Oberlin

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Went to another website & read dozens of student reviews of Oberlin. All of the reviews that I read were made within the past 10 months.

Most common complaints were about on-campus housing, poor quality of food, cliquish social atmosphere, social divide of athletes & non-athletes, and that students from non-high income families felt left out socially.

Positives focused on quality of professors, decent class sizes, acceptance of non-traditional type students, and the beauty of the campus.

Seemed liked a reasonable mix of positives and negatives.

Athlete/non-athlete divides exist at almost every school, but is much more pronounced at smaller schools than at large universities.

Definitely not dismissing those opinions or experiences and things might have changed a bit since last year, my DD is not a picky eater and always found something to eat. There are multiple dining halls and food options on campus, in addition to the co-ops, so there was never an issue with finding a seat or having to wait a really long time (maybe the Rat and Umami a few times, especially in the evening or at lunch rush) but definitely more options than a campus with just one dining hall. The athletes do hang out a lot together but they're not mean or particular clique-y, they just spend a lot of time together at games and tournaments and practice and you can socialize with them if you end up meeting them through classes (a lot of econ, psych, and bio/chem athletes). My DD wasn't an athlete and didn't have a ton of athlete friends, but never felt particularly alienated by their hanging out. I wouldn't say that athletes dominate the social scene or intentionally exclude people. My DD also had a lot of merit and financial aid and while she did meet some kids from CA and NYC and also parts of the Midwest who definitely had a generous allowance, there was a lot to do on campus and she went a few semesters without spending money due to the amount of (free) events on campus that she did with her friends (concerts, craft nights, guest lectures, poetry readings, sports) as well as just planning low-key hangouts to paint and cook and craft at someone's house. The program board also offers events in Cleveland (concerts, musicals, games) that are often no more than $20-25 and so were financially affordable for most students. It's also not an area with a ton to do in town, so there's not a ton of fomo about not being able to go to expensive events or restaurants that other people go to. It definitely helps to have a car or have a friend who has a car and that can open your world up a bit. Other than some of the Winter Term or spring break trips that people took or frequent flights back to NYC by a few, there wasn't a ton to feel fomo about, as a student on more of a budget. Just my two cents!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, I am not trying to start anything, but I wanted to share my experience from Family Weekend this past weekend. I was on campus for three days visiting my DD, who is a first-year, and this was my second time at Oberlin after move-in. What I saw was nothing like what often gets described on this board. My daughter’s entire friend group is made up of very “normal” kids. She is even “talking with” a lacrosse player who seemed exactly like the smart, grounded student-athletes she went to high school with. She and her friends went to the Lacrosse party on Friday night. I also stopped by the infamous Gibson’s Bakery, and while I was there I asked the owner’s wife how relations with the college are. She simply said, “fine, the past is the past.”

I visited two classes with my daughter: Intro to American Politics and Survey of Christian Art. The politics class had 26 students. Maybe one had what some would call an alternative style based on hair or clothing, but otherwise it was a room full of focused, thoughtful college students. The discussion was about election integrity, and the professor went out of his way to present a range of perspectives. The art class was definitely more eclectic, but in the way you would expect from students passionate about the arts.

I am sharing all of this because I had genuinely braced myself for the visit. I thought I might see protests or a campus where everyone was trying to outdo each other in being the most alternative or “weird.” That simply was not the case. I cannot speak to Oberlin of years past, but the Oberlin I experienced this weekend was a place where kind, bright students were the norm, not the exception.

Again, I am not trying to spark a debate, just offering my firsthand experience. But I am curious if the people who post such negative thigns about Oberlin have actually visited or personally experienced the school. I realize this was just my experience, but if you have a student who loves the arts, loves writing, and loves being surrounded by people from all over the country and the world, Oberlin deserves to be on your list.

That was not the owner's wife. The owner, Allyn Gibson, died at age 93 on Feb 12, 2022. His son, David, who confronted the thieves, died at 65 of pancreatic cancer on Nov 17, 2019. Allyn's daughter-in-law now runs the bakery. Due to Oberlin's poor judgment, the school was forced to pay $ 36 million to the Gibsons.

[Anonymous]

OP—thanks for the insight. Though I know rankings don’t matter it’s the only school (that I can think of 30 years later) that has dramtfallen off a cliff had always been on the UsNWR in the higher part of LAC25 and know closer to 50+. Shock to ny 90: perception (same way that Northeastern is competitive)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP—thanks for the insight. Though I know rankings don’t matter it’s the only school (that I can think of 30 years later) that has dramtfallen off a cliff had always been on the UsNWR in the higher part of LAC25 and know closer to 50+. Shock to ny 90: perception (same way that Northeastern is competitive)

What?

[Anonymous]

I wonder about the same thing. Why did Oberlin fall drastically in rankings?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Went to another website & read dozens of student reviews of Oberlin. All of the reviews that I read were made within the past 10 months.

Most common complaints were about on-campus housing, poor quality of food, cliquish social atmosphere, social divide of athletes & non-athletes, and that students from non-high income families felt left out socially.

Positives focused on quality of professors, decent class sizes, acceptance of non-traditional type students, and the beauty of the campus.

Seemed liked a reasonable mix of positives and negatives.

Athlete/non-athlete divides exist at almost every school, but is much more pronounced at smaller schools than at large universities.

