Colgate University Top Questions

Starting answering Colgate University is an amazing environment with exceptional academics, a beautiful campus, incredible faculty and students, many opportunities for involvement, and overall is a really fun and enjoyable atmosphere. There are a plethora of different classes offered to the students. Any given student could take a wide assortment of classes ranging from a class in neuroscience to one in performance arts . Similarly, students are granted access to a number of resources provided by the campus. Aside from the conventional resources like the library and food services, a student can also experience resources such as the various technology labs, the museum in the Ho Science Center (which even has a dinosaur egg on display), and so much more. The academic and research opportunities are endless. Likewise, there are multitude of opportunities for involvement here at Colgate. For instance, I am involved in the SAT tutoring program, admissions, funding initiatives for the school, and various other philanthropy groups. I even have been able to become certified in Suicide prevention! Aside from the areas I am involved with, there are so many other opportunities, clubs, activities to participate in. Just to name a few there are opportunities with sports at the club and intramural levels. One could also partake in activities such as Student Government, the Colgate Activities Board , or Greek life if he or she were to be interested in event planning and leadership opportunities, in general. There are also chances to get involved with the arts, by either participating in an acapella group, a play, a theater group, taking one of the many art classes offered, the choir, or dance groups. Since Colgate is a smaller school it is very simple to partake and inquire about these various activities. The smaller size is also conducive to students being able to make a greater impact on the institution and are easily able to contact and meet with different members of the administration. Here at Colgate, the students' voices really do matter. Overall, Colgate University is a truly wonderful, intimate, and enjoyable atmosphere that offers it's students so many incredible opportunities. I could not be happier!

I'm the ninth person in my family to come to colgate and I have grown up going to colgate events and always knew it was where I wanted to go, and in my third year I would not change a single thing about my experience here and I regret nothing. best decision of my life. I spend a lot of time at the chapel, which may seem dorky but i have met some pretty interesting people there, and most of them aren't actual jesus freaks and do go out and party 3 nights a week. Biggest controversy recently? that would have been the racist comments posted on the school newspaper website, but the campus came together and had a not completely successful discussion but it was surprising to see how many people came out to show their support to denounce the comments. Hamilton is 100{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} a college town, the university is deeply invested in the "downtown" and supports many of the businesses there. Students complain about evenly between campus safety (campo) and reslife, the residential life office which is in charge of everyone's housing arrangements. But the best thing about Colgate, is how willing and supportive alumni are for students, alumni usually do support their Alma Mater, but at Colgate if you find someone who also went their they will usually go out of their way to help you with an internship, career advice, maybe a job, and all they usually ask for is a story about your time at Colgate or to tell them what is going on at 'gate. As for size, it is pretty small, but there are just enough people that you can meet someone new everyday, and it is small enough that you don't feel alone, if you don't run into one person on the quad between classes I would be surprised.

Colgate is a party school with a good academic reputation. The school tries to provide 'alternatives to drinking' but lets be real, how many movies and trivia nights can you really go to before your bored to death with them.

Colgate kids are competitive, in both the classroom and outside of it and the Colgate mantra of "work hard, play harder" absolutely rings true. The natural beauty on this campus is unparalleled, and after going to a school this small I cannot imagine going to something as large and impersonal as a state school. I love saying hello to 10 kids I know on morning walk to class. There definatly is a 'Colgate Type' though, and those who do not fit the mold would probably have a much better college experience somewhere else.

Colgate is perfect. You can still walk across campus and not recognize a sinlge person at certain times, and in other situations you'll know everyone in the room. The town of Hamilton revolves around Colgate. Its super safe and theres always tons to do. Colgate fosters a family-oriented feeling among students and alumni that lasts way beyond graduation.

The big picture is a small one at Colgate. The school's community is a small and friendly one. Students are able to create strong friendships with their peers and are able to create relationships with professors. Students are especially able to form strong friends with their dorm mates as it is often too cold to venture out of your housing. But the indoors can be fun, as most students are drunk during a good portion of th week. If you want to avoid alcohol, you can, but with much difficulty at Colgate. The upside of this is that if you don't have much work one night, you can always find people to party and get drunk with it. All around, good times.

Colgate is a great school with strong academics. Even though some people have never heard of it, those who have know its a good school. Being a fairly small school (2800) but having Division I athletics, Colgate has some identity issues with itself. Its caught somewhere between the NESCAC small schools with serious academics and the big athletic powerhouse universities. It's kind of crunchy, but at the same time its a very preppy student body. There is no shortage of wealthy kids at Colgate. It's a beautiful campus, but the huge hill that its built on makes moving around a pain sometimes. The center of campus is definitely the academic quadrangle with the chapel on it, but only freshman can really live near this. Juniors have to live down the hill, about a 15 minute walk, and many seniors live off-campus. As most liberal arts schools do, Colgate gets itself off on issues like diversity and global warming. The administration seems fairly reasonable and the President even has open office hours, but it is a bureaucracy like any other school. For freshmen and sophomores, Frank dining hall is the main place to eat. Food is decent but nothing exceptional and after a semester students have had more than enough of it. Colgate brings alot of very interesting speakers to campus. One of my favorites was D'nesh D'souza. I'm not even sure if thats how you spell it.

