Oberlin

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:News: Oberlin College #13 Nationally Among Liberal Arts Schools in New College Rankings

https://www.oberlin.edu/news/oberlin-college-13-nationally-among-liberal-arts-schools-new-college-rankings

I am a fan of Oberlin, but can you trust a ranking that puts Hampshire above Williams and Pomona?

(fyi I love Hampshire too, for the right kid)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:News: Oberlin College #13 Nationally Among Liberal Arts Schools in New College Rankings

https://www.oberlin.edu/news/oberlin-college-13-nationally-among-liberal-arts-schools-new-college-rankings

I am a fan of Oberlin, but can you trust a ranking that puts Hampshire above Williams and Pomona?

(fyi I love Hampshire too, for the right kid)

This was published a few months ago and is a very novel take on college rankings. And it’s definitely one that favor Oberlin's strengths— namely that (love it or hate it) their faculty and alums are interesting people doing interesting things. Which may pay less than Wall Street, BTW. Oberlin is know for its McArthur Genius grant winners, so no surprise they did well here.

Now, I happen to love this about Oberlin, because as my kids are becoming independent adults and choosing a path in life, I actively want them to be surrounded by kind, interesting people doing interesting things with some sense of ethics and responsibility towards others. Especially at such a transformational time in their lives. I trust that I raised them with enough common sense to separate the wheat from the chaff. If my goal in life was to raise lobbyists or investment bankers, I would have raised my kids very differently, and would not have sent them to Oberlin. But, I raised a a musician STEM nerd with an interesting new passion for the intersection of anthropology and East Asian religions, so it works.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:News: Oberlin College #13 Nationally Among Liberal Arts Schools in New College Rankings

https://www.oberlin.edu/news/oberlin-college-13-nationally-among-liberal-arts-schools-new-college-rankings

I am a fan of Oberlin, but can you trust a ranking that puts Hampshire above Williams and Pomona?

(fyi I love Hampshire too, for the right kid)

Wesleyan, Vassar, Reed, Cooper Union, Oberlin, Barnard, Bard...

There is certainly a common thread. These are schools that are creativity incubators.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:News: Oberlin College #13 Nationally Among Liberal Arts Schools in New College Rankings

https://www.oberlin.edu/news/oberlin-college-13-nationally-among-liberal-arts-schools-new-college-rankings

I am a fan of Oberlin, but can you trust a ranking that puts Hampshire above Williams and Pomona?

(fyi I love Hampshire too, for the right kid)

Wesleyan, Vassar, Reed, Cooper Union, Oberlin, Barnard, Bard...

There is certainly a common thread. These are schools that are creativity incubators.

OK that's fair enough, and since there are no real standards for rankings any methodology is as good as another... but I would greatly prefer if that angle is part of any headline as many people will not dive into the methodology.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Sorry, this is not a political discussion thread.

Umm, the poster who went off on the supposed lack of political diversity @ LACs injected politics into this thread.

No,. The poster commented on the lack of political diversity and the respondent introduced politics by demanding a defense of Republican political "crimes." The lack of political diversity was never disputed and in fact emphasized by the respondent's utter incapability to stick to the issue, but rather her desire to make political points.

interesting take. read like the poster didn't want to engage in any convo about lack of political diversity unless it applied to lacs, especially perceived liberal ones. that seems like both a narrow and convenient argument, enabling the poster to sidestep any discussion regarding the lack of political diversity in other institutions, which can also have deleterious affects on the body politic.

As the actual author of the posts, let me respond. I think the lack of political diversity amongst both the faculty and student body is a general problem for all academic institutions, but it is particularly a problem at LACs because of their focus on a traditional liberal education emphasizing free inquiry amongst a variety of competing ideas and perspectives. This is obviously less important if you a going to a large university to study STEM. In my view, a lack of diversity will spell the end of LACs, particularly if it is accompanied by an attempt to shout down unpopular views.
As I noted before, I went to a SLAC about 40 years ago. At that time, Oberlin was one of the top 3 LACs in the Midwest. It has been slipping in the ratings since and my impression is that it is due now being viewed on the crazy liberal side of LACs. I have no doubt that actual academics at Oberlin remain first rate. It is likely that my alma mater (Carleton) is just as non-diverse as Oberlin, but its administration at least provides more lip service to valuing diversity of thought. It is my impression that the administration at Oberlin has not been effective in demonstrating a commitment to viewpoint diversity and has at times weighed in on the wrong side.

As a parent of an Oberlin student, I have to say that this post is disconnected from the reality of the school. Its academics are outstanding. It is truly one of the very few colleges that i would characterize as having a serious intellectual environment. On politics, there may be self selection on who applies, but no pressure to conform.

The current president has been there for five years and she, along with a few administrators she hired, has brought impressive leadership and managerial skills. It is now exceedingly well run, including on the financial end, with controls on costs and a billion plus endowment. There may have been an earlier decade or so of ineffective leadership, but those years are gone.

I couldn't be more confident in the quality of my child's education at Oberlin or happier with my child's intellectual, social, and emotional maturation during the three years so far that he has been there.

Different Obie parent and I agree with this. As I’ve seen new parents introducing themselves on the parents board each year, three things stick out. One, so many kids come from the areas of the country with the highest academic attainment: the NY/Boston/Ne corridor, Silicon Valley and the DMV. A surprising number of kids have parents who are professors at other institutions. And, there are so many families that send more than one kid to Oberlin. It is very normal for siblings to be at Oberlin at the same time.

I also agree the new president is going places. I hope Oberlin hangs on to her for several more years. She has a very positive, leading from the front style.

Bolded has always been true. Obie class of ‘87

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:News: Oberlin College #13 Nationally Among Liberal Arts Schools in New College Rankings

https://www.oberlin.edu/news/oberlin-college-13-nationally-among-liberal-arts-schools-new-college-rankings

I am a fan of Oberlin, but can you trust a ranking that puts Hampshire above Williams and Pomona?

