Reed College

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Given the things you like about Reed, you might also want to consider other liberal arts schools that focus on undergraduate education. USNews has such a list, based on reputation (Reed ranks at #16):

1. Carleton
2. Amherst
3. Agnes Scott
3. Bowdoin
3. Davidson
6. Grinnell
6. Swarthmore
8. Bates
9. Colorado College
9. Pomona
11. Macalester
11. Wellesley
13. Bryn Mawr
13. College of Wooster
15. Middlebury
16. Berea
16. Reed
16. Smith
19. Kenyon
19. Spelman

etc. (https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges/undergraduate-teaching)

As a Williams grad, I'm stunned at how low the College is in undergraduate teaching (23rd). Haven't looked at the methodology for the ranking, but I hope Williams is trying to see if they have a real problem which can be addressed.

Real problem ?

Undergrad teaching is probably the best at community colleges and at the least selective schools. Why ? because the students need to be spoon fed since many are not motivated to engage in deep intellectual thought.

For intelligent, motivated students, disruptive, thought-provoking guidance is far more important than having a PhD hand feed material to students.

Good teaching is NOT spoon feeding students. It is engaging them in opportunities for critical thinking and growth.

I agree & I understand. But I suspect that the ratings & rankings are based upon how "nice" profs are & how easy-to-understand a prof makes the material seem to be.

It's based on reputation: "In the spring and summer of 2022, U.S. News & World Report asked top academics to name the schools they believe have faculty with an unusually strong commitment to undergraduate teaching... The lists, organized by U.S. News ranking categories, include the colleges that received the most nominations. They are ranked in descending order based on the number of top-15 nominations they received. Schools had to receive seven or more nominations to be ranked." (https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/undergraduate-teaching-methodology)

[Anonymous]

You might want to consider Franklin & Marshall or William & Mary. The latter has a program for history majors that allow them to study for two years at St. Andrew's in Scotland.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The DD of my close friend goes there. She is transferring to University of Oregon in the fall. Loves Oregon, but Reed is very small and very stressful.

Reed is anything but stressful that’s ridiculous

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Given the things you like about Reed, you might also want to consider other liberal arts schools that focus on undergraduate education. USNews has such a list, based on reputation (Reed ranks at #16):

1. Carleton
2. Amherst
3. Agnes Scott
3. Bowdoin
3. Davidson
6. Grinnell
6. Swarthmore
8. Bates
9. Colorado College
9. Pomona
11. Macalester
11. Wellesley
13. Bryn Mawr
13. College of Wooster
15. Middlebury
16. Berea
16. Reed
16. Smith
19. Kenyon
19. Spelman

etc. (https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges/undergraduate-teaching)

As a Williams grad, I'm stunned at how low the College is in undergraduate teaching (23rd). Haven't looked at the methodology for the ranking, but I hope Williams is trying to see if they have a real problem which can be addressed.

Real problem ?

Undergrad teaching is probably the best at community colleges and at the least selective schools. Why ? because the students need to be spoon fed since many are not motivated to engage in deep intellectual thought.

For intelligent, motivated students, disruptive, thought-provoking guidance is far more important than having a PhD hand feed material to students.

Good teaching is NOT spoon feeding students. It is engaging them in opportunities for critical thinking and growth.

I agree & I understand. But I suspect that the ratings & rankings are based upon how "nice" profs are & how easy-to-understand a prof makes the material seem to be.

It's based on reputation: "In the spring and summer of 2022, U.S. News & World Report asked top academics to name the schools they believe have faculty with an unusually strong commitment to undergraduate teaching... The lists, organized by U.S. News ranking categories, include the colleges that received the most nominations. They are ranked in descending order based on the number of top-15 nominations they received. Schools had to receive seven or more nominations to be ranked." (https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/undergraduate-teaching-methodology)

As we all have read repeatedly over the years, these type of opinion surveys are about as unscientific as a survey can be. Many "top academics" and "top administrators" have admitted to a lack of knowledge about other schools and a willingness to sabotage competitors by responding in a way that ranks peer competitor schools much lower than the surveyed academic believes that those schools should be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OMG I would not describe the actual, real life Reed culture like what you were saying at all. Look at St Johns in Annapolis instead. Reed seriously has always had a lot of unstable kids, with a VERY small Uber left intellectual group that the market the heck out of.

