Spike Searches for the Perfect College Fit

College 3 by 5: Three Things About Five Colleges

Small Colleges for Creative Writers

by Emily Standish

Students who love to write can thrive on college campuses that feature small classes, close relationships with professors who are also published authors, and deep involvement with campus literary publications. Here are five colleges that are known for their ability to engage and develop student writers. Some colleges offer a Bachelor of Arts in English with a Creative Writing emphasis, others offer a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing.

Kenyon College, Gambier, OH, www.kenyon.edu
• The Kenyon Review, quarterly literary magazine is one of the most respected publications of its kind, featuring the best new poetry, essays, and short stories of emerging writers. Students may work as associates that organize literary events, interview writers, and assess manuscripts.
• The Kenyon-Exeter Program takes students to the University of Exeter, England, for a semester  to study the literature and culture of England, supplemented by tours to Stratford and London.
• By the numbers: 33% Admit Rate; Mid Range ACT Scores 28-32

Lewis and Clark College, Portland, OR, www.lclark.edu/
• Poet William Stafford spent most of his teaching career at Lewis & Clark, which has one of the oldest creative writing programs among colleges in the west. Six literary publications plus a journal that publishes original student plays are produced on campus.
• Faculty-Student Collaborative Research Grants sponsored by the Dean’s office enable students to work with professors in a variety of literary endeavors.
• By the numbers: 66% Admit Rate; Mid-Range ACT Scores 27-30

Sarah Lawrence College, Bronxville, NY, http://www.slc.edu
• Regardless of a student’s major, and even though students take only three classes per semester, intense “writing across the curriculum” continues for the first three years.
• Writing majors benefit from the campus proximity to New York City for internships in which students can use their writing training in schools, publishing houses, small presses, journal productions, magazines, and nonprofit arts agencies.
• By the numbers: 61% admit rate; Standardized test scores not accepted for admission

Sewanee: University of the South, Sewanee, TN, www.sewanee.edu
• Located on 13,000 forested acres on a hilltop, this liberal arts college with Episcopal foundations produces the oldest literary quarterly in the US, The Sewanee Review, and hosts the Sewanee Writers’ Conference each summer.
• Any student, regardless of his/her major, can earn the Certificate in Creative Writing noted on their transcript by completing three seminars in creative writing, and a capstone project.
• By the numbers: 61% Admit Rate; Mid-Range ACT Scores: 26-30

Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, PA, www.susqu.edu
• The Department of English and Creative Writing supports seven student literary publications, some of which are produced by The Writers’ Institute that brings authors and literary events to campus.
• The new minor in Publishing and Editing is one of the only of its kind in the US. The Forum for Undergraduate Student Editors (FUSE) was founded by the Writers’ Institute as a network for student editors and writers and their faculty advisers working on college literary magazines.
• By the numbers: 73% Admit Rate; Mid-Range ACT Scores: 23-28

Other small colleges with big writing programs include Agnes Scott College (GA), College of Wooster (OH), Denison University (OH), Goucher College (MD), Hollins College (VA), Marist College (NY), Mills College (CA), University of Redlands (CA), Roger Williams University (RI), Ursinus College (PA), and Wheaton College (MA)

Sources: Fiske Guide, The College Finder (Antonoff), Creative Colleges (Loveland) and college websites.

College 3 by 5:

Three Things About Five Liberal Arts Colleges with Music Conservatories
by Emily Standish

There are many ways for student musicians to continue their music study in college without following a strict path toward becoming a professional musician.  Liberal arts colleges with adjacent music conservatories – preparatory programs for professional musicians – offer the best of both worlds. Students may take music and voice lessons with professors or upper level students and the campus is infused with musical performances by students and guest artists. Here are five colleges, each with a world-class music conservatory accessible to students across all disciplines.

Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, PA   http://www.gettysburg.edu/

·         Steeped in history in a world-famous town; most popular programs are English, History, Psychology, Business, and Political Science, BAs in Music, Music Education, and Performance

·         Undergraduate music degrees offered in Composition, Jazz Studies, Music, Music Performance, Music Education, Sound Recording Technology, Theory, and combined music & academic majors

·         By the numbers:  40% admit rate; Mid-range SAT scores: CR and M 610-690, apply by 2/1

Ithaca College, Ithaca, NY   http://www.ithaca.edu/

·         Mid-size college of 6,000 students, with  strong programs in music, physical therapy, communications, science; cross-registration at Cornell University and Wells College

·         Ithaca’s Park School of Communication offers an internship-based semester in Los Angeles to juniors and senior  communications majors to intern in film-related industries

·         By the numbers: 68% admit rate; Mid-range SAT scores: CR 520-620, M520-630; apply by 2/1

Lawrence University, Appleton, WI  http://www.lawrence.edu/

·         1500 students on a picturesque campus overlooking the Fox River, strong programs in Business,  Econ, Psych, Politics, Biology;

·         Cooperative degree programs include a 3-2 Engineering program (with Columbia, RPI, and Wash U in St. Louis), Forestry and Environmental Studies (with Duke University),  Occupational Therapy (with Wash U in St. Louis), and a five-year double degree in liberal arts and music.

