Funky schools with academic rigor

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Drexell?

I'm sorry to hear that abut Drexell - it was a possibility for DC, but "funky" is not a good fit.

[Anonymous]

I went to Wesleyan and I think it would be a good fit. One thing he might like was that it was a shortish bus ride to both NY and Boston.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Drexell?

I'm sorry to hear that abut Drexell - it was a possibility for DC, but "funky" is not a good fit.

Earlier in the thread someone else said that Drexel is not funky, and I agree.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hampshire is part of a 5 college community. Free buses among the schools. Lots going on. University of Massachusetts brings in lots of art/music/dance of high quality. Lots to do. Northampton near Smith is fun. The area is now crowded small town. Not exactly rural. But, no, not a city either. Temple university in Philadelphia is very lively, with all sorts of opportunities, interesting student blend and good profs. However, it's not as hard to get into as the SLACs mentioned above, and doesn't get the nod of status so many seek. They do have some funky urban vibe and study abroad programs, and they've moved their stellar art program down to the main campus.

Hampshire is a good call. When I was at Smith in the 1980s, Hampshire was the place with the crunchiest kids. Northampton these days is pretty funky, too, as PP says.

Temple is another good idea, probably "funkier" than the Drexel suggestion above. Although thinking about Temple, I think more "urban gritty" than "funky" or even "crunchy."

NP here. How is the surrounding area around Temple these days? I was on my uni's fencing team and we would compete at Temple each year. The campus itself was nice but outside of that it looked like a war zone. This was back in the dark ages (late 80s), so I would hope that it's improved.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hampshire is part of a 5 college community. Free buses among the schools. Lots going on. University of Massachusetts brings in lots of art/music/dance of high quality. Lots to do. Northampton near Smith is fun. The area is now crowded small town. Not exactly rural. But, no, not a city either. Temple university in Philadelphia is very lively, with all sorts of opportunities, interesting student blend and good profs. However, it's not as hard to get into as the SLACs mentioned above, and doesn't get the nod of status so many seek. They do have some funky urban vibe and study abroad programs, and they've moved their stellar art program down to the main campus.

Hampshire is a good call. When I was at Smith in the 1980s, Hampshire was the place with the crunchiest kids. Northampton these days is pretty funky, too, as PP says.

Temple is another good idea, probably "funkier" than the Drexel suggestion above. Although thinking about Temple, I think more "urban gritty" than "funky" or even "crunchy."

NP here. How is the surrounding area around Temple these days? I was on my uni's fencing team and we would compete at Temple each year. The campus itself was nice but outside of that it looked like a war zone. This was back in the dark ages (late 80s), so I would hope that it's improved.

PP here. We were just there for maybe 5 hours a year ago, so my impressions may not be fair/accurate and maybe someone else can fill in. "Gritty" described the neighborhood we saw although I wouldn't say "war zone." We did notice that the dorms were behind barbed-wire fences. Of course, I went to Penn and that wasn't a great neighborhood in the 1980s, and while it's better now, crime in Philadelphia seemed to travel easily from neighborhood to neighborhood so it's not like you could say that any college in the city is a safe haven. I love Philly, I do, but you have to acknowledge these things. Re academics, we know a few kids at Temple (they seem to like kids from MoCo high schools and offer some of them generous merit aid) and their parents say they have been impressed by the quality of the teaching, the small classes, and even the nurturing that goes on in Temple's Honors program.

[Anonymous]

VCU. The Fan in Richmond is astoundingly artsy/hippy-dippy, and VCU has become quite impressive. You can be as anonymous or funky or artsy or nerdy as you want and you will have some kin there. Ten years ago I ignored it (and smirked); now it's more like a public NYU in Richmond.

[Anonymous]

Wesleyan in ct

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haverford, Reed, Sarah Lawrence, Oberlin, Swarthmore, Claremont Colleges, Weslelyan.

OP again, and thanks everyone. This is pretty close to the list DC has come up with. He doesn't want anything preppy (maybe haverford?) or with rigid core requirements (Chicago, Columbia -- think free spirit.)

