Anonymous
07/12/2023 11:52
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Look at Oberlin, Vassar, Skidmore. Minimal requirements at each.
Not Oberlin. Their requirements are in line with DC’s at a VA State college, except Oberlin does not have a foreign language requirement.
It's still pretty open, two courses across the divisions, 3 cultural diversity classes, a couple quantitative classes. I think double counting also exists to some extent, so my DD never really had to go out of her way for any requirement.
Anonymous
07/12/2023 08:21
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone.
It still means she gets a degree with a concentration, correct? I am a biy worried of her employability.
Look at Vassar. DC just graduated from Vassar. Your DD should visit, based on what you describe!
Open curriculum: The only "general" requirements are (1) a quantitative course, (2) a first-year writing seminar and (3) language proficiency (which many students can test out of). The quantiative course does not necessarily mean math; it can apply to other courses like certain social sciences, for instance. The writing seminars are extremely wide-ranging. After those three highly flexible requirements, the student has wide choices.
https://offices.vassar.edu/educational-assessment/learning-goals-vassar-degree/
https://www.vassar.edu/admission/explore/academics/
When you say "a degree with a concentration" are you asking if there are majors? Absolutely. And in her major program your DD will have plenty of requirements so it's not as if students are taking whatever, willy-nilly. But it seemed to us (and DC agrees) that it's pretty common for students there have majors and also earn minors (called correlates). DC graduated with a major and two minors and knew several students who, for example, had a science major and an arts minor etc. Think, biochemistry major with a music composition minor, for instance. The open curriculum and lack general college requirements mean students have more flexibility to do minors across different disciplines.
East Coast. Very LGBTQ+ friendly. A lot of student organizations and plenty to do on campus at weekends etc. Not much off-campus life, as the part of the city near campus is quiet with just a handful of restauarants right by Vassar, but there are all the usual movie theaters, malls, etc. and the great historic stuff all over the Hudson Valley.
Also, if this matters to you, nearly 100 percent of students live on campus--there is just not really rental property anywhere near campus plus the lovely campus has sufficient housing. The big benefit is that there is none of the stressful business of having to fight to get a place to live off-campus after freshman or sophomore year like at some huge universities. Really reduced DC's stress, compared to DC's friends at some universities who were booking the next school year's apartments in October of their freshman year and so on. And Vassar housing includes various configurations of townhouses and houses, not just large dorms.
Post if you have any questions, OP, and we'll try to help if your DC is interested.
We are visiting Boston colleges this summer. We will find a way to swing by Vassar. It looks like it checks a lotmof her boxes. Thank you for the thoughtful answer.
Dd loves writing and theater but is looking for a way to indulge her passions and still have a plan B, so is thinking an open curriculum might be the answer. She goes to a smallish school. I wonder how she would fare at a larger college. She is also good at math and I haven’t given up hoping that she will embrace that other side of her.
DP. Yes, Vassar is gorgeous and flexible curriculum. Very strong theatre, performing arts with excellent alum network.
Anonymous
07/12/2023 08:19
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Bennington
St. Johns New Mexico
St. John’s is the opposite of open curriculum, lol. You have no elective and no ability to specialize/ choose a major.
I think you're think of St John's in MD
Anonymous
07/12/2023 08:18
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:She should definitely look at Wesleyan.
Agreed. Wes would be a great fit. Stronger theatre department than Brown. More course offerings in that area. +open curriculm!
Also, U Rochester and Smith.
Anonymous
07/11/2023 07:22
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone.
It still means she gets a degree with a concentration, correct? I am a biy worried of her employability.
Open curriculum allows a student to focus more on a concentration with less distribution requirements. This is why people at brown are so happy.
That’s actually the opposite of the reason Brown does it. It’s so students can explore and the perfect brown student is a polymath who has widely varying interests. They tout how no one is in a class they don’t want to be in.
I imagine it’s the same reason other schools do it, but I only have experience with Brown.
Op here. I definitely think of dd as a polymath. How to demonstrate her varying interests beyond just good grades???
My kid is a polymath. I think it showed in his application with the varied classes and clubs. He also mentioned it in his essay. He was also looking for open curriculum schools. He'll be attending Grinnell. The good thing about Grinnell and possibly other open curriculum colleges is that while the curriculum is open when you get to a certain point they make you start limiting your focus with a focus on getting a job after college. My kid may have run the risk of just taking whatever sounded good that semester without thinking of the end game.
Anonymous
07/11/2023 07:20
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Bennington
St. Johns New Mexico
St. John’s is the opposite of open curriculum, lol. You have no elective and no ability to specialize/ choose a major.
Anonymous
07/11/2023 07:18
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Look at Oberlin, Vassar, Skidmore. Minimal requirements at each.
Not Oberlin. Their requirements are in line with DC’s at a VA State college, except Oberlin does not have a foreign language requirement.
Anonymous
07/11/2023 07:01
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone.
It still means she gets a degree with a concentration, correct? I am a biy worried of her employability.
Open curriculum allows a student to focus more on a concentration with less distribution requirements. This is why people at brown are so happy.
That’s actually the opposite of the reason Brown does it. It’s so students can explore and the perfect brown student is a polymath who has widely varying interests. They tout how no one is in a class they don’t want to be in.
I imagine it’s the same reason other schools do it, but I only have experience with Brown.
Op here. I definitely think of dd as a polymath. How to demonstrate her varying interests beyond just good grades???
Anonymous
07/11/2023 06:54
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone.
