Less popular Hidden Gems

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wofford College, Franklin & Marshall, Hope College, Calvin University

F&M doesn't seem to fit this list. It's a top 30 LAC.

[Anonymous]

St Olaf for sure and DD toured Westminster College in Salt Lake City. She really liked it a lot and really considered going there. SLC is nice, clean, and safe and the school was lovely. Everyone we met was so nice, they had supportive programs for students in place and it seemed very close knit. Decent merit aid too.

[Anonymous]

I think people are mentioning Alabama because it is attracting top performing students through the Merit Scholar Finalist program, no?...and employers may be attracted to this cohort since they are more likely to be the academically high performers without the UMD entitled-hothoused attitudes since many going to the Alabama Merit programs went full-ride.

[Anonymous]

Rhodes

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Claremont McKenna. Super underrated here, but top notch academics, great quality of life, internships/opportunities abound, alumni network + top outcomes.

Not a hidden gem. It’s a very elite college. You people know nothing!

It is not well-known at all. Even in SoCal, it's not known.

Just stop. It’s ranked 8th in Us News. It’s extremely selective. It’s not “hidden” in any way, shape or form.

Almost no one pays attention to US News for LAC rankings outside of maybe the top 3 or 5 schools. Other schools are heavily regional in reputation. In DC, CMC is NOT known even by the highly educated. Yes it is a hidden gem. Selectivity numbers don't mean much when you only get ~6000 applicants from an international applicant pool of several million a year.

Yes, we are still laughing at you. Even my lowly little Midwest mind knew of the Claremont colleges back in the 1990s and all of them are well known across the land now with CMC being one of the best knows out of the group. It is just tiny.

This is funny.

I’m highly educated and never had heard of CMC until coming to this board.

What this tells me is that while you may be highly educated, your parents and/or grandparents almost most certainly were not. Or if they did have advanced degrees, they attended state schools or private regional schools and earned practical type degrees like accounting or engineering or nursing.

It's not a judgment on you, but not having heard of these schools is not an indicator of education, but rather of social class. And I can also guarantee that your kids will know these schools by the time they apply to colleges.

CMC wasn’t that important until Kravis and Robert’s started heavily philanthropic work. Without them, the school would be a borderline Bucknell.

[Anonymous]

Occidental! It’s super small, but the opportunities really aren’t that different from WASP and it’s in a city, which means more likely to get a job after college.

[Anonymous]

I think the most underrated gem is Kenyon for non-English/Creative Writing. Very strong in the sciences.

[Anonymous]

U Rochester

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think people are mentioning Alabama because it is attracting top performing students through the Merit Scholar Finalist program, no?...and employers may be attracted to this cohort since they are more likely to be the academically high performers without the UMD entitled-hothoused attitudes since many going to the Alabama Merit programs went full-ride.

No true top performer is actually attending Alabama.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Colleges that are under the radar--that is not oversubscribed but somewhat hidden gems.

I'll go--My DC did not apply but I learnt about Carleton in the process--I like so many things about it!

If we discuss in here, it won't be a "hidden" gem any longer would it??

[Anonymous]

St. Olaf is Carleton but better calendar, student life and merit aid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think people are mentioning Alabama because it is attracting top performing students through the Merit Scholar Finalist program, no?...and employers may be attracted to this cohort since they are more likely to be the academically high performers without the UMD entitled-hothoused attitudes since many going to the Alabama Merit programs went full-ride.

No true top performer is actually attending Alabama.

The worst part about Alabama is that it's in Alabama. That's why it has to sweeten the pot for top performers who do not live in Alabama.

[Anonymous]

University of Lynchburg

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:St. Olaf is Carleton but better calendar, student life and merit aid.

Yes!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Occidental! It’s super small, but the opportunities really aren’t that different from WASP and it’s in a city, which means more likely to get a job after college.

This is fake news.