For a Pre-Health Major. Thank you.
So many! There are plenty of nerds at every top college. Define what you mean better, because the word can be interpreted differently. What are you looking for?
Smart, studious kids that form study groups. Have fun by doing fun things other than sports or sororities (like going to the movies, shopping, playing games). Participate in community services and have shadowing/practicing opportunities.
William & Mary
Budget? Stats? Geographical preferences?
Explicitly nerdy schools (known more for academics than partying, with an added jolt of intellectualism) include–
UChicago
Beloit
Earlham
Vassar (the hipster nerd)
Middlebury
Bryn Mawr (the more “intellectual” LAC – intellectualism)
Wesleyan
Swarthmore
Haverford
Mt. Holyoke
Smith
Reed
Hampshire
The colleges of the Claremont Consortium – Pitzer, Scripps, Pomona, etc
MIT
UPenn and the other Ivies
Barnard
Simmons
Wheaton in Massachusetts
Juniata
Ursinus
St. Olafs
Macalester
Carleton
Grinnell
Mills
St Mary’s of California – Catholic
St. Mary’s of Maryland – public non-religious LAC
St. John’s in Annapolis and Santa Fe
Davidson
Whitman
Caltech
Berkeley
Stanford
Knox
Centre in Kentucky
Hendrix
Rhodes
Bates
Colby
Bowdoin
Bard – intellectual hipsters
New College of Florida
Agnes Scott
Boston College
Tufts
Hamilton
Wells
There are probably more
What is your budget and geographic preference? What you are describing can be found at many schools.
What you describe as a “nerd-ish” college happens at every school. If it’s even moderately selective you’ll have a lot of smart kids that care about grades. EVERY school has study groups, more so for the sciences. When you’re looking into schools, steer clear of schools that win championships or have a majority of the student body involved in greek life.
You should find a pre-health program that fits your needs first (think internship/research opportunities for undergrad? do you want a heavy core curriculum? grad school placement?) After you find that look into thinks like greek life and sports teams.
My daughter describes herself as a nerd. She does not party, studies a lot, volunteers, shadows, enjoys guest speakers, has study groups, attends concerts, works in a lab, does research, hangs out on a Friday night with her friend’s cooking dinner and discussing anthropology, etc.
And… her school won a championship. 
She loves school spirit… it’s not necessary to steer clear.
My school is big on sports and it really dominates the campus sometimes. Everyone is super into it and a majority of students wanna go to games. I don’t know every school, but if you’re not into sports and tailgating this would probably be annoying or isolating. Maybe its different at bigger state schools.
Somebody who is not into sports… should probably attend a school where there are also other things to do.
We need to know this student’s budget.
I think every top liberal arts college will match your criteria; I can vouch for Vassar and Williams, where my husband and I went. Many of my friends and I at Williams were nondrinking, studious nerds who had a great time. There also were plenty of partiers there, so you can find whatever you want, from Trivia Night type events to beer parties.
Since most people probably will name the nation’s most competitive colleges, I will recommend some schools that fit your criteria and are (slightly) easier to get into:
Brandeis, very intellectually oriented, and somewhat known for not being a party school. Certainly good for pre-health. Lots of emphasis on community service.
Bard, very quirky intellectual school known for dinner parties as a venue for socialization.
Oh, and an even easier admit:
Clark University: “Challenge convention, change our world.” Community service is huge, even integrated with course work.
1 Like
University of Rochester.
A little nerdy for sure. Collaborative culture with a focus on academics. Rigorous academics but unpretentious. Seems to be pretty laid-back, with a good balance between serious and slightly goofy. Lots of opportunity for volunteering and encourages undergraduate research opportunities. Good support for pre-health students (there are lots of them) and a notable medical center right next door.
Middlebury, Davidson, Boston College & Bowdoin (included in a lengthy list above) didn’t, and don’t, impress me as nerd schools.
Guess I don’t understand what you are looking for. To me, the opposite of a nerd school is Dartmouth College.
@EllieMom the U of Rochester has always been one of my favorites! It’s really a gem of a school.
WashU might be a potential candidate for your daughter. Lots of research oppostunities and some interesting classes that can fit the bill for doing research. My son is a current freshman taking a class called Phage Bioinformatics and one of the requirements is presenting in a schoolwide undergraduate research symposium and outstanding research has a chance of being published in a peer-reviewed journal. There is also a class that is taught by a WashU med school professor that culminates in a shadowing experience at Barnes-Jewish Hospital (open to sophomores and above).
The city itself isn’t as dangerous as some people think and there is a mix of eclectic entertainment venues and good restaurants.
Add Emory, gives off the same vibes as a place like WUSTL and some of those smaller schools as well, is D-3 and quite quirky for a research university.
As a Sarasota local I second new college. Two of my friends are staying local and will be attending, and they both happen to be the best nerds. They are very fond of the atmosphere of the college.
Pomona College is truly nerdy and has great STEM offerings, tough to get in however esp for women.