·         By the numbers:  53% admit rate; Mid-range SAT scores: CR 600-710, M580-690; Avg GPA 3.66

Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH   http://www.oberlin.edu

·         A liberal, politically active and socially conscious campus of 2900 students, 600 of whom are Conservatory students who live and learn alongside students in the College of Arts & Sciences

·         Oberlin’s housing options include the large student-run Co-op housing and dining system offers students the chance to share in meal preparation and running of the nine co-op households

·         By the numbers: 31% admit rate; Mid-range SAT scores: CR 650-740, M 630-710; Avg. GPA 3.6

Shenandoah University, Winchester, VA

·         Shenandoah’s Women In Mathematical Studies Institute is a program that encourages and supports undergraduate women through mentoring and scholarships

·         Degree programs within the Conservatory include Composition, Church Music, Musical Theatre Accompaniment, Music Therapy, Jazz Studies, Music Recording Technology…..and twelve more

·         By the numbers:  77% admit rate; Mid-range SAT scores: CR and M 440-560, Avg. GPA 3.4

Want a big university with a big music presence? Try U of O, University of Michigan, Tulane University (LA), University of the Pacific (CA), Indiana University, University of North Texas,  and University of Idaho.

Sources: CollegeData.com, Fiske Guide, The College Finder (Antonoff), college websites.

The Human Isolation Disease is Spreading

by Haley Boston, student blogger, Northwestern University Class of 2016

Picture this: a computer grades a commentary about the severe lack of personal connection in the novel One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Ironic, isn’t it?  

I have read countless articles detailing the new generation’s lack of “human connection” due to a plethora of advances in social technologies. Some of my friends are better acquainted through Twitter than face-to-face; in fact, they shy away from physical confrontation, worried that their real appearances won’t amount to their online, text-edited personalities. The popular means of communication these days give us the illusion of complete connection when we are really more isolated. Isn’t the new editing software, as detailed in this New York Times article, another step in that direction? Parents reprimand their teens for texting during family dinners. We are scolded for using Facebook while writing an essay. We spend hours discussing literature in an English class, yet our teachers run our carefully constructed essays through a machine that spits out this amount of A’s, and that amount of B’s? 

Teachers are human. Even when they grade papers, they have biases. Person A always writes coherent sentences, speaks up in class, and reads the text, so Person A must have delivered a wonderful college-level essay. There is also the comparative bias, when two students write essays on the same topic and Student A’s essay was relatively more concise than Student B’s. True, these are issues that a machine-editor could avoid. However, it seems as if eliminating yet another human contact in our young, impressionable lives is not worth the efficiency. A machine cannot read the emotional toll a personal narrative has on the reader. A machine cannot be truly persuaded based on the arguments made in a typical SAT essay. 

As an aspiring writer and recent graduate from Oregon’s most prestigious public high school, I have benefited from the relationships I established with my English teachers. My Junior IB English teacher had a way about grading essays. He’d say that the essay should take him on a journey, that he should be able to follow a seamless path through the essay, and if he hit a tree along the way, it was an automatic C. His description taught me that editing is a process. Every English teacher has a different grading style, and each year I had to adjust my analytical approach to satisfy those styles. This helped me become a better adaptive writer. Imagine that you, a sixth-grader, are taught that “good essays” always have complex sentences, five paragraphs, and are organized by literary technique. You figure this formula out in middle school and it works in high school as well, because your teachers don’t read your essays, they are just tossed into cyberspace to be graded by a data-processing robot. What will you do when you get to college and Professor X wants a seven-paragraph comparison essay organized by idea, not technique? 

I was recently able to identify the extent to which English students are programmed. I tried to do something different with my essays, to add a creative twist at the risk of receiving an 89% on an analytical essay because it was “too complicated.” So I tried again. I was given an 89% on a commentary that was “too simple.” Would I have received a higher grade if a computer edited my essay instead? Would it have recognized that it is sometimes O.K. to split a thesis statement into multiple sentences? 

From what I have witnessed these past few years, most English teachers prepare engaging class discussions with their own thoughts on literature. In a way, I think the analytical essay is meant to demonstrate the worth of the class discussion. It is, in part, a thank-you-nod to the teacher. Robotic editing eliminates the student-teacher relationship. For a student like myself, it would subsequently eliminate motivation (I like to try and impress my teachers). Without motivation, without this ominous “human connection,” where are we now?

Teenagers Abusing Stimulants to Gain an Academic Edge

I belong to several college counseling trade organizations and chat frequently with colleagues from around the world. I often comment that I feel fortunate to be in Portland, Oregon, where the stress level and competitiveness related to college admissions seems to be less intense than on the east coast and in California. Yes, we have amazingly talented and aspirational students in Oregon, but I rarely experience any cut-throat attitudes from my students or find parents placing huge pressure on students regarding prestigious colleges. Most parents and students I work with simply want to find a great college that is an academic, social, emotional, cultural and spiritual match--whether that be a small liberal arts college, a large research university, a highly selective Ivy League school, a college that balances academics and faith, or a performing arts conservatory.