Colgate is just right in almost every sense. It is a liberal arts college but a university at the same time, making it one of the largest liberal arts colleges and one of the smallest universities. The intro classes tend to be on the larger side (anywhere from 40 to 150 students) but upper level classes are usually no bigger than 30 (as small as 6). Additionally, some classes are discussion based and others are lectures. You can therefore choose classes based on the size you want and the type of learning that best suits you. Hamilton is the picturesque college town, with everything catering to the wants and needs of the student body. There is at least 1 of everything in what we refer to as "downtown." But the seemingly isolated area of central New York adds to the closeness of the Colgate community.

Although it may appear that Colgate is too small, with a student body of 2800 students, the size is just right. Professors are accessible, many taking students out to class dinners at the Colgate Inn or Merrill House. Colgate is located in the adorable village/town of Hamilton, NY. Yes, the nearest mall is 45 to 60 minutes away, but this allows for great stuff to go on right ON CAMPUS. Students take the "Colgate Cruiser" downtown to go out to eat, study at the barge, go out at night, grocery shopping.

When people start the college search a lot of people are concerned with going to a large school. I always saw myself at a large school but Colgate is not even three thousand students which may seem small in comparison to large state universities but if you're worried about seeing too many familiar faces, don't be. Every day I see a new face and when you're out at night its always nice to go out and always have someone there that you know. That brings me to the students. School Pride is overwhelming at Colgate. I remember one day as a parent commented on how many Colgate sweatshirts were worn around campus. I would attribute this pride to both the location, range of students and the university's goal to create campus wide involvement and pride.

I really enjoy the small, intimate classroom sizes. The campus is also very beautiful. I would change some of the ResLife policies. I think some of them are a little absurd such as charging a fee for "inappropriate check in and check out." I'd also change their policies about parking up the hill between 7am and 3pm or atleast work on the Cruiser schedules and efficiency. I think Colgate is, overall, just right in size. My freshman year I attended the University of Wisconsin which has a student body of about 44, 000. That environment was too overwhelming for me, so I am really pleased about the smaller atmosphere at Colgate. However, at times, it can definitely feel a little too small which is only emphasized by the size of Hamilton. People generally sound impressed when I say I go to Colgate. It obviously has quite an outstanding reputation and that is reflected by the comments I receive. Hamilton is in the middle of nowhere. It's a cute and quaint town, but it gets a little tiring going to the same places over and over again. I'm pretty pleased with Colgate's administration. Biggest recent controversy was over the scandal with the college gossip website in which a student made a threatening remark that caused the school to go into a tizzy. I'm actually not that impressed with our student body pride. At sporting events, it seems that not that many students end up attending or there just isn't a lot of cheering and enthusiasm.

Colgate is a fun place despite what people say about how it is in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do. There is always something fun to do whether it is drinking or other. The only problem is that the administration hates fun and wants to get rid of fraternities.

Colgate is a small community of leaders and innovators. The best thing about Colgate is the passion that everyone has for the place and making it better. Colgate is undoubtedly a college town with a majority of the downtown establishments being connected to the university. The administration is receptive and friendly and willing to work with students.

Colgate is amazing. It is a glorified country club where we earn an "education". We call it the Colgate bubble because that's what it is and I wouldn't have it any other way. It's the perfect size in the sense that whereever you are you always know someone, yet you never stop meeting new people. The best things about Colgate are the parties, THE JUG, the professors, the small campus (everything is within walking distance), and the natural beauty of the school. The worst part is the administration which is generally uptight and trying to ruin the school's party reputation. They should let it be. The reason kids come to Colgate in the first place is because they are looking for the perfect balance between work and play. We are a school with a great academic reputation as well as a school that likes to "get down" as the kids say. The most recent controversy was when some kid said on Juicycampus.com that he could shoot up the school and everyone went apeshit. There is school pride (but no athletic pride really with the exception of hockey) and the most common student complaint is the bitter cold during the winter months.

