Should my daughter submit SAT score to test optional SLAC

Applying to College
81

Update and request for advice! Our daughter narrowed her choices for visits down to Macalester, Carleton, Middlebury, and Colby. We were able to get to full day admitted students visits at Macalester and Colby, but only half day visits at Carleton and Middlebury.

After these visits, she is now deciding between Carleton and Colby. She is really surprised how much she loved these schools! And now she is feeling rather tortured trying to pick one.

The Carleton students she met were smart, funny, energetic, kind, nerdy in the best way, but she met fewer than ten. The half day consisted of an info session/discussion run by Carls and a tour.

Colby pulled out all the stops for their full day program. It is clear that they are really pouring money into campus improvements (new residences, new science buildings) as well as resources for students (applied sciences, career services, AI initiative). Also, the global entry program (in Salamanca, Spain) that she thought was a negative is now her favorite thing about Colby—the panel of past GES students was great and reminded her of the Carleton students she met (smart, quick-witted, really well-spoken).

What’s making this difficult for her is that she feels like she’s not able to compare apples to apples. She wasn’t able to sit in on a Carleton class, she wasn’t able to meet many Carleton students other than those who worked in admissions, there wasn’t time during the half day visit for a career services panel or academic fair or club expo, etc.

And her hesitation about Colby is because of the “vibe” of the general student body? She’s not really outdoorsy (but she’s open to trying?) or athletic. And she was kind of overwhelmed by how prep school-y the kids were— even among the admitted students so many seemed to already know each other.

If anyone has insights into either Carleton or Colby, we would really appreciate hearing from you!

82

It sure seems Colby has risk, based on what you described. Does the trimester vs. semester matter to her?

This is why I recommend going on normal days and stopping kids on campus or chatting them up in the dining hall. The programs they run are fine too but polished - but talking to normal kids on the quad, etc. gets you a more true sense.

If Colby seems too prep school and too outdoorsy for her - I don’t know - it’s like - she loves the aesthetics and you’re trying to justify it as a choice - but in what you’re writing, it’s not the right choice.

Whether Mac is - I don’t know but it honestly doesn’t sound like Colby is….that you’re trying to place a square peg in a round hole because the facilities/offerings wow’d her.

That’s what I’m inferring from what you wrote, anyway.

Good luck.

83

It sounds to me like Carleton might be a better fit. The vibe at Colby is really aggressively outdoorsy – I don’t mean that to sound negative at all, but if that’s not her thing, then she might have a slightly harder time finding her people, especially with the global entry program delaying her settling in socially at Colby. I also think that of the four schools that made the short list, Colby is is most similar (socially) to Middlebury, so if Middlebury rubbed her the wrong way, that might be something to think about.

At Carleton, I think that when she gets past the admissions staff, she’ll still find “funny, energetic, kind, and nerdy.” That’s Carleton’s whole vibe. The people I know who have gone there fit that description and are very happy with their experience. And my guess is that Carleton and Colby would would have somewhat similar classroom experiences: dedicated faculty, smart students, energetic discussions. She can go on Carleton’s website to look at clubs, and even contact some officers of clubs she’s interested in – that’s how she might get around not having gone to a club expo. And she can look at course offerings in departments of interest, too.

She has fantastic choices here. The only thing that gave me pause about Colby is your statement that outdoorsy and preppy aren’t really her thing.

9 Likes
84

Thank you for that insight. Yes, she thought the campus was pretty but she thought carleton’s campus was just as pretty. I think it’s not so much the aesthetics of Colby’s campus that wowed her, but just how much the school is investing in resources for the students (including facilities but also various programs/opportunities). She just wants to know if Carleton also does the same?

She was able to speak to a few students who don’t work admissions at both schools— the Carleton students she ran into at a coffee shop in town and they were just so enthusiastic and excited for her and they were knitting (something she likes to do too)!

And the Colby students she spoke with happened to be students of color and they acknowledged that there was a strong divide along prep school/wealth lines, but that they still liked being at Colby and found friends through affinity groups.

2 Likes
85

Thank you yes she thought middlebury and Colby were somewhat similar socially, but when she visited middlebury, she met quite a few students (not admissions staff) who were pretty down on the school. Ultimately, she felt these were kids who hadn’t done enough research and ended up at middlebury expecting it to be something it’s not. But I think their negative energy did influence her.

2 Likes
86

I don’t know your ethnicity or socioeconomic status but you just said Carleton, again.

I can’t speak for investment in the school but you’ve twice now said Carleton.

Think of it as preppy rich kids vs the nice Midwest.

At Carleton, per CDS, 55% of last years freshman got need aid averaging $66k in grants.

