Growing up, I heard a little of UVA but it was only because of sports. No one, I mean no one at all, would have thought to apply there. It’s all relative. Tell your DD to not worry about this. My son is going to a school that no one around here will know, expect those in a very specific field. It’s a very tiny school that’s not around here.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Name thr college or this is meaningless.

I’m trying to stay anonymous. It’s one of Colby, Bates, Bowdoin.

They’re small schools. I had never heard of them either until I became friends with someone who went to one of the three. It’s not like going to Penn State.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would you care about what some dumb MAGA rube in the south thinks OP? Every year, southern states rank in the bottom tier for education.

Such a beautiful illustration of the DCUM mentality.

NP. It's true. Southerners are poor and uneducated on average. They also score poorly on standardized tests and are more obese than their northern counterparts. Facts don't care about your feelings.

Anonymous wrote:Why would you care about what some dumb MAGA rube in the south thinks OP? Every year, southern states rank in the bottom tier for education.

Such a beautiful illustration of the DCUM mentality.

Anonymous wrote:Outside of academia and those of us who have actively researched small schools, very few of us know the strong liberal arts colleges from other regions. I run into people all the time who have never heard of the schools my family attended (Denison/Kenyon) and I thought University of Richmond was a commuter school when I moved to Virginia!

The average American knows colleges in his/her region and through sports. Very few can tell you the locations of Grinnell, Harvey Mudd, Pomona, Carleton, Davidson, Haverford, Middlebury, etc. It’s not a litmus test for wealth or education—it’s a lack of exposure.

+1, few students have heard of or know where Williams is. That is just how LACs work.

Outside of academia and those of us who have actively researched small schools, very few of us know the strong liberal arts colleges from other regions. I run into people all the time who have never heard of the schools my family attended (Denison/Kenyon) and I thought University of Richmond was a commuter school when I moved to Virginia!

The average American knows colleges in his/her region and through sports. Very few can tell you the locations of Grinnell, Harvey Mudd, Pomona, Carleton, Davidson, Haverford, Middlebury, etc. It’s not a litmus test for wealth or education—it’s a lack of exposure.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Name thr college or this is meaningless.

I’m trying to stay anonymous. It’s one of Colby, Bates, Bowdoin.

If you live in Georgia or Florida or Alabama I can see a big public school not knowing about it. “It’s small, it’s really great, students are all happy and Maine is beautiful “

I went to a college that a lot of people outside this board haven’t heard of. There’s a big world of things out there and those of us who might be “in the know” about certain colleges are likely ignorant about a lot of other things that aren’t part of our immediate lives/social circles. Your kid could end up working with people or marrying someone who comes from a completely different range of experiences. Now’s a good time for her to start becoming aware of that.

I've heard of all of these schools, but I grew up in the NYC metro area and now live in the DC metro area. The college-bound populations in these areas don't all fit in, or aren't guaranteed space in the state flagships, and there's enough money to go around to apply to a whole variety of colleges. In my day there was no perceived need to avoid SLACs, so people went looking for them. We also look all over the country, so we know most decent schools.

If you're really in the south outside of places like the Research Triangle, most people will be thinking of sending their kids to U of State, so I'm not surprised they haven't heard of it.

It will be a good chance for her to learn to play the long game.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Name thr college or this is meaningless.

I’m trying to stay anonymous. It’s one of Colby, Bates, Bowdoin.

Well, that's ridiculous then. They are the ones with the problem. Say the name and smile. They say, "Oh, I've never heard of it." You say, "Well, now you have." You can add, "Bless your heart!" if you want.

Or "Yes, it's very exclusive; I'm not surprised you haven't heard of it."

I grew up near Ithaca, but most don’t go to top schools so didn’t know a ton. Now live elsewhere and know more. However, I really learned a ton more of the smaller schools when my first when through tit. I recall a mom telling me her daughter was going to Bowdoin and I was very happy for them. A year later I realized what a great school it was and recall thinking that I hope I had an appropriate reaction. I had heard of the other two. There’s a ton of schools out there!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Name thr college or this is meaningless.

I’m trying to stay anonymous. It’s one of Colby, Bates, Bowdoin.

These are all great schools!! Good for your DD for figuring out what she wants and making it happen, even though it’s not the the typical path.

Part of growing up is realizing that we don’t need to convince anyone else that the choices we make are right for us. It’s 100% ok if other people don’t agree with or understand. Live and let live.

I’d encourage her to relax and tell people where the school is located if they ask. And then add a sentence about it. Maybe something like, “Oh, it’s in Maine. I’m really excited to explore a different part of the country!” Or “It’s in Maine and just felt like the perfect fit when I visited!”

Be positive but don’t over/explain. And congratulations to her!

I'm in my 60s. I still read about colleges I haven't heard of. Most people are too busy leading their lives to know about hundreds of colleges.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Listen OP for high school I went to one of the top boarding schools in the country. Everyone on this board would recognize it. My friends and their families in my midwestern hometown all were shocked because I was such a nice girl and good student. In their limited world, the only boarding schools they had heard of were reform schools for delinquent kids.

Exeter?

Or Andover. Or St. Paul.