Then brown

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hampshire is part of a 5 college community. Free buses among the schools. Lots going on. University of Massachusetts brings in lots of art/music/dance of high quality. Lots to do. Northampton near Smith is fun. The area is now crowded small town. Not exactly rural. But, no, not a city either. Temple university in Philadelphia is very lively, with all sorts of opportunities, interesting student blend and good profs. However, it's not as hard to get into as the SLACs mentioned above, and doesn't get the nod of status so many seek. They do have some funky urban vibe and study abroad programs, and they've moved their stellar art program down to the main campus.

Hampshire is a good call. When I was at Smith in the 1980s, Hampshire was the place with the crunchiest kids. Northampton these days is pretty funky, too, as PP says.

Temple is another good idea, probably "funkier" than the Drexel suggestion above. Although thinking about Temple, I think more "urban gritty" than "funky" or even "crunchy."

NP here. How is the surrounding area around Temple these days? I was on my uni's fencing team and we would compete at Temple each year. The campus itself was nice but outside of that it looked like a war zone. This was back in the dark ages (late 80s), so I would hope that it's improved.

I was there this past spring. t's still pretty rough around Temple.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haverford, Reed, Sarah Lawrence, Oberlin, Swarthmore, Claremont Colleges, Weslelyan.

OP again, and thanks everyone. This is pretty close to the list DC has come up with. He doesn't want anything preppy (maybe haverford?) or with rigid core requirements (Chicago, Columbia -- think free spirit.)

Then brown

Brown may have gotten rid of core requirements and allows pass/fail (or maybe just auditing?) but the kids are generally very wealthy and, I'm looking for a word that comes close to "preppy" but isn't "preppy" - maybe clean cut, with clean cut hipsters at the extreme (if it's OK to say "hipster" any more, but it's descriptive and you know what I mean). Many of them intern in Providence investment banks. Which is fine, but not very funky.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Surprised nobody has mentioned St Johns College. Not crunchy exactly (in fact, has a contingent of paleo conservatives) but definitely alternative. And incredibly intellectual.

I second the St. John's recommendation. Has campuses in Annapolis and Santa Fe, and you can "study abroad" at the other campus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Haverford, Reed, Sarah Lawrence, Oberlin, Swarthmore, Claremont Colleges, Weslelyan.

OP again, and thanks everyone. This is pretty close to the list DC has come up with. He doesn't want anything preppy (maybe haverford?) or with rigid core requirements (Chicago, Columbia -- think free spirit.)

Then brown

Brown may have gotten rid of core requirements and allows pass/fail (or maybe just auditing?) but the kids are generally very wealthy and, I'm looking for a word that comes close to "preppy" but isn't "preppy" - maybe clean cut, with clean cut hipsters at the extreme (if it's OK to say "hipster" any more, but it's descriptive and you know what I mean). Many of them intern in Providence investment banks. Which is fine, but not very funky.

Agree -- lots of wealthy kids from NYC and LA. Overall vibe is preppy with a strong boho preppy/hipster contingent, but you'll also see kids wearing madras shorts -- perhaps ironically, but there nonetheless. My kids, a recent grad and current student at another Ivy, say "oh, yeah, Brown -- the hippest school in the Ivy League . . . like being the dunker on a midget basketball team."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Surprised nobody has mentioned St Johns College. Not crunchy exactly (in fact, has a contingent of paleo conservatives) but definitely alternative. And incredibly intellectual.

I second the St. John's recommendation. Has campuses in Annapolis and Santa Fe, and you can "study abroad" at the other campus.

Yes. And Reed. Then a chasm before anywhere else (based on OP's DC's criteria).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Surprised nobody has mentioned St Johns College. Not crunchy exactly (in fact, has a contingent of paleo conservatives) but definitely alternative. And incredibly intellectual.

I second the St. John's recommendation. Has campuses in Annapolis and Santa Fe, and you can "study abroad" at the other campus.

Yes. And Reed. Then a chasm before anywhere else (based on OP's DC's criteria).

Yeah -- I asked my SIL, who went to Oberlin (if you watch "Girls", basically, she's Marnie), and she immediately said Reed. We grew up in California, and the smart, quirky (sometimes self-consciously so) kids from our high schools went to Reed.

[Anonymous]

Brown!!