Ursinus

Ursinus is another small school around Philadelphia. When we arrived on campus, I immediately felt like it was a cozy campus--not big at all. It was nice to see that athletes were there for school sports, so I got a better feel of what it'd be like with people around. I also interviewed with one of the counselors--it's an easy way to get to know the school better, and to let the school know what you're interested in. On the tour I didn't take too many pictures; I let my dad have the camera most of the time. The campus was nice, and (for me) it was nice knowing that there were single-sex bathrooms that looked really clean. The dorms looked about the same as Haverford's as far as size and furniture.

Ursinus is a school strong in both the sciences and arts; however, from what I've heard, it has more of a reputation for being artsy. For me, I liked that they had regular chamber group performances in addition to an orchestra.

Ursinus stats:
Location: Collegeville, Pennsylvania
Students: 1,750 (undergrad only)
Acceptance rate: 57%
Setting: Suburban
Cost: $48,310 (ala forbes.com)

a typical classroom

the oldest building at ursinus. it has a huge organ if that's your thing!

the library. it's pretty small but it connected to a network that can get you books if you need. (i'm the one in the skirt :))

the dining hall is currently under construction in order to accomodate more students.

a typical lab room

the kaleidoscope school of music



Bottom line: Ursinus will most likely be a safety school for me. I liked it, but it does seem a bit secluded. I'm sure there's plenty to do, but I'm a city girl.

Haverford

We visited Haverford this past Sunday, and nobody was there. There weren't any people in the admissions office, and there obviously weren't any tours going on. We walked into the building next to admissions, and met a bunch of welcoming students who were greeting international students. We only asked for a map, but one of the students was kind enough to lead us on a mini tour of the school. So friendly! Although the campus didn't wow me, it was fairly nice. And then again, maybe the weather affected my perception--it was pouring cats and dogs, and I didn't have any rain gear except an umbrella that dripped water down my back. (In fact, my mother and I went to the giant King of Prussia Mall's Nordstrom after our visit and bought rain coats. No sales tax on clothes in Pennsylvania!). It's a really small school that's especially strong in the sciences.

Some statistics, if you're interested:
Location: Haverford, Pennsylvania (close to Philly)
Students: 1,231 (all undergrad)
Acceptance rate: 27%
Setting: Suburban
Cost: $51,637 (ala forbes.com)

the main building




the library

the dining hall

i thought the science building was quite nice; our impromptu tour guide was nice enough to let us inside.



outside the dorms


the inside of the dorms. i didn't really like the dorms here, but that was probably influenced by the bathrooms--there was only one shower in a coed bathroom, and it didn't look particularly clean...the rooms were a little dark too.



we went to this lovely bistro in downtown philadelphia for dinner, right next to rittenhouse square, so my brother could try their mashed potatoes. they were featured on the show The Best Thing I Ever Ate on Food Network. After dinner we walked around Philadelphia's historic landmarks; here's a couple pictures from that evening: