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I'm sort of thinking about this school, but I'd like to hear some opinions first. Thanks.

By Collegeapplier (Collegeapplier) on Monday, November 03, 2003 - 03:15 pm: Edit

I know someone that goes! What do you want to know?

By Mimi (Mimi) on Monday, November 03, 2003 - 07:48 pm: Edit

I guess I just wanted to hear some feedback about that college. Like, how the people is there. How clean it is. How the teachers are. The positive and the negative. How much they've learned. What kind of people it would attract. Thanks.

By Mike (Mike) on Tuesday, November 04, 2003 - 10:23 pm: Edit

I was recetly there for a visit. The campus was clean. It is in a 30000 person town and the whole area is clean. Classes were interesting and the students seemed above average in wealth if the quailty of electonics in rooms and upscale cars in the parking lot were any indication. They mentioned there were kids getting financial aide as if that weren't the norm. Admissions seemed less interested in selling the school then others I have visited. Campus is attractive and dorm rooms good sized and plenty of ok food at meals. The folks I roomed with mentioned that the place had lots of legacy kids and the SAT averages were a bit misleading because of that.

I'd rate it in the top two or three I have seen.

By Bbksmom (Bbksmom) on Friday, February 06, 2004 - 04:46 pm: Edit

My daughter goes to Whitman, in fact, she graduates this May. She's had a great experience there. She spent last year abroad in Kyoto, and really enjoyed that experience. One thing she's really appreciated about Whitman is how much support the faculty and staff give the individual students. When she was struggling with organic chemistry not only did the prof give her lots of individual help, but the school also supplied a tutor for her. The campus is beautiful and Walla Walla is a neat little town.

By Alicat (Alicat) on Thursday, March 11, 2004 - 02:48 pm: Edit

I'm a recent Whitman grad. I came across this website searching for some Stanford/Yale grad school comparisons (because my boyfriend, who also went to Whitman, is choosing between every top grad program in neuroscience in the country), and thought I should give a little back to the board.

I loved Whitman. You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who went there that didn't. It's a very small campus - I think it's recently *grown* to 1400 students - and has a strong community atmosphere. People you don't know will smile and say hi when you pass them walking to class. Your professors will have you over for dinner. You'll work your ass off, but play hard when you have some downtime. The campus is beautiful and extrememely well-kept. On sunny days you'll join half the campus on Ankeny Field to play Frisbee or soccer, or read (textbooks, of course) on the edge of Lakum Dukum and gaze at the baby ducks. A stream runs through campus on either side of the lake. Residence halls are nice (some are really nice, others are nothing you'd complain about), and food service is pretty fantastic for a college campus. There is a brand new library, open 24 hours, a brand new Science building, and a brand new student union building. Walla Walla is out in the middle of nowhere, but I really grew to love it. It's a really beautiful place, surrounded by wheatfields and mountains.

The biggest (only?) downside of Whitman is that it's expensive. However, financial aid is good (at least when I went there), so don't rule it out if it sounds too expensive. With the scholarships and grants I received, Whitman ended up being only ~$1000 more per year than one of the large public universities in Washington. How can you say no to that? Yes, there are plenty of "well-off" people that go there, but many are not. Oh, the other big downside to Whitman - lack of diversity. The college has actively been trying to change that, but it's still very much "Whiteman." And the mascot is lame - who ever thought the "fighting missionaries" sounded cool? Although, if the mascot is one of the only things I can find to complain about, I guess that's saying something.

Whitman has consistenly climbed up the US News rankings in recent years, and slowly more and more people are finding out what a fantastic college it is. One of my favorite things about Whitman is that you leave truly feeling like you can do *anything*. If you like friendly people, have a laid-back personality, and are of the "work hard, play hard" mentality, I'd definitely encourage you to visit and apply. Chances are you'd love it.