The food was the worst we've seen anywhere and the dining hall was alarmingly dirty. Like health code violation level

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP—thanks for the insight. Though I know rankings don’t matter it’s the only school (that I can think of 30 years later) that has dramtfallen off a cliff had always been on the UsNWR in the higher part of LAC25 and know closer to 50+. Shock to ny 90: perception (same way that Northeastern is competitive)

+1

[Anonymous]

I love how every few weeks someone comes here and makes a post about how Oberlin isn’t -really- a bunch of fringe left activists basting in their own juices.

Are you suspicious that houses in your neighborhood that lack “hate has no home here” signs might house hate?

Do you make a mental note of people who say “mailman” instead of “letter carrier” or who say “homeless” instead of “unhoused?”

Do you ask people what their pronouns are or think gender is “assigned“ at birth?

You will find Oberlin is quite normal…

[Anonymous]

To the parents who have described their firsthand experiences, thank you! Oberlin is currently my D26’s first choice, and it’s great to hear positive reviews. We’ve done two tours and I never got the impression that is was super out there or overly liberal while visiting, but I did have concerns based on what I’ve read. I’ll stick to first hand reports vs. the keyboard warriors on here yapping about pronouns. Both times we visited the tour guides were friendly, intelligent and the students we interacted with seems great. For those who are wondering about the drop in rankings, they actually addressed that on one of our visits, it was a result of UNSWR changing their metrics around 2019, and the fact that a big percentage of Oberlin students graduate with music degrees. Before 2019 it was consistently ranked in the 30s. Seems like a fine school with a lot to offer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love how every few weeks someone comes here and makes a post about how Oberlin isn’t -really- a bunch of fringe left activists basting in their own juices.

Are you suspicious that houses in your neighborhood that lack “hate has no home here” signs might house hate?

Do you make a mental note of people who say “mailman” instead of “letter carrier” or who say “homeless” instead of “unhoused?”

Do you ask people what their pronouns are or think gender is “assigned“ at birth?

You will find Oberlin is quite normal…

Oberlin was deemed on of the top five liberal arts schools in the 70’s.

Clearly not the case any longer.

Moreover, it is unthinkable to consider Ohio State being much more competitive than Oberlin.

It is one of the very lowest colleges for social mobility. Perhaps the conservatory plays a part in this. But a stat that is in conflict with the school’s progressive values.

It has not managed its endowment well and has made cuts and will continue to do so.

The handling of the Gibson case was beyond tone deaf. Query whether the administration has changed its mindset.

That said, one can receive a fine education at the school.

The question isn’t as much about politics as whether the school is making the right decisions in the face of a looming demographic cliff that all colleges are facing.

These are realities to consider no matter how normal the student body may be.

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have experience with their new Business program?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love how every few weeks someone comes here and makes a post about how Oberlin isn’t -really- a bunch of fringe left activists basting in their own juices.

Are you suspicious that houses in your neighborhood that lack “hate has no home here” signs might house hate?

Do you make a mental note of people who say “mailman” instead of “letter carrier” or who say “homeless” instead of “unhoused?”

Do you ask people what their pronouns are or think gender is “assigned“ at birth?

You will find Oberlin is quite normal…

Oberlin was deemed on of the top five liberal arts schools in the 70’s.

Clearly not the case any longer.

Moreover, it is unthinkable to consider Ohio State being much more competitive than Oberlin.

It is one of the very lowest colleges for social mobility. Perhaps the conservatory plays a part in this. But a stat that is in conflict with the school’s progressive values.

It has not managed its endowment well and has made cuts and will continue to do so.

The handling of the Gibson case was beyond tone deaf. Query whether the administration has changed its mindset.

That said, one can receive a fine education at the school.

The question isn’t as much about politics as whether the school is making the right decisions in the face of a looming demographic cliff that all colleges are facing.

These are realities to consider no matter how normal the student body may be.

*Yawn* I know very little of Oberlin. I don't even ever think of Oberlin until I'm on this forum and someone mentions it. When are you gonna get over this idiotic one-time problem? Oberlin is not really in demand, because it does not have the endowment returns that you see at schools like Williams, Pomona, or Swarthmore. A significant portion of Oberlin notable alum are in academia or the arts, both of which are experiencing some stagnancy currently. This is not to say you can't leave Oberlin and go on to be an investment banker or leader in AI- that's the purpose of the liberal arts, but it happens to be that the Oberlin community is dedicated to the arts and these days that's a - on your outcomes and your alumni returns.

[Anonymous]

OP - our recent experience visiting aligns with yours. DC did a weekend with a team. We went there mostly thinking we wanted to rule it out, bc it seemed on the surface to be too artsy for our kid who leans a little preppy and plans to go to law school. But DC really connected with this coach, so we went. To our surprise, we both loved the college and town. DC liked Oberlin overall much more than other LAC like Macalester, Vassar and Skidmore, which have expressed interest in him or have offered. DC has stats to get into a more competitive school (1540 SAT, 11 APs, Multivariable calc) but he is genuinely considering the offer to play and study there. He found the math class he sat in on fascinating and rich in discussion and all the kids were thoughtful and fun. The research I did shows that Oberlin places more kids (per capita) into competitive law schools than some of the bigger names in New England and they also produce a ton of Fulbrights. Town had great restaurants and and overall lovely vibe.

I'm not sure Oberlin is the perfect fit for DC - he is also considering not playing his sport and going to a bigger school on the East coast - but if he does wind up there I will not be disappointed, and if you had told me I would write that last statement 3 months ago I would never have believed you. So, it's worth the visit if it's at all on your child's radar.

[Anonymous]

For someone who wants to study business/finance, what would be a better school, Oberlin or Emory? DC visited both and loves both.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You lost me at lacrosse players being smart, grounded people.

maybe on the women’s team?!