Lewisburg, PA: There aren‘t manyinteresting things going on in this small Pocono town. It‘s quietand quaint, but it is home to one of the best engineering andliberal-arts colleges in the country. The school I‘m talking aboutis Bucknell University. When I began my visit on a cold fall morning, Ididn‘t expect much from what seemed like a secluded college. As Iwalked around the picturesque campus, though, the school started to comealive with people and an impressive mountain view, and I began warmingup to this amazing place.

As well as being a top school foracademics, Bucknell has a great community atmosphere. The studentgovernment brings in concerts, lecturers and entertainers on an almostweekly basis. There‘s even a nightclub on campus, which alwaysgives you something to do on weekends. There is also a wide variety ofclubs and fraternities. (Over half of the 3,400 students take part inGreek life.) The school is small enough to see friends wherever you go,but big enough so that you‘ll never know everyone.

Alsoworth mentioning is Bucknell‘s wide variety of sport teams - theday I visited there were football, volleyball and water polo games inprogress.

The students and staff I met at Bucknell were morethan willing to help prospectives, and since the focus is onundergraduate studies, most students receive opportunities to doresearch that they wouldn‘t elsewhere. Also, the young collegehunter should know that both the dorms and the food are very good, andthe university as a whole is exceptional.

Bucknell Universitydefinitely exceeded my expectations and I highly recommend it to anyonelooking for a competitive, prestigious university that has all thequalities of a big college on a smaller, more personal scale.