<p>It is very difficult to answer the question of what the workload is like. Oberlin students have to work hard, no doubt about it. The more important question probably is how hard is Oberlin compared to other similar colleges and other college you are thinking of attending. That is just about impossible to answer. Some schools have a reputation for being amazing grinds, such as Swarthmore and Reed. Very few people have the experience of attending enough schools that they can make a valid comparison across colleges.</p>