Student Profile
Noah
- Class: Sophomore
- Major: Geography
- Gender: M
- High School: Bedford High School
- Transfer Student: N
Big Picture
The best thing about Middlebury is its student body. Almost everyone is really intelligent, friendly, open-minded, and loves being outside. If I could change one thing, it'd be the transportation on and off campus. The school population is just right. I'd say about 3/4 of the people I tell that I go to Middlebury have great reactions, and the other 1/4 haven't heard of it. I spend most of my time on campus in the science building or my room. Good college town. Middlebury's administration is a little too rigid and image-centric. The biggest recent controversy was over very prominent homophobic graffiti. There is a lot of school pride. Middlebury's Geography department and its environmental impetus are unusually active. I will always remember sleeping outside in the organic garden. The most frequent student complaints are about the administration.
Academic Life
All of my professors know my name. My favorite class was my freshmen seminar "The Art and Life of Winslow Homer," because the class and professor bonded incredibly well. The students from that class have expanded it into a 500-level project to design and execute an art exhibit of Civil War art and imagery. Class participation is very common. Most Middlebury students have intellectual conversations outside of class. Students are not competitive with each other, but hold themselves to high standards. The Winslow Homer class was my most unique, because of what it has transformed into. I am a Geography major, and I find that every professor and student in this department has a different and fascinating way of looking at and thinking about the world. I have lunch with the Geography professors once a week, and stop by my history teacher's office all the time. Middlebury's academic requirements are reasonable and not difficult to fulfill. Education here is geared towards learning for its own sake.
Student Body
The most active minority group on campus is MOQA, the Middlebury Open Queer Alliance. It makes sense they are the most active, as they are the most discriminated against by graffiti and everyday speech. I think an inner city kid might feel out of place, unfortunately, which is something most students would regret. Most students wear comfortable pants/shorts/skirt and a t-shirt or button-down. In the dining hall, there will be the theater table, the mountain club table, the political activist table, and the athletes' table. Most Middlebury students are from New England. Most are from middle-class financial backgrounds. Students are politically aware, not necessarily active, and are predominantly left-wing. Students hardly ever talk about money, and/or how much they'll earn one day.
The Best Things
The best thing about Middlebury are the students that go here.
The Worst Things
The worst thing about Middlebury is its controlling obsession with the campus and the town's physical appearance.
