canada and/or Europe to their list. Any suggestions for schools to look at? Thank you.
ED:
Bowdoin
EA:
Lewis and Clark (later notification)
Macalester
St Olaf
University of Vermont
RD:
Amherst
Bates
Carleton
Colby (possible EDII)
Middlebury
Mount Holyoke
Pitzer
Scripps
Skidmore
Vassar
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I like your list. But if you want to expand to some non-US, I know a lot of CC folks seem to like University of St Andrews for the closest think the UK has to a liberal arts college. You might do some research on it and see if it could fit. Also, much bigger than the others on your list, and in the city, but McGill in Montreal has lots of Americans. I think there are some smaller, more liberal arts-like colleges in eastern Canada but am not familiar with them.
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Mount Allison in New Brunswick might be a good fit.
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Mount Allison and Acadia are examples of these.
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