April 2005

New in April

April was Maryland month as we visited twelve private colleges around the state, and strayed a bit into Pennsylvania to visit Gettysburg College. Gettysburg is surrounded by history and students are drawn to the Civil War Studies Program as well as other rich history programs, computer science, business management, and many other liberal arts offerings. They offer a "Backpack to Briefcase" program to prepare students for the real world. Gettysburg offers a semester in New York City and over 50 percent of their students study abroad.

Our first stop in Maryland was Annapolis where we spent the day at St. John's College (next picture below) and enjoyed a dinner with some of the outstanding faculty and students. Probably one of the most unique programs in the country, all of the students take the same courses which are seminars and tutorials and are strictly discussion-based with no written tests or papers. All students and faculty read the same books in the required courses of science, foreign language, mathematics, literature, music and history. Students can also study at their other campus in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This small, highly selective college competes successfully with the nearby US Naval Academy in croquet!

The Chesapeake Bay offers a rich environment for students studying biology, chemistry and marine science and this was evident at Washington College in rural Chestertown, Maryland. Their international studies program includes one of the most extensive lists of international studies options created specifically for their own students available at a college this size.

Goucher College is included in the Colleges that Change Lives and is part of the Baltimore College Town Network that includes Johns Hopkins, Loyola, University of Maryland at College Park and the Maryland Institute College of Art. Students can take courses within the network and shuttles are provided. With topnotch dance studios and high powered science laboratories (pictured below) Goucher students have the opportunity to work closely with faculty as classrooms and faculty offices are always in the same building. Students at the Maryland Institute College of Art have opportunities to display their work in the MICA Museum and study in an excellent Digital Art and Media Program housed in this new building. Their pre-college summer program for high school students is one of the top in the nation.

Another member of the Colleges that Change Lives is McDaniel College where we participated in a theater class and heard about many of their programs including a strong rhetoric and debate curriculum. McDaniel prides itself on the interdisciplinary approach they take to programs including film and business.

Our final visit was to Johns Hopkins University where we had the opportunity to talk with students, faculty and admissions representatives. The advising program for premed students begins freshman year and is one of the best in the nation. Internships and research opportunities are extensive with Washington, DC and a leading medical school nearby. Their strong programs in biomedical engineering, public health and international relations attract students from around the world.

See our April newsletter for more information! For a refresher on our other recent college visits, click on the following links: March, February, January, December, November, October, August/Sept, July, June.