Colby doesn’t have a CDS but some high end schools like Colgate are sub 33%. My guess is Colby is like that but you can ask the school for a specific number. AI says 44% but you can ask. Maine, in general, is ritzier than MN.

Good luck

87

No. Maine is a heavily rural, poor state with a few pockets of affluent, often second or third home-owning residents.

I agree with most of your comments about Carleton, but your understanding of Colby is quite out of date. There are maybe three, possibly four zipcodes in the ENTIRE state of Maine that could be described as “ritzy”.

6 Likes
88

We have two Carleton alumni on our team who graduated in the past few years (and one who graduated a few decades ago) and they all fit this vibe, for sure. All speak glowingly of their time there.

2 Likes
89

Maine is ritzy from a tourist POV. The prep school kids have money - go skiing etc. sugarloaf is an hr or so from Colby. The coastal towns etc.

That’s what I meant by ritzy. More ways to spend money there and significant amounts.

I wasn’t referencing the populace.

90

Don’t know if this moves the needle or not, but Colby’s Colonial Revival aesthetic was designed to look older than it really is. It was all built post-WWII when their original downtown campus became landlocked earlier in the 20th century:
Old Colby College, (downtown) prior to 1950 - Maine Memory Network

Most of its NESCAC competitors have far quirkier campuses.

91

It’s not helpful to guess. Even though Colby doesn’t file a CDS, they must participate in IPEDS.

The IPEDS data aren’t as refined, but for Colby 2024-25, 44% of all undergrad students received aid, section 1, Part B, row 1 at link below. That 44% matches AI which is likely pulling IPEDS…one can always ask AI their source for whatever it tells you. Colby doesn’t give merit aid*, so about 56% of students don’t qualify for need based aid (although if a full pay student takes out the federal student loan, they would be in the 44% receiving aid number.)

*Colby does give $2500 NMF scholarships to qualifying students who also have financial need, but that aid gets buried in the need based aid section.

4 Likes
92

Thank you for the data! When I mentioned the prep school issue, it’s somewhat about wealth but mostly about the tight social circles that these kids already seem to have from the get go. It feels intimidating for a kid from a large urban public high school in Texas. And I would guess that the wealth might become an issue in that it reinforces the social circle— the activities/trips these kids can participate in. Our daughter says she still thinks she can find people to befriend at Colby but she does recognize that Carleton may have more of her people. But does it offer similar institutional opportunities? Sorry for the repetitive post. She’s researching on her own. Was just hoping to hear someone’s personal experience. Thank you so much!

1 Like
93

Thank you so much— this is reassuring!

94

The small town that Colby is in is unlikely to be anything ritzy. It is a significant contrast to Colby, being lower middle income with little ethnic diversity.

https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/watervillecitymaine/PST045224

2 Likes
95

Thank you, yes she’s looking through the Carleton website again to get more info!

1 Like
96

If your interest is the resources of the schools and how they spend their money, you can look up their endowments and capital plans.

Both Colby and Carleton have about $1.2 B dollar endowments, which is over $500K per student (that number is important because there are very few schools with that level of per student support).

In terms of what they do with the money, you mention that Colby is building a new science center and dorms. Carleton just completed a new housing complex, Lilac Hill; students are living there this year for the first time. They also renovated some space and have a brand new health and wellness center. Carleton’s Anderson Science Center was built in 2019.

Carleton’s new capital plan is for improved rec and gym space. You can read about that here.

Colby’s capital projects are as you describe. You can read more about them here.

The top LACs have the money to support their students. It’s a shame you couldn’t stay for the whole Carleton admitted students day, because she could have sat in on a class, gone to the academic fair, club fair, etc. If your daughter has specific interests that she wants to pursue, she can ask to get connected to students at both of the schools who can tell her how easy it is to get support for those interests, whether they are in clubs or funding for summer opportunities.

She can’t go wrong! If you have Carleton specific questions, feel free to PM me!

4 Likes
97

One more thing to keep in mind, which might not matter at all, but might.

I have one kid at a NESCAC on a semester schedule and one at Carleton. Both fly back and forth to school. The NESCAC kid needed flights for fall break, Thanksgiving break and winter break. The Carleton student didn’t have a break until they came home at Thanksgiving and didn’t return until after New Years. Those flights add up. For some it’s a rounding error, but for others it’s a significant outlay of cash.

4 Likes
98

This is super helpful! Thank you! Also just saw the NYT article about Carleton’s renovated cookie house!

2 Likes
99

Dacie Moses is a special place!

100

Yes! We were just talking about this with our daughter! It seems like it would actually be easier to travel from Carleton than from Colby, the Twin Cities being 45 minutes away with direct flights as opposed to needing to travel to Boston for direct flights.

3 Likes