The Alt-Ivies: 15 Best Colleges in the USA with Blue-Chip-Ruf (2023)

As Swarthmore is part of the Quaker Consortium, students can register with Penn, Bryn Mawr and Haverford. Although approximately 1,600 undergraduates enroll, there are more than 600 courses to choose from, including an engineering program that offers a bachelor's degree. Diploma after four years – a rarity for a liberal arts college. Another special feature is the honors program, which allows students to create their own courses, work in very small seminars, and meet requirements by taking external expert exams.

Acceptance rate in 2008: 15.7%
Acceptance rate 2018: 9%

Located 40 miles outside the Twin Cities, this small liberal arts school boasts over 1,000 acres, including the sprawling Cowling Arboretum, a haven for ora, wildlife and miles of hiking trails. Subjects ranging from biology to art are taught there. Diversity and acceptance are very important in student life; There are over 250 clubs, including a variety of LGBT-focused groups. And because of the speed with which its science graduates earn doctorates, Carleton has become known as a "hothouse for women scientists."

Acceptance rate in 2008: 27.4%
Acceptance rate 2018: 19.4%

This is the rare school known as much for its technical offerings as it is for its artistic programs. The School of Computer Science, housed in a building financed by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, is among the best in the world. Carnegie Mellon is also where the world's first Wi-Fi network and artificial intelligence programs were developed. Since then, the School of Drama has produced stars such as Ted Danson, Judith Light, Sutton Foster and Leslie Odom Jr.

Acceptance rate in 2008: 37.9%
Acceptance rate 2017: 22%

For over two decadesUS. Newsranked Babson as the best graduate school for entrepreneurship. All freshmen graduate in “Fundamentals of Management and Entrepreneurship” where they are given seed money to start, launch and run their own business. SECTION. in Business Administration is the only degree, but students can choose from 27 courses to focus on. Additionally, traditional liberal arts courses are integrated into the curriculum for a well-rounded education.

Acceptance rate 2008: 35%
Acceptance rate 2017: 24%

With nine different graduate schools, three campuses (Evanston, Chicago and Qatar) and additional facilities in Miami, San Francisco, NYC and Washington, DC, students have access to a variety of courses, programs and specializations. Despite its size and rich resources, Northwestern maintains a student-to-faculty ratio of 7:1 and offers more than 150 specialist research facilities, such as the Center for Bio-Integrated Electronics, the Buffett Institute for Global Studies, and the Institute for Political Research. Also, beware of the Meghan Markle effect. The new Duchess of Sussex graduated here in 2003.

Acceptance rate in 2008: 26.2%
Acceptance rate 2018: 8.4%

What used to be the last resort for students not eligible for Ivies is now just as competitive and high on many colleges' wish lists. In 2018, applications surpassed 30,000, but only 2,199 were accepted. That's a lower acceptance rate than Penn or Cornell. The location in the heart of Music City is part of the appeal, but so is the academics and campus life. There are numerous research opportunities for integrated students across majors, and the university is currently awaiting over $600 million to convert its dormitories into LEED-certified colleges. According toPrinceton review, Vanderbilt also has the happiest students.

Acceptance rate 2008: 25%
Acceptance rate 2018: 7.3%

Like Harvard, Duke saw an 8% increase in applications that year. While the school is best known for its Division 1 athletic teams (the men's basketball team has won the NCAA title five times), the school also offers opportunities in creative writing, fine arts, theater, film, and dance. Then there is the Nasher Museum of Art, designed by Rafael Viñoly, which has a collection of 13,000 objects, including works by Kara Walker, Ai Weiwei and Andy Warhol. For students interested in public service, DukeEngage offers immersive service programs around the world, from teaching ecotourism in Brazil to championing women's entrepreneurship in Kenya.

