Would you kindly rate or comment about the rigor, extent of workload, and level of “stress culture” at each of these LACs? Thank you!
For a rigorous (but not necessarily up-to-date) answer, you might want to look for a couple of NSSE assessment reports for these schools (if they are available) or peers. Just to see what they looked at, if nothing else.
Here’s some old reporting on Kalamazoo:
https://cache.kzoo.edu/bitstream/handle/10920/26491/NSSE%202002%20Mean%20and%20Frequency%20Reports.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y
Page 5 (“time usage”) indicates about how many hours per week students spent preparing for class and on other activities.
That was many years ago. Then or now, the numbers will vary by course, by major, by student, and by the week of the calendar. I’d expect most of these schools to keep most students rather busy with classes, “homework”, and co-curricular activities. I mean, there’s not much point paying the prices they charge if you’re not going to put in the effort.
I’m a Knox grad, and I somewhat touched on this question in this thread: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/knox-college/2130411-rd-2019.html
You might also reach out to @Theoden whose son is a current Knox student.
Mostly, the schools you’ve listed will offer rigorous academics, yet the stress issue should be not super intense. I’ve heard (I could be wrong, though) that Guilford is a bit too hippie-dippy and that its academics could be more challenging. But I’m sure that for the dedicated student, rigor can still be found there. Again, I could be wrong, so it would be nice for a Guilford student or parent to correct me.
My son is a Freshman at Knox.
Rigor: 3.5/5
Workload: 4/5
Stress Culture: 3/5
My son doesn’t think his Freshman level courses are hard in terms of understanding the material, but the workload is rather heavy for him. He spends a lot of time doing homework, papers and projects. On the other hand, the culture is not pressure-cooker. The course he complained about the the most, in terms of the workload (lots of writing assignments, a final paper AND 3 projects, 2 of which were very hands-on), was a course he really enjoyed and where his professor approached him about considering an internship abroad this summer. He also thinks the grading is rather fair.
That says alot the personal and experiential nature of the education he’s getting and some of the rewards of putting your nose to the grindstone.
My daughter is graduating from Beloit in 4 months ? but started at Illinois Wesleyan. Please pm with any questions. I can’t address this now but will return later. Also know several that have been to Knox or currently at.
OK, dog had to go walk ? and I needed some ice cream ?.
A good friend’s son is at Knox for premed and just told me. “Very tough. Definitely a challenge”. But absolutely loves the school.
We saw Knox with our daughter 4 years ago. She met with 2 professors at every LAC she visited. We got the sense they actually care about their students . Everyone was very warm. We loved the laid back feel. Very “chill” as the kids say. Sort of funky and artsy and that was key for her. We actually left with tears down our faces finally finding the perfect place for her after seeing just about every LAC from Chicago to the east coast ?.
She seemed very happy. Once we got in the car, we where ecstatic! She got in the car and told us she doesn’t think it’s a good fit for her… We were actually stunned.
Being local to Chicago I have only heard great experiences from Knox… A true diamond in the rough.
Beloit… She was a junior transfer. They gave her the academic merit Presidential scholarship of around $30,000.
She wished she went to Beloit all 4 years. The campus is very nicely laid out. She is a cultural anthropology students which her previous college didn’t have. She told me when comparing the 2 schools(to Illinois Wesleyan) that at Beloit, the students and the Professors seemed to be more intellectually curious. That at Beloit the students took classes that challenged them, not for an easy A. Most of her classes are heavy discussion based and that they go deeper in meaning and understanding. The professors care. They have set up my daughter with opportunities to speak at other colleges /conferences. She applied for a grant to go to Indonesia for research and it was totally paid for. She just had to write up a proposal. When she presented her research. Her advisors, certain professors and students came out just to listen to her. When she had a art show with pictures from South East Asia that she sold cheap… Students, professors etc came out in droves on a Wednesday…
The school is nicely diverse. You don’t have to look for it like at some schools. All the kids we have met have been very nice and mature. The culture is to study. Yes, they have parties etc but they take their academics seriously. They study on the weekend’s. But also have fun.
Again PM me if you want more. Beloit is the perfect place for her. I won’t even go into the vegetarian food co-op she has dinner at with 25 others on campus or where she goes kayaking to do her homework, in it… Lol ?.
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