Guidance Spring College Tour - Day 4 Overview
This is the final post in a four-part series about Guidance’s annual Spring College Tour. With visits to Sarah Lawrence, Vassar, Bard, Williams, RPI, Union, Skidmore and Colgate in the first three days, there has been a lot to cover!
Day 4: Hamilton College and Syracuse University by Jeffrey Erazo (Scholars ’11, Berkshire School ’15)
Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college located in Clinton, New York. Like many New York schools, Hamilton offers Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) and other Academic Opportunity Programs (AOP), which provide educational opportunity and academic support to students who have strong academic potential, however would be excluded from higher education due to circumstances related to academic and economic difficulty. Once students have been accepted, Hamilton meets 100% of demonstrated need.
Part of Hamilton’s mission is to provide students with an open curriculum, which allows them to pursue their academic interests without having to worry about taking specific classes, but contingent upon a certain Grade Point Average. Students can do research over in the new science building. Hamilton will bring in special speakers such as Condoleezza Rice and Hillary Clinton, to share their experiences and insights with students.
Moving on to the social life at Hamilton, a new student center house was recently built. This student center house is filled with places to buy food, hold events, and more. Every Friday and Saturday, events are held in the student’s center open space, which include raves, open mikes, and comedy shows. Housing options for students range from suites, houses, or doubles. Many dining options are also available and students can come back to the dining hall even after they have left. Hamilton students also enjoy a new black box theater and concert hall.
Syracuse University prides itself in having a lot of school spirit. Former football legend Ernie Davis, along with Otto the Orange, can be seen across campus. Interested students can purchase season tickets to see basketball and football games at the stadium or student campus center. Aside from hosting games in, artists such as Zedd have previously performed for the entire student body in this space. There is always something for students to do on campus.
Syracuse offers many majors for its students to choose from. Unlike many other large universities, Syracuse emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary studies, allowing students to pursue interests outside their majors. Syracuse also has a lot of diversity among its student body.
The final day of the trip included a visit to Cornell University. To see all photos from the tour, visit our Facebook page. Or, if you would like any additional information on SEEDS’ visits, please contact a member of our Guidance team.