Most prestigious SLAC in the Midwest?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I spent my first 22 years within a 5 hour drive of Carleton and never heard of it.

Which is not really that surprising since it has more of a national reputation than a local/regional reputation. You would have heard of it if you grew up in this area.

??

[Anonymous]

Thorstein Veblen is a Carlton alum.

[Anonymous]

I'm also an Ivy grad, been all over the US and I've NEVER heard of Carleton ... not that that really means anything. I just wanted to add to the discussion and sniff at other colleges too

[Anonymous]

My daughter was admitted to three of these four excellent schools (Carleton, Oberlin and Kenyon - she looked at Grinnell as well but didn't end up applying). In all honesty, these four schools are much more similar than they are different. I also don't think there's much of a difference among them in terms of prestige. If someone has heard of one of these schools they have probably heard of them all. However, there are a lot of people who haven't heard of any of them. I think that's typical of many SLACs. Michigan puts out more alums in a year than any of these schools will put out in two decades.

Ultimately, my daughter chose to attend Kenyon. She's getting an incredible education and she loves the social scene. She chose Kenyon mainly because it has the strongest English department of any of these four schools. My daughter is also an athlete (volleyball) and the facilities at Kenyon are pretty much unparalleled in Division III. So for my daughter, Kenyon made a ton of sense and she's never regretted her choice. If she had been a STEM major, she might have chosen Carleton. If she had been interested in music or politics, Oberlin could have been her choice. But I really wouldn't worry much about which of these schools is the most prestigious. They are all incredible and the ranking that matters (namely which school is best for YOU) will be personal and subjective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I spent my first 22 years within a 5 hour drive of Carleton and never heard of it.

That speaks a great deal of your SES background and not much to the merits of Carleton. Lots of people in the Midwest can barely identify anything outside of their flagship state school, much less SLACs. I mean, someone asked me why my friend went to University of Chicago instead of University of Illinois. Because isn't UC like a community college?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oberlin? Carleton? Kenyon? Grinnel?

All are great but again, it depends on what your DC is looking for, what would be a good fit. What they [b]all have in common is a hefty price tag. That said, Oberlin is an excellent school with a very political active campus and a progressive history (first school to admit African Americans (1835) , first Coeducational institution (1837), first school with coed dorms (1970)) in addition to being home to one of the best Conservatories in the world.

[Anonymous]

Carleton, and it's not even close.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Carleton, and it's not even close.

It's tied for #5 among LACs, and it's #1 for undergraduate teaching.

[Anonymous]

My very smart nephew was a student-athlete at Carleton. He said NOBODY has a freaking clue what Carleton is, it does not emote any prestige.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Grinnell
Oberlin
Carlton
Kenyon

Fine places, but nobody gives a damn about those colleges. What are the odds you run into an alum? What are the odds that alum will give you a leg up at their company? Very unlikely.

Hillsdale is the most prestigious SLAC in the Midwest and it's not even close. Of course that prestige is largely partisan (conservative/GOP), but it's very real.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My very smart nephew was a student-athlete at Carleton. He said NOBODY has a freaking clue what Carleton is, it does not emote any prestige.

Then you're both morons

[Anonymous]

Glass houses if you don’t think Carleton is less well known than NE SLACs.

[Anonymous]

I have to agree with others. I never heard of Carleton. I know zero about it. Going to two Ivies, and in 30 years working in DC, I've met graduates of the three others. But never Carleton.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have to agree with others. I never heard of Carleton. I know zero about it. Going to two Ivies, and in 30 years working in DC, I've met graduates of the three others. But never Carleton.

Well, you should check it out. It's leagues above the others and very well known in academic and professional school circles. Kids regularly turn down ivies for it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have to agree with others. I never heard of Carleton. I know zero about it. Going to two Ivies, and in 30 years working in DC, I've met graduates of the three others. But never Carleton.

I’m shocked you don’t know about Carleton. It’s a very strong school filled with very high-achieving yet quirky kids. Great education.