Acceptance rate in 2008: 22.4%
Acceptance rate 2018: 8%

Leadership is at the heart of the educational experience at this liberal arts college, which has produced VIPs such as former AOL CEO Steve Case, legendary songwriter Stephen Sondheim and many others.MorningjoCo-host Mika Brzezinski. Since 1997, Leadership Studies has been offered as a specialization combining political science, anthropology and history. The current curriculum includes courses such as “Dangerous Leadership in American Politics” and “The Black Radical Tradition”. Williams follows a 4-1-4 schedule, which means that all students enroll in month-long winter programs that can be used for research, internships or study abroad.

Acceptance rate 2008: 16.9%
Acceptance rate 2018: 12%

Philanthropy and community service are deeply rooted in the culture of this small liberal arts school, which works with hundreds of local and international organizations to provide students with opportunities to give back. You can mentor children, spend your winter break volunteering at a veterans' rehabilitation center in Hanoi, or work as a tutor in local schools. Community involvement issues are also incorporated into the curriculum - for example, a course on citizenship and religion in America was recently held at the Maine Correctional Center, attended by both inmates and Bowdoin students.

Acceptance rate 2008: 18.5%
Acceptance rate 2018: 10.3%

Davidson has all the hallmarks of a liberal arts college (scenic campus, core curriculum), plus offerings you'll find at larger schools, such as: B. Division 1 sports. Basketball plays a big role here - NBA star , Steph Curry, played for the Wildcats before being drafted by the Golden State Warriors after his freshman year. Both in academic life and on campus, students are bound by a strict code of honor. Exams are scheduled and not supervised or taken home; The doors of the university buildings remain unlocked; and notices are posted throughout the school to help people locate lost items.

Acceptance rate 2008: 26%
Acceptance rate 2018: 20%

Athletics is such an important part of campus life that 70% of students participate in it in some form. In addition to Rice's 14 NCAA Division 1 teams, there is a state-of-the-art recreational center and a wide range of club and collegiate sports, from jiu-jitsu to water polo. Rice also has a boarding school system, which is popular with students for its community-building benefits and is one of the reasons the Princeton Review ranked the university number one for quality of life. Another reason could be its fantastic location in the heart of Houston's Museum District.

Acceptance rate 2008: 23%
Acceptance rate 2018: 11%

The founding member of Claremont Colleges (which includes five undergraduate and two graduate institutions) received a record 10,245 applications this year. Only 713 children were hospitalized. Best of all, students can take classes at any school in the consortium, which also includes Harvey Mudd, Pitzer, Scripps, and Claremont McKenna. That means access to over 2,000 courses and a combined library of 2 million volumes. Pomona also has 61 study abroad programs with options on every continent except Antarctica and is a leading producer of Fulbright scholarships.

Acceptance rate 2008: 15.5%
Acceptance rate 2018: 6.9%

Along with its Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning alumni, Fulbright Scholars and entrepreneurs like Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and Google CEO Eric Schmidt, the nation's top public school is also Peace's number one volunteer. Corps. Community service plays an important role on campus, with 270 organizations helping students do good. Traditions like Stanford's big pre-game rally also foster a sense of community at this large school, which received 89,000 applications that year.

Acceptance rate in 2008: 21.6%
2017* Acceptance rate: 18.3%

Caltech is an aspiring scientist's dream, with facilities such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a government-funded research and development center that runs the school for NASA, and several major facilities such as the Seismological Laboratory and the Palomar Observatory. Competition to get in is fierce - 98% of students placed in the top 10 in their high school class - but there's very little competition once they're actually on campus. Students are encouraged to contribute homework and take-home tests are administered under an honor code. It's not all work and play, though: Caltech is famous for its pranks.

Acceptance rate in 2008: 17%
Acceptance rate 2018: 8%

It is home to one of the best medical schools in the country and offers interested students access to a variety of pre-medical degree programs and research opportunities. If you don't want to become a doctor, you have over 80 other courses to choose from, as well as the opportunity to create your own individual study program. When it comes to student life, the Midwestern school places a strong emphasis on community and leadership. More than half of undergraduates participate in public service projects, while leadership skills are taught through the LeaderShape Institute, an intensive, interactive six-day retreat.

Acceptance rate 2011: 21%
Acceptance rate 2018: 15%