So Reed combines a St. John's-type curriculum with a Hampshire-type student body?

Off topic, but I cannot resist recalling a Hampshire College student's explanation of what qualifies as athletics for most--his words, not mine--Hampshire students as exercise: Taking a hit of LSD while swinging on a swing set.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You might want to consider Franklin & Marshall or William & Mary. The latter has a program for history majors that allow them to study for two years at St. Andrew's in Scotland.

Thank you.

[Anonymous]

Just had a look at William and Mary. This really sounds like a great program, allows you to get the best of both American (liberal arts) and British (subject depth) undergraduate education.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just had a look at William and Mary. This really sounds like a great program, allows you to get the best of both American (liberal arts) and British (subject depth) undergraduate education.

I’m guessing you’re not in the DMV? Most in the area know about William and Mary and its liberal arts strengths, especially in history and government. It’s fantastic in these subjects.

[Anonymous]

Moved here 2 years ago. I was familiar with William and Mary but didn't know about the joint degree with St. Andrew's.

[Anonymous]

DP -- I attended a different Pacific Northwest LAC in the mid-80s and am taking my teen to visit that school, Reed, and some others over spring break. At the time, Reed was considered intellectually rigorous and culturally alternative ... these are our first college visits so I don't know how much of the real culture you can pick up on a tour and admissions info session, but I will be curious to see if those kind of differences stand out across the schools we visit (rather than the personalities of the admission department or the campus architecture).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The DD of my close friend goes there. She is transferring to University of Oregon in the fall. Loves Oregon, but Reed is very small and very stressful.

Reed is anything but stressful that’s ridiculous

You don't know what you're talking about. The students are intense, the required courses are intense, and there's a senior thesis with qualifying exam (unless things have changed). There is no grade inflation, they send very few to medical school because of this.

As it happens, the Reedies I know have security clearances, and zero history of drug use. As with most privates, it is a very wealthy student body, but that is very stealth.

[Anonymous]

I know about 10 Reed graduates. They all come from wealthy families and because of that were able to go into public interest jobs. I would describe all as people who think they are intellectual, but not actually so; smart but not crazy smart. They seem to fit the mold of the typical NW trust fund, liberal/activist, outdoorsy types.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The DD of my close friend goes there. She is transferring to University of Oregon in the fall. Loves Oregon, but Reed is very small and very stressful.

Reed is anything but stressful that’s ridiculous

You don't know what you're talking about. The students are intense, the required courses are intense, and there's a senior thesis with qualifying exam (unless things have changed). There is no grade inflation, they send very few to medical school because of this.

As it happens, the Reedies I know have security clearances, and zero history of drug use. As with most privates, it is a very wealthy student body, but that is very stealth.

Reedie here. I was talking to a professor and member of the National Academy of Sciences who went to Reed (as did his wife who is a very successful physician at a research hospital). They sent all three of their kids to Reed. But when his oldest was applying to colleges, he was concerned about the stress culture at Reed and whether it would be good for his son. This is a guy who lives one of the most stressful, busy lives I can imagine and who has worked in all kinds of intense cutthroat environments. Thought it was interesting.

I personally found Reed to be quite stressful, but other stages of my career have been as well.

[Anonymous]

DS attends for English and has found it exhilirating! Very demanding academics and for his comparative literature major he’s learning across disciplines. The junior qualifying exam forces you to take courses beyond a few cult profs in order to pass, which adds to academic diversity and ability to navigate difficult ideas you may not necessarily agree with. 100% would recommend

[Anonymous]

Reed is a pressure bomb- not for lightweights.