“Colleges That Change Lives”

[Anonymous]

There are 45 different schools on the CTCL List --again, CTCL is just a marketing technique...

https://ctcl.org/category/college-profiles/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are 45 different schools on the CTCL List --again, CTCL is just a marketing technique...

https://ctcl.org/category/college-profiles/

So what? Most, if not all, colleges market themselves. My daughter has a box full of cards and letters to prove it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are 45 different schools on the CTCL List --again, CTCL is just a marketing technique...

https://ctcl.org/category/college-profiles/

So what? Most, if not all, colleges market themselves. My daughter has a box full of cards and letters to prove it.

I know. Are we supposed to fall down in shock or something because colleges market themselves?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are 45 different schools on the CTCL List --again, CTCL is just a marketing technique...

https://ctcl.org/category/college-profiles/

So what? Most, if not all, colleges market themselves. My daughter has a box full of cards and letters to prove it.

I know. Are we supposed to fall down in shock or something because colleges market themselves?

I’m glad we can all agree that CTCL is nothing more than a marketing tool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are 45 different schools on the CTCL List --again, CTCL is just a marketing technique...

https://ctcl.org/category/college-profiles/

So what? Most, if not all, colleges market themselves. My daughter has a box full of cards and letters to prove it.

I know. Are we supposed to fall down in shock or something because colleges market themselves?

I’m glad we can all agree that CTCL is nothing more than a marketing tool.

An effective marketing program... matching kids with their best fit college. I agree.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are 45 different schools on the CTCL List --again, CTCL is just a marketing technique...

https://ctcl.org/category/college-profiles/

So what? Most, if not all, colleges market themselves. My daughter has a box full of cards and letters to prove it.

I know. Are we supposed to fall down in shock or something because colleges market themselves?

I’m glad we can all agree that CTCL is nothing more than a marketing tool.

An effective marketing program... matching kids with their best fit college. I agree.

Ok sure because we all know that marketing is about doing what is best for the consumer and not to benefit the business (or in this case the school paying the marketing fee to CTCL).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are 45 different schools on the CTCL List --again, CTCL is just a marketing technique...

https://ctcl.org/category/college-profiles/

So what? Most, if not all, colleges market themselves. My daughter has a box full of cards and letters to prove it.

I know. Are we supposed to fall down in shock or something because colleges market themselves?

I’m glad we can all agree that CTCL is nothing more than a marketing tool.

An effective marketing program... matching kids with their best fit college. I agree.

How on earth can you claim that CTCLdoes that? And yes I've been to the traveling circus several times. CTCL does nothing to match a student to a college. There's a room witnh 40 to 45 tables and counselors sitting here. Nos. 46, 47 and 48 might be even better for your kid. There are over 5,000 institutions of higher learning in the U.S. - these 40/45 aren't special in any demonstrable way.

[Anonymous]

OP, here. Thanks to all who commented. DS is sure he wants to attend a small, alternative college. We figured this list is a good place to start in terms of the types of schools he’s considering.

If I could have said, “only Midwest colleges on the list” or “how about Reed” I would have. He’s completely open to moving anywhere. (He’s the most adventurous one in the family.) He’s also at square one. We thought in addition to researching online as a start, that we’d try to garner some personal experiences here to add to the mix. It was the easiest way to ask a lot of people at once.

His sister goes to a large state school and is very happy. DS has concluded that environment is not right for him. Knowing him, I tend to agree. Small, personal, and even off-beat are the places that excite him. He toured some of the mid-sized schools when we took her and for whatever reason, he’s just into small. To each his own, different drummers and beats and all of that. We are supportive of what each of our kids wants.

I understand what posters are saying about marketing; however, it’s not really important to us. We are just using the list as a jumping off point.

Thanks again to all who’ve contributed thus far.

Cheers,
OP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, here. Thanks to all who commented. DS is sure he wants to attend a small, alternative college. We figured this list is a good place to start in terms of the types of schools he’s considering.

If I could have said, “only Midwest colleges on the list” or “how about Reed” I would have. He’s completely open to moving anywhere. (He’s the most adventurous one in the family.) He’s also at square one. We thought in addition to researching online as a start, that we’d try to garner some personal experiences here to add to the mix. It was the easiest way to ask a lot of people at once.

His sister goes to a large state school and is very happy. DS has concluded that environment is not right for him. Knowing him, I tend to agree. Small, personal, and even off-beat are the places that excite him. He toured some of the mid-sized schools when we took her and for whatever reason, he’s just into small. To each his own, different drummers and beats and all of that. We are supportive of what each of our kids wants.

I understand what posters are saying about marketing; however, it’s not really important to us. We are just using the list as a jumping off point.

Thanks again to all who’ve contributed thus far.

Cheers,
OP

Good luck, OP. This is exactly why the CTCL list can be helpful. There are thousands of colleges in the country and for someone who wants a smaller, alternative school it can be daunting to research them all.

What's his area of interest, broadly? Arty? Interested in science? Sports?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, here. Thanks to all who commented. DS is sure he wants to attend a small, alternative college. We figured this list is a good place to start in terms of the types of schools he’s considering.

