Thanks so much lilyesh! I appreciate your generosity. Best of luck with your studies. I hope you are having a really fun time at college! 
Thank you to everyone for all of your thoughts. This is an overwhelming process. All of your feedback is very helpful!
Very helpful. Thank you HCPP20
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Thank you! I love it here so far.
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Colleges that Change Lives Colleges That Change Lives
A few have been mentioned
I really appreciate this point. I do look at the diversity of the math faculty at these schools. Yale was a bit of a red flag for me. Thank you for mentioning this.
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I agree with the suggestion of St. Olaf, but be aware that they cap merit at half tuition or something similar. It took some digging but we found that somewhere on the web site. S24 and Dh loved the visit but it ended up above our budget. Absolutely worth a look if it fits for you. UMN-TC also happens to have an academic/research track for their music majors if that holds any appeal at all.
S24 was also looking for academic music study with opportunities to participate in ensembles and was steered away from Oberlin by a variety of people who said participation was limited for non-conservatory students. That was backed up by current Oberlin students talking about their experiences on campus (as BA music students). They were happy with their eventual solutions–participation in student run ensembles vs major campus performance groups and lessons with a student instructor–but S ended up not applying.
Ithaca came to mind as fitting most of your criteria though I saw your concern about the location. Most students seemt to be happy there.
I realize this doesn’t fit your location preferences but the University of Denver is known to be generous with merit, has a fairly robust math department and conservatory. S24 loved the lightrail connecting campus to downtown. If flights to Denver aren’t a dealbreaker it could be an option.
Skidmore might be worth a closer look if the vibe fits what she’s looking for. S ruled it out as too far away, but I thought it would be a great fit for his particular degree of academic + music performance interests.
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Looking at the department chair, in particular, may offer additional insight.
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It can be difficult to get into the ensembles as a non conservatory student, however, there are requirements for their degree to be completed. The BA musical studies major is primarily a non-performance major with limited ensemble participation required for the degree.
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Thank you for all the great feedback, LizHolt. It’s funny, I was just reading more about Skidmore specifically when I noticed these messages.
I think we will add it as a place to visit sooner rather than later.
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D only plays the piano and I think she would love student run performances. She’s pretty laid back when it comes to participating in performing arts. She’s in it for the fun. But I’ve seen multiple people suggest that participation can be difficult for non-conservatory kids. We will explore that further.
She did tell me yesterday, completely unsolicited, that she was looking at Oberlin’s webpage and found a music and cognition program that sounded fun. So she’s been thinking about Oberlin. We will be mindful of the music opportunities. Thank you
May I ask the people who are familiar with St Olaf, do you think it would be problematic to apply before visiting? I’m trying to prioritize visits and travel and am wondering if we could plan a visit later, if she’s accepted. This might feel less stressful for her as well.
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Lots of people do this. It’s often not realistic to visit all the colleges you’re planning to apply to, so it’s quite common to only do so after acceptance (then, usually try for admitted student days as you may get to see more than you do on a normal tour as well as get more info)
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I think it’s fine but make sure to show interest in other ways–attending some virtual events, contacting the AO, and asking for an interview. My daughter did visit before applying but didn’t do an on-campus interview (since we tried to squeeze in both St. Olaf and Carleton on the same day and she wasn’t sure how much she’d like St. Olaf). But she enjoyed her visit, and asked for a virtual interview afterwards, and they were happy to arrange it. Just some ideas.
I believe they cap merit/arts scholarships at half the cost of attendance, not just tuition, but I may misremember.
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My D21 had mixed feelings about Williams’ Winter Study term, too. She enjoyed the class she took her first year, but did find it hard to go back to school so soon after the holidays when all of her HS friends were still home. I think that first years are required to be on campus, but after that many students spend the term off-campus.
My D got a grant her sophomore year to do an internship in another part of the US, as did several of her friends. Williams has lots of grants available, and it doesn’t seem too competitive to get the smaller ones. There are classes that involve travel (which is covered by your financial aid, AFAIK). Since my D was studying abroad for the spring semester, she didn’t have to do Winter Study her junior year. Now that she’s a senior, she can’t wait to have the extra time on campus.
Based on what you’ve posted, I do think Williams could be an excellent fit for your D. Best of luck.
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Thank you for taking the time to reply, gotham_mom. Williams will definitely stay on our list!
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Ugh, not so sure about recommending Brandeis at the moment.
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I wanted to circle back to say that I just printed section C of the CDS for most of the top schools on our list and Williams College is the only school that lists the school name in the header on every page of their CDS.
Bonus points for Williams.
Please PM me if you want more Williams specific info. S24 is very happy, working hard but happy
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Thank you, I appreciate that!
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