Middlebury, Conn College, Colby

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Surprised nobody has mentioned over-enrollment problems at Conn College and, especially, Middlebury.

Conn College is trying to house kids in New London and I think foregoing the requirement that seniors live on campus. Conn College, until very recently, would guarantee a single to kids after freshmen year. I doubt they do any longer…

Middlebury has several years in a row of over-enrollment. They are actually paying kids outright now to take a semester off (in real cash, not a merit aid discount or anything.) It is blaming this fiasco on COVID uncertainties. This blame game might (or might not) be justified for a single year. But when you are talking 3 years in a row, it is nothing but gross incompetence and/or intentional disdain for the quality of the student experience. (70%+ of the class was just admitted ED; they don’t have the “yield miscalculation” excuse to fall back on.)

No idea about Colby on this matter; it might have issues too of which I am unaware.

Yes, this is super strange.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UVA placing better than Midd? Laughable. You are probably from below the Mason-Dixon Line and clearly are out of your league. Let the big boys do the talking. You probably make under 300k.

Are you talking about Middlebury? The Vermont school with fewer than 5% Black students? The one for wealthy white kids in a state that is comprised of more than 92% white folks? Going to school there is not the way to get a stellar education. Insulated, yes.

So much anger.

92% sounds pretty exact. But it’s wrong.

64% of domestic students at Midd are white… https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?q=Middlebury&s=all&id=230959#enrolmt

Colby is 62% (though with fewer internationals), and Conn College is 73% white domestic (with the fewest internationals of the three schools).

The state of Vermont's demographics = 92% white. The percentage of Black students at Middlebury is less than 5%.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UVA placing better than Midd? Laughable. You are probably from below the Mason-Dixon Line and clearly are out of your league. Let the big boys do the talking. You probably make under 300k.

Are you talking about Middlebury? The Vermont school with fewer than 5% Black students? The one for wealthy white kids in a state that is comprised of more than 92% white folks? Going to school there is not the way to get a stellar education. Insulated, yes.

So much anger.

92% sounds pretty exact. But it’s wrong.

64% of domestic students at Midd are white… https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?q=Middlebury&s=all&id=230959#enrolmt

Colby is 62% (though with fewer internationals), and Conn College is 73% white domestic (with the fewest internationals of the three schools).

The state of Vermont's demographics = 92% white. The percentage of Black students at Middlebury is less than 5%.

Not sure the point you are even trying to make, but 6% of domestic students at Midd are black; it is not “less than 5%.”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both Middlebury and Colby are amazing and incredibly hard to get into. So many folks here know nothing about LACs. Colby is actually harder to get into than Middlebury. My DS found them to be too remote, but thought they were great schools.

Appreciate your honesty, but you lost credibility by claiming that "Colby is actually harder to get into than Middlebury".

Colby College plays games regarding admissions. I suspect that one who has offers from both schools would select Middlebury.

Ignorance is bliss -- the numbers don't lie:
https://www.prwadmissions.com/blog/colby-admits-most-diverse-and-academically-talented-class-of-2027-with-6-acceptance-rate
https://www.middlebury.edu/announcements/announcements/2023/06/middlebury-college-will-continue-test-optional-policy-admissions

6% admit rate at Colby vs 11% at Middlebury. So much for your credibility. Pro tip... look at the data before calling folks out.

Colby and Middlebury do not have supplemental essays. Colby has no application fee vs Middlebury's $65 fee. Both are playing games with ED1, ED2 and no essays.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UVA placing better than Midd? Laughable. You are probably from below the Mason-Dixon Line and clearly are out of your league. Let the big boys do the talking. You probably make under 300k.

Are you talking about Middlebury? The Vermont school with fewer than 5% Black students? The one for wealthy white kids in a state that is comprised of more than 92% white folks? Going to school there is not the way to get a stellar education. Insulated, yes.

So much anger.

92% sounds pretty exact. But it’s wrong.

64% of domestic students at Midd are white… https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/?q=Middlebury&s=all&id=230959#enrolmt

Colby is 62% (though with fewer internationals), and Conn College is 73% white domestic (with the fewest internationals of the three schools).

The state of Vermont's demographics = 92% white. The percentage of Black students at Middlebury is less than 5%.

Not sure the point you are even trying to make, but 6% of domestic students at Midd are black; it is not “less than 5%.”

The point is that posters like this one ("UVA placing better than Midd? Laughable. You are probably from below the Mason-Dixon Line and clearly are out of your league. Let the big boys do the talking. You probably make under 300k") mock southern schools and refer to the Mason-Dixon line when schools like Middlebury have very few Black students and are not very diverse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In what world in Middlebury a lower-tier NESCAC?

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Id put Middlebury somewhere between Wake Forest and Boston College. Definitely better than Fordham!

Midd is so far above both Wake and BC, it's laughable.