I was quite shaken this morning upon reading a NY Times article about teenagers abusing prescription stimulants in seeking an academic edge. I naively want to think that this doesn't happen here in Portland, but I realize that it does. This raises a moral question for me. Am I inadvertently contributing to pressure that encourages students to choose risky behavior in order to please significant adults or reach an end goal (higher test scores, prestigious college admissions)? I hope not, yet I realize that what I say to students may be heard and interpreted in ways I do not intend. 

My college coaching practice emphasizes lowering the stress of an inherently stressful process. This is achieved through a broad range of tactics, some of which include demystifying the application process, spreading out the tasks over a long period of time, encouraging students to explore their interests and potential careers through job shadows and internships, and increasing writing skills (which helps in college as much as it does for writing college application essays). Still, does that fact that a student's family is investing in college counseling send a message to that student that the outcome is what counts most?

How does a family measure the success of working with a college counselor? Ideally, that success is evident years later after the student has successfully become independent, made life-long friends, graduated from her chosen university, found meaningful work she is equipped to do, and become a person that  parents admire for her values and actions. I hope that success is not being measured by the number of high profile colleges the student was admitted to, and I sincerely hope that students don't resort to drugs to "help" them along the way.

The Positive Dynamic Between Independent College Counselors and School Counselors

When I talk to independent college counselors around the country, sometimes I hear stories of tension between them and high school counselors. This doesn't make sense to me, and I feel fortunate that I have not experienced that in Portland, Oregon. It seems logical that high school counselors would welcome independent college counselors as collaborators. Teachers don't resent tutors who help children excel in their classes. The football coach wouldn't resent it if his quarterback worked with a trainer. The music department actually expects students to take private music lessons. Our public school counselors are amazingly talented and dedicated people, who happen to have a taxing caseload of students. When a parent hires an independent college counselor it is simply because they choose to have someone with more time be focused on their child. School counselors and independent college counselors who work together on behalf of the student form a dynamic duo.

College 3 by 5: Nursing Programs

By Emily Standish

If your son or daughter is thinking about a nursing career, s/he has probably heard about the wide variety of paths to becoming a Registered Nurse. There is a two-year path available at Oregon community colleges and four-year programs that lead to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. The BSN is a widely accepted standard for nurses and offers great flexibility for employment and advancement in the field of nursing. Some colleges and universities require two years of undergraduate education and then students apply into the nursing program for their last two years of college, earning the BSN in four years. Some colleges and universities offer direct admission into the nursing program so that incoming freshmen begin the path to the Bachelor of Science in Nursing right away and also complete the degree in four years, ready to take licensing exams. Here are five colleges that admit freshmen directly into their nursing schools.

Azuza Pacific University, Azuza, CA http://www.apu.edu 

• APU”s School of Nursing offers an Honors Program
• Nursing training utilizes a Christian worldview to integrate values, beliefs, and ethics in patient care
• International exchanges allow nursing students to participate in international health care settings via short-term missions or a semester abroad 

Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH http://fpb.case.edu/ 

• Students at all levels can participate in research projects with nursing faculty
• Nursing school students participate in a partnership with the World Health Organization by completing courses of study or clinical and service learning projects abroad
• Case Western Reserve's location at University Circle comprises four medical centers for nursing training as well as home to the Cleveland Orchestra, Botanical Gardens, and the Cleveland Art Museum

Carroll College, Helena, MT http://www.carroll.edu

• The Holistic Health Lab and Learning Center teaches holistic healing modalities for self-care and wellness
• Clinical training begins with 200-level courses in Helena's hospitals, public health, assisted living, long-term care, psychiatric and school settings
• Army ROTC Nursing Scholarships are available and cover 100% of tuition and fees

Dominican University of California, San Rafael, CA http://www.dominican.edu 

• Nursing students will complete 1200 hours of clinical training in the Bay Area in four years
• All nursing students benefit from training in clinical decision-making in the Nursing Simulation Lab with computerized manequins
• Nursing students also participate in Dominican's vibrant and diverse student body of 2,300 students (one-third of which study health professions) and Division II sports

Xavier University, Cincinnati, OH http://www.xavier.edu 

• The Hispanic Focus is an elective course of study within the four-year nursing program intended to promote understanding of and nursing practice within the Hispanic community
• The Clinical Nurse Leader Honors program enables participants to complete a Master of Science in Nursing in one additional year and one additional practicum experience
• The nursing program provides mentoring for all students from within Xavier University's alumni

There are hundreds of direct-admit nursing programs in the United States listed on the website of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing website athttp://www.aacn.nche.edu. Direct-admit nursing programs in the Pacific Northwest include George Fox University, Gonzaga University, Linfield College, University of Portland, Seattle University, Seattle Pacific University, and University of Seattle. Be sure to check each college's admission requirements, since admission standards usually include a high school transcript showing successful completion of higher-level science and math courses.