It still means she gets a degree with a concentration, correct? I am a biy worried of her employability.
Look at Vassar. DC just graduated from Vassar. Your DD should visit, based on what you describe!
Open curriculum: The only "general" requirements are (1) a quantitative course, (2) a first-year writing seminar and (3) language proficiency (which many students can test out of). The quantiative course does not necessarily mean math; it can apply to other courses like certain social sciences, for instance. The writing seminars are extremely wide-ranging. After those three highly flexible requirements, the student has wide choices.
https://offices.vassar.edu/educational-assessment/learning-goals-vassar-degree/
https://www.vassar.edu/admission/explore/academics/
When you say "a degree with a concentration" are you asking if there are majors? Absolutely. And in her major program your DD will have plenty of requirements so it's not as if students are taking whatever, willy-nilly. But it seemed to us (and DC agrees) that it's pretty common for students there have majors and also earn minors (called correlates). DC graduated with a major and two minors and knew several students who, for example, had a science major and an arts minor etc. Think, biochemistry major with a music composition minor, for instance. The open curriculum and lack general college requirements mean students have more flexibility to do minors across different disciplines.
East Coast. Very LGBTQ+ friendly. A lot of student organizations and plenty to do on campus at weekends etc. Not much off-campus life, as the part of the city near campus is quiet with just a handful of restauarants right by Vassar, but there are all the usual movie theaters, malls, etc. and the great historic stuff all over the Hudson Valley.
Also, if this matters to you, nearly 100 percent of students live on campus--there is just not really rental property anywhere near campus plus the lovely campus has sufficient housing. The big benefit is that there is none of the stressful business of having to fight to get a place to live off-campus after freshman or sophomore year like at some huge universities. Really reduced DC's stress, compared to DC's friends at some universities who were booking the next school year's apartments in October of their freshman year and so on. And Vassar housing includes various configurations of townhouses and houses, not just large dorms.
Post if you have any questions, OP, and we'll try to help if your DC is interested.
We are visiting Boston colleges this summer. We will find a way to swing by Vassar. It looks like it checks a lotmof her boxes. Thank you for the thoughtful answer.
Dd loves writing and theater but is looking for a way to indulge her passions and still have a plan B, so is thinking an open curriculum might be the answer. She goes to a smallish school. I wonder how she would fare at a larger college. She is also good at math and I haven’t given up hoping that she will embrace that other side of her.
Anonymous
07/10/2023 22:32
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Wesleyan. My lgbtq, open-curriculum seeking kid is interested in it and Brown.
Anonymous
07/10/2023 20:48
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone.
It still means she gets a degree with a concentration, correct? I am a biy worried of her employability.
Look at Vassar. DC just graduated from Vassar. Your DD should visit, based on what you describe!
Open curriculum: The only "general" requirements are (1) a quantitative course, (2) a first-year writing seminar and (3) language proficiency (which many students can test out of). The quantiative course does not necessarily mean math; it can apply to other courses like certain social sciences, for instance. The writing seminars are extremely wide-ranging. After those three highly flexible requirements, the student has wide choices.
https://offices.vassar.edu/educational-assessment/learning-goals-vassar-degree/
https://www.vassar.edu/admission/explore/academics/
When you say "a degree with a concentration" are you asking if there are majors? Absolutely. And in her major program your DD will have plenty of requirements so it's not as if students are taking whatever, willy-nilly. But it seemed to us (and DC agrees) that it's pretty common for students there have majors and also earn minors (called correlates). DC graduated with a major and two minors and knew several students who, for example, had a science major and an arts minor etc. Think, biochemistry major with a music composition minor, for instance. The open curriculum and lack general college requirements mean students have more flexibility to do minors across different disciplines.
East Coast. Very LGBTQ+ friendly. A lot of student organizations and plenty to do on campus at weekends etc. Not much off-campus life, as the part of the city near campus is quiet with just a handful of restauarants right by Vassar, but there are all the usual movie theaters, malls, etc. and the great historic stuff all over the Hudson Valley.
Also, if this matters to you, nearly 100 percent of students live on campus--there is just not really rental property anywhere near campus plus the lovely campus has sufficient housing. The big benefit is that there is none of the stressful business of having to fight to get a place to live off-campus after freshman or sophomore year like at some huge universities. Really reduced DC's stress, compared to DC's friends at some universities who were booking the next school year's apartments in October of their freshman year and so on. And Vassar housing includes various configurations of townhouses and houses, not just large dorms.
Post if you have any questions, OP, and we'll try to help if your DC is interested.
Anonymous
07/10/2023 20:48
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone.
It still means she gets a degree with a concentration, correct? I am a biy worried of her employability.
Open curriculum allows a student to focus more on a concentration with less distribution requirements. This is why people at brown are so happy.
That’s actually the opposite of the reason Brown does it. It’s so students can explore and the perfect brown student is a polymath who has widely varying interests. They tout how no one is in a class they don’t want to be in.
I imagine it’s the same reason other schools do it, but I only have experience with Brown.
Anonymous
07/10/2023 20:43
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Anonymous wrote:She should definitely look at Wesleyan.
Yes, it's often considered along with Brown.
Anonymous
07/10/2023 20:41
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Yes, they have majors. The major departments have curriculum requirements and may even have distribution requirements.Anonymous wrote:Thanks everyone.
It still means she gets a degree with a concentration, correct? I am a biy worried of her employability.
Anonymous
07/10/2023 20:38
Subject: Open curriculum colleges
Smith, Amherst