In my opinion, Colgate provides the perfect college experience. Academically, it's top notch. Most students make personal relationships with almost all of their professors. Professors are always more than willing to reach out to students, have lunch with them, help them, answer last minute questions on their home number at 3 a.m. etc. There is always research being conducted as with most larger institutions and Colgate is very accommodating to students whose interests are not met on campus. Colgate even got all students to see the Dalai Llama on campus this spring! In light of arts and athletics, Colgate is also hard to beat. Colgate athletics are a large part of the community, I think, as everyone knows some athletes personally and that sporting events draw in a large pool of the community (or at least the tail gates do...). With several patriot league championships earned this year alone, how could Colgate students not feel a sense of pride when supporting their school. As for the arts, Colgate has wonderful programs. I love having classes in Ryan and Dana so I can admire all the beautful work on the way to class. Colgate's always bringing in great performances for the students, like everything from world class piano players and jazz groups to African Art troupes to modern photography exhibits. Most schools have amazing opportunities like that for their students, but I feel that at Colgate, everything is more personalized for the students and hits closer to home as it is a smaller institution. As for the social scene, my Colgate experience has far exceeded what any College Prowler told me it would be. Although it's a small school, I am constantly meeting new people. As a freshman, there is not a lot to do if you don't like to party, which I think is Colgate's biggest problem. However, Colgate's location is beautiful and I always make my family just drive around the surrounding area when they come because it is so beautiful. Hamilton is also home to Big Norm: the world's largest pig! Norm is quite the attraction and you can ride him for $1 although on most days he doesn't move. Greek life is a large part of the Colgate scene, but it's very different than most other schools. Colgate students do not rush until the fall of their sophmore year which gives time for students to make their own friends for a year first and really get to know people in all different kinds of groups before commiting to one. Also, Greek life isn't as serious as it is at larger institutions. For the most part, everyone gets along and Beta guys will hang out with Sigma guys with no animosity. Everyone just likes to party together. The sorority scene is nothing terrible either. Each sorority takes large pledge classes and are really nice and accepting you most always get bids to which ever you want. Overall, the greek life is just a way to get to know people without being on a sports team and provides great parties! Other than the Greek scene, Colgate students for the most part get along. I meet new people all the time and most of campus can be seen intermingling on a Saturday night in the Old Stone Jug or eating Slices (the famous one slice New York Pizzeria). Colgate provides the perfect blend of the academia of an Ivy League, the school spirit and athletics of a Big 10, the small feel of a rural, safe small town school, and the party scene of animal house.

Colgate is an interesting school. Sure, it's interesting that we share the name of a popular brand of toothpaste, but by that statement I'm referring to the fact that in the span of one week, you can hear a lecture on happiness by the Dalai Lama himself and live out that lesson by attending an OkGo concert during Spring Party Weekend. Obviously, Colgate University is multi-faceted. There is a heavy emphasis on scholarship, of course, but we are not just about the serious stuff in life. We can laugh at the silly dentist school jokes our family members crack, but we're also capable of coming up with witty retorts. We use the multi-million dollar Ho Science Center for labs and a quiet space to study, but its planetarium also comes in handy for watching the Magic School Bus. We're a veritable oxymoron: tanned students in the middle of a Central New York winter, a small school with a big-campus attitude. Without it, we'd probably just be Colgate "College".

The size and location of Colgate are perfect for my tastes. I'm a townie from a big state university, so Colgate's close and intimate environment were the main attractions for me. Colgate's administration, in my experience, is very efficient in dealing with students. Although they've made some very disagreeable decisions over the years (see DKE affair), the administration has given the campus very nice new facilities (Ho Science Center, Case Library) and helps keep Colgate running smoothly. Downtown Hamilton itself is a very nice little town with nice people who like Colgate (and Colgate students with fat wallets), but outside of the immediate town the countryside seems poor.

The education is amazing, the Professors are all wonderful and the size of the school is great! The student to teacher ratio is 10:1 which means you have an opportunity to know your Professors on a more personal level. The class sizes are smaller so discussion is a main factor really making the learning environment much more interactive and enjoyable. The town is pretty small, and far from any city but it is very nice and all the necessities are nearby. The athletic facilities are very nice, except for maybe one or two. When people hear that you are attending Colgate or have graduated from there they are always very impressed and it is very useful when applying for jobs. The Alumni network is incredible. It is large and spreads throughout the world giving many connections in order to find jobs or internships. Most complaints about the school are the amount of homework, the smallness of the town, and the distance from any large city.

Colgate's faculty is top notch, and I love how the school is isolated. This environment has fostered passions and nurtured friendships for all of us. I hated Colgate freshman year--very few students seemed intellectual or genuiniely interested in academics, and Greek life dominated the social scene. I decided against rushing sophomore year, and for a while I felt left out of a lot of rights of passage and traditions at Colgate. However, I tried as hard as possible to maintain an open mind. It took a lot of hard work for me to enjoy Colgate, but once I found my niche(s), I couldn't be happier. I've learned to love Hamilton and the idea of being guaranteed to see my fellow classmates wherever I choose to go on a Friday or Saturday night. I've developed interests and passions, and close relationships with professors. Colgate's size is perfect--small enough to know everyone and to have personal attention and access to various resources, and large enough to offer a variety of research opportunities, etc. A lot of the criticisms are true: Colgate students are mostly preppy and White; Hamilton is small, isolated, and cold; Greek life dominates the social scene, etc.; but if you trust yourself and your ability to find your niche despite all of this, you will be rewarded, and you will grow to love Colgate!

If you want to go to a school that offers you a great opportunity for success after college than Colgate is the place to go. The alumni network is unbelievable and the alumni are very accessible.