(fyi I love Hampshire too, for the right kid)

Give that ranking as much credence as it deserves. First thing I noticed is that Hillary Clinton isn't on the list of Wellesley's "most influential" alumni, but Thomas Edison is on Cooper Union's list, even though he only took one course (chemistry) there.

[Anonymous]

Dumb list. Oh wait, my kid’s school is number one? This is a great list.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Dumb list. Oh wait, my kid’s school is number one? This is a great list.

If you have quirky, bringer creative kids it’s an interesting list. I have one at Oberlin who loves it, and a 2022 grad looking at Oberlin, Vasser, Wesleyan, Bard, and Barnard. If nothing else, it tells me my kid is on the right track, given that we haven’t been able to do visits yet. But, I like it that they thought outside the box on methodology to get at something that’s hard to quantify. Forbes, Niche, USNWR, this list. They all measure something dofferent. You have to look at what they measure and see if it’s valuable to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dumb list. Oh wait, my kid’s school is number one? This is a great list.

If you have quirky, bringer creative kids it’s an interesting list. I have one at Oberlin who loves it, and a 2022 grad looking at Oberlin, Vasser, Wesleyan, Bard, and Barnard. If nothing else, it tells me my kid is on the right track, given that we haven’t been able to do visits yet. But, I like it that they thought outside the box on methodology to get at something that’s hard to quantify. Forbes, Niche, USNWR, this list. They all measure something dofferent. You have to look at what they measure and see if it’s valuable to you.

Nobody disagrees with that. In fact, it's a great objective. But don't you think the headlines can be in line with that goal? Like "top LACs to foster creativity" instead of the misleading one used?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dumb list. Oh wait, my kid’s school is number one? This is a great list.

If you have quirky, bringer creative kids it’s an interesting list. I have one at Oberlin who loves it, and a 2022 grad looking at Oberlin, Vasser, Wesleyan, Bard, and Barnard. If nothing else, it tells me my kid is on the right track, given that we haven’t been able to do visits yet. But, I like it that they thought outside the box on methodology to get at something that’s hard to quantify. Forbes, Niche, USNWR, this list. They all measure something dofferent. You have to look at what they measure and see if it’s valuable to you.

Nobody disagrees with that. In fact, it's a great objective. But don't you think the headlines can be in line with that goal? Like "top LACs to foster creativity" instead of the misleading one used?

It’s titled an “academic influence” rating, and the article sets out in a clear language in a couple of paragraphs what they measured. So ??? They are very up front about what they are measuring. To me it has some value— more so than say the Forbes rankings. But, to people who think of college as an ROI issue, it probably wouldn’t.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Any one with DCs @ Oberlin? Or recent grads? DS has strong ACT score, 3.5 GPA, decent ECs w/some leadership. May not have the stats juice for Kenyon, which he is interested in, but am wondering about Oberlin. DH from Ohio and suggested it. DS is fairly involved in social justice issues yet also has a strong independent streak (though not as in political parties) and wary of one-side POVs. Oberlin considered pretty left and hippy when I was a kid, but am wondering if it may be more so these days.

Read the story about Oberlin and the Gibson bakery and see if that’s the type of institution you want your child educated at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibson%27s_Bakery_v._Oberlin_College

I'm progressive and I find Oberlin's behavior concerning this case disturbing.

Same.

And their treatment of support staff is terrible and contradicts all the social justice vibe they give off.

[Anonymous]

< And their treatment of support staff is terrible and contradicts all the social justice vibe they give off.>

Most colleges do not treat their employees as well as they should…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Dumb list. Oh wait, my kid’s school is number one? This is a great list.

If you have quirky, bringer creative kids it’s an interesting list. I have one at Oberlin who loves it, and a 2022 grad looking at Oberlin, Vasser, Wesleyan, Bard, and Barnard. If nothing else, it tells me my kid is on the right track, given that we haven’t been able to do visits yet. But, I like it that they thought outside the box on methodology to get at something that’s hard to quantify. Forbes, Niche, USNWR, this list. They all measure something dofferent. You have to look at what they measure and see if it’s valuable to you.

Nobody disagrees with that. In fact, it's a great objective. But don't you think the headlines can be in line with that goal? Like "top LACs to foster creativity" instead of the misleading one used?

It’s titled an “academic influence” rating, and the article sets out in a clear language in a couple of paragraphs what they measured. So ??? They are very up front about what they are measuring. To me it has some value— more so than say the Forbes rankings. But, to people who think of college as an ROI issue, it probably wouldn’t.

Do you think "academic influence" equates with the following:

we rank the best colleges and universities based on what we call Concentrated Influence. Concentrated Influence takes the combined influence score of a college or university’s top academic influencers (including faculty and alums) and divides it by the school’s total number of undergraduates.

If you had basic reading comprehension of what you replied to, you'd see I don't have a problem with how they rated it - just that the Oberlin headline is misleading because it could easily be mistaken for reference to USN or some other more prominent ranking. All the headline had to say was "Oberlin ranked #13 in academic influence by 'academicinfluence.com" and there is no problem. It's dishonest IMHO. This is a unique ranking based on a single subjective criteria.

As for the methodology, if you want to choose Oberlin because Sinclair Lewis and Thornton Wilder went there 100 years ago, well that's just fine. It's a great college regardless.

https://academicinfluence.com/people?school=Oberlin%20College

[Anonymous]

You’re upset because a press office did a press release that put Onerlinin the best possible light? That’s their job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You’re upset because a press office did a press release that put Onerlinin the best possible light? That’s their job.

To mislead people? No. Not their job. Headline is misleading, end period.