Good luck, OP. This is exactly why the CTCL list can be helpful. There are thousands of colleges in the country and for someone who wants a smaller, alternative school it can be daunting to research them all.

What's his area of interest, broadly? Arty? Interested in science? Sports?

He has zero interest in sports. (As a spectator or participant.) He isn’t sure what he wants to do in college—he’s actually both arty and science-y. He’s even found a way to combine them to some degree. Still, he isn’t sure if he wants to focus on any of that. He’s also very good at and enjoys foreign languages. We tease that he’s a true Renaissance kid. This is completely different from his sister, who is laser-focused. She knew exactly what she wanted to study. For her, we were able to research and zero in on schools that have good physics programs and faculty (as well as good football teams).

It’s all a process. Thanks again for the input! It’s much appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, here. Thanks to all who commented. DS is sure he wants to attend a small, alternative college. We figured this list is a good place to start in terms of the types of schools he’s considering.

Good luck, OP. This is exactly why the CTCL list can be helpful. There are thousands of colleges in the country and for someone who wants a smaller, alternative school it can be daunting to research them all.

What's his area of interest, broadly? Arty? Interested in science? Sports?

He has zero interest in sports. (As a spectator or participant.) He isn’t sure what he wants to do in college—he’s actually both arty and science-y. He’s even found a way to combine them to some degree. Still, he isn’t sure if he wants to focus on any of that. He’s also very good at and enjoys foreign languages. We tease that he’s a true Renaissance kid. This is completely different from his sister, who is laser-focused. She knew exactly what she wanted to study. For her, we were able to research and zero in on schools that have good physics programs and faculty (as well as good football teams).

It’s all a process. Thanks again for the input! It’s much appreciated.

You should just have him submit applications to all the CTCL schools in the country and pick the one that gives him the most money. They're all such wonderful schools. Each is very special!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, here. Thanks to all who commented. DS is sure he wants to attend a small, alternative college. We figured this list is a good place to start in terms of the types of schools he’s considering.

Good luck, OP. This is exactly why the CTCL list can be helpful. There are thousands of colleges in the country and for someone who wants a smaller, alternative school it can be daunting to research them all.

What's his area of interest, broadly? Arty? Interested in science? Sports?

He has zero interest in sports. (As a spectator or participant.) He isn’t sure what he wants to do in college—he’s actually both arty and science-y. He’s even found a way to combine them to some degree. Still, he isn’t sure if he wants to focus on any of that. He’s also very good at and enjoys foreign languages. We tease that he’s a true Renaissance kid. This is completely different from his sister, who is laser-focused. She knew exactly what she wanted to study. For her, we were able to research and zero in on schools that have good physics programs and faculty (as well as good football teams).

It’s all a process. Thanks again for the input! It’s much appreciated.

He should consider looking into Kalamazoo College. We visited a lot of the midwestern SLACs and that one struck me as having a lot of "Renaissance kids"- and good supports for STEM and arts. And a large majority of students do at least 1 semester study abroad -- maybe 85%?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, here. Thanks to all who commented. DS is sure he wants to attend a small, alternative college. We figured this list is a good place to start in terms of the types of schools he’s considering.

Good luck, OP. This is exactly why the CTCL list can be helpful. There are thousands of colleges in the country and for someone who wants a smaller, alternative school it can be daunting to research them all.

What's his area of interest, broadly? Arty? Interested in science? Sports?

He has zero interest in sports. (As a spectator or participant.) He isn’t sure what he wants to do in college—he’s actually both arty and science-y. He’s even found a way to combine them to some degree. Still, he isn’t sure if he wants to focus on any of that. He’s also very good at and enjoys foreign languages. We tease that he’s a true Renaissance kid. This is completely different from his sister, who is laser-focused. She knew exactly what she wanted to study. For her, we were able to research and zero in on schools that have good physics programs and faculty (as well as good football teams).

It’s all a process. Thanks again for the input! It’s much appreciated.

He should consider looking into Kalamazoo College. We visited a lot of the midwestern SLACs and that one struck me as having a lot of "Renaissance kids"- and good supports for STEM and arts. And a large majority of students do at least 1 semester study abroad -- maybe 85%?

One reason why so many students at small liberal arts colleges study abroad is because they get stifled in their small school and small town environment and need a break. This isn't unique to CTCL schools -- it happens at smaller schools generally.

[Anonymous]

Looking forward to you not supporting that study abroad proclamation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Looking forward to you not supporting that study abroad proclamation.

Here's one of many links to websites showing that more students study abroad from smaller schools than bigger ones. https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/most-study-abroad

Many small schools go out of their way to tout studying abroad on their websites because they know that applicants worry (with good reason) about the claustrophobia of having to spend four years in a small environment in the middle of nowhere. It's kind of ironic -- I mean, if the education and social experience provided by these schools is so awesome and special, then why do you need to get away? -- but it makes sense.

I studied abroad, btw, and so did all of my kids (all of whom attended top-ranked schools, big and small). I recognize the inherent value of studying abroad, obviously. I'm just saying that the reason why it's more prevalent in smaller schools is obvious.