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Any Colby folks who can opine on what it's like going to school in the middle of nowhere?

By Bettina (Bettina) on Monday, July 26, 2004 - 02:49 pm: Edit

I don't know, but I have 2 grads visiting this weekend and I'll ask. I know they were happy there (and one was from Calif).

By Bettina (Bettina) on Friday, July 30, 2004 - 08:52 pm: Edit

Our visitors are around 33, they met at Colby and are now married. He is a writer who came from a small public HS school in New Hampshire. The other is now a MD (WashU), who went to a private boarding school in SoCal.

They both speak quite highly of Colby and said they had amazing experiences they would not have had at large U's. She said she picked it because of an 80% admit rate to med schools. She was able to do serious original (bio/med)research with amazing profs/researchers.

He said he edited manuscripts of 2 profs, one is now a pulitzer prize winner. Unheard of opportunity. He also went for the sports, and was on ski team.

They said the campus is beautiful. It is isolated, and the college is the best thing about the town. If you don't have a car it is harder to get out of the immediate area. But they said it is pretty easy to catch rides to Boston. Many kids are from that area, and people often go to visit friends at other colleges. They often went to Boston.

By Bettina (Bettina) on Friday, July 30, 2004 - 11:28 pm: Edit

I have them another day if anyone wants an opinion from Colby grads from the 90's. It is rare for us in CA to meet anyone who went so far.

By Mom101 (Mom101) on Saturday, July 31, 2004 - 12:48 am: Edit

Totally isolated.

By Mikemac (Mikemac) on Sunday, August 01, 2004 - 04:39 pm: Edit

this is one of the reasons why an overnite visit can be such a powerful tool for a prospective student. You can ask dozens of kids your own ages all the questions you want, plus you get to experience first-hand what its like.

IMHO an isolated college like Colby, Middlefield, etc. is something you either love or hate. It will force the school and your classmates to be the center of your life because that's really all there is.

By Travisd (Travisd) on Monday, August 02, 2004 - 11:53 pm: Edit

Actually, Colby is listed in the Princeton Review as an "urban" campus.

By Marite (Marite) on Tuesday, August 03, 2004 - 12:00 am: Edit

Urban? No kidding. My S has spent summers near Colby. It is totally isolated. You need a car to get to Waterville which is a small town.

By Usualsuspect140 (Usualsuspect140) on Tuesday, August 03, 2004 - 04:27 am: Edit

You definitely feel like your in your own world...your entire life revolves around Colby. The campus is definitely not urban, its technically in Waterville but its surrounded by woods, you need drive a couple minutes to really get anywhere. I personally think Colbys great and find theres usually enough going on, but you definitely shouldn't expect much of anything beyond the college (besides the Maine outdoors, which is a huge plus factor in my book. You may not be in a huge city but if your schedules right you can go skiing in the morning and go to class in the afternoon)

By Mini (Mini) on Tuesday, August 03, 2004 - 11:45 am: Edit

There are moose.