Midd and Colby are both above Wake and BC, nowadays.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Surprised nobody has mentioned over-enrollment problems at Conn College and, especially, Middlebury.

Conn College is trying to house kids in New London and I think foregoing the requirement that seniors live on campus. Conn College, until very recently, would guarantee a single to kids after freshmen year. I doubt they do any longer…

Middlebury has several years in a row of over-enrollment. They are actually paying kids outright now to take a semester off (in real cash, not a merit aid discount or anything.) It is blaming this fiasco on COVID uncertainties. This blame game might (or might not) be justified for a single year. But when you are talking 3 years in a row, it is nothing but gross incompetence and/or intentional disdain for the quality of the student experience. (70%+ of the class was just admitted ED; they don’t have the “yield miscalculation” excuse to fall back on.)

No idea about Colby on this matter; it might have issues too of which I am unaware.

Yes, this is super strange.

I know many colleges have over- enrollment issues. Middlebury and Colby reduced number of freshman year 2023 fall. Hopefully that’ll relieve some of their dorm issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Speaking only to Colby….It’s a great school with a close, successful and supportive alumni base. Waterville in accelerating in the right direction, interestingly garnered by Colby’s development of the Lockwood Hotel (interestingly, Colby developed a nice hotel in Waterville with an outstanding restaurant because they thought it would enhance the interest in their school if there were solid accommodations…
and they were absolutely correct).

Campus is a B, Waterville is a B+ and rising, college community is a solid A.

+1
I actually found Colby campus really beautiful. (Campus, not Waterville) Much better than Bates and Bowdoin near it.
Athletic facility is a state of art. And they are opening a new awesome performing art center this fall. It’s breathtaking.

[Anonymous]

“Midd and Colby are both above Wake and BC, nowadays.“

How many professors would prefer to work at Colby over Wake & BC? I’m guessing very few.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“Midd and Colby are both above Wake and BC, nowadays.“

How many professors would prefer to work at Colby over Wake & BC? I’m guessing very few.

A lot of professors, actually. The draw to SLACs is very real. It’s a qualitatively different experience, preferred by many. If it’s not for you, it’s not for you, and that’s cool. But these kind of blanket statements are…odd.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both Middlebury and Colby are amazing and incredibly hard to get into. So many folks here know nothing about LACs. Colby is actually harder to get into than Middlebury. My DS found them to be too remote, but thought they were great schools.

Appreciate your honesty, but you lost credibility by claiming that "Colby is actually harder to get into than Middlebury".

Colby College plays games regarding admissions. I suspect that one who has offers from both schools would select Middlebury.

Ignorance is bliss -- the numbers don't lie:
https://www.prwadmissions.com/blog/colby-admits-most-diverse-and-academically-talented-class-of-2027-with-6-acceptance-rate
https://www.middlebury.edu/announcements/announcements/2023/06/middlebury-college-will-continue-test-optional-policy-admissions

6% admit rate at Colby vs 11% at Middlebury. So much for your credibility. Pro tip... look at the data before calling folks out.

Colby and Middlebury do not have supplemental essays. Colby has no application fee vs Middlebury's $65 fee. Both are playing games with ED1, ED2 and no essays.

This. The Colby boosters here are hilarious. It's competitive to get into, yes. But to think that in any way shape or form it is as competitive as Middlebury is laughable. They have no fee and the application and is a breeze. My kid threw an app in at Colby at the last minute because, why not? There's just not a comparison. Colby is lovely, but it's not Midd. And I have no relation to either, my kid is going to Georgetown.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Waste of money IMO. Would much rather send my kid to UMD to major in CS/Engineering or do pre-med or finance/accounting than for some liberal arts degree from a no-name LAC. Middlebury doesn't even place that well into finance -- UVA would be much better.

Agreed

+1

These are schools that should be avoided unless you're a 1%er.

Idiot. Colby has committed that nobody leave with student loans.

Does this mean that you can't leave until you have paid back everything ?

It means no middle class and barely UMC students. Full ride on grants or parents cut a check kids are the only ones welcome. At least that's how I read it. I'd love to see how they can make that promise and then take a kid whose EFC is more than their parents can afford without loans

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“Midd and Colby are both above Wake and BC, nowadays.“

How many professors would prefer to work at Colby over Wake & BC? I’m guessing very few.

A lot of professors, actually. The draw to SLACs is very real. It’s a qualitatively different experience, preferred by many. If it’s not for you, it’s not for you, and that’s cool. But these kind of blanket statements are…odd.

I went to a SLAC that would probably slot in between the two and we had no problem getting great professors. Being allowed to teach and having reasonable class sizes without the pressure to publish or perish is a draw especially for fields where you don't need a lab staffed by post docs.

[Anonymous]

I thought that generally it was the supplemental essay that separated the more selective colleges from the less selective. How does Middlebury review applications with just GPA and test optional? (DD is interested in applying)