Waterville, ME: Nervous about the college admission process, I began mycollege tours with a trip to several schools in the Maine area. As ajunior I wondered about the size, location and academics of theseschools. With all sorts of questions, I was struck with the beauty andfriendliness of Colby College.

Colby is a small, liberal artsschool located in Waterville, Maine. Approximately 1,700 students attendthe college, which makes for a small student-teacher ratio. Thebuildings are the typical New England ivy-covered brick and I had theopportunity to tour several of them. The dorms were clean and ofadequate size. The Miller Library, modeled after the Philadel-phia StateHouse, contains more than 800,000 volumes and numerous computerterminals. The Lovejoy building houses lecture halls, seminar rooms, theInformation Technology Services Center and the MacLab. Across the quadwe found the Natural Science buildings with labs for physics, geology,chemistry and biology. On my way through the Bixler Art and MusicCenter, I heard an a capella group performing and saw students composingmusic on computers.

There are more than 470 courses with 45majors. Special programs include the Jan[uary] Plan, where studentsdevote a short term to one project or topic. Many students travel duringthis month and I saw research done by students on a recent trip to theMojave Desert. Living abroad is an option for either freshman or junioryear. Freshmen can take part in trips to Ireland, Mexico, Spain orEngland.

The social life here is active with over 70 groups andclubs. As an incoming freshman you take part in COOT, a four-daywilderness trip with fellow freshmen and upperclassmen. The trip oftenresults in friendships and memories. There are also many concerts; pastperformers include the Dave Matthews Band, Indigo Girls, and Jewel. Thenight I visited they were hosting a "Mr. Colby Pageant" andthe following night was a concert by Squirrel NutZippers.

Students and teachers alike were extremely helpful andfriendly. The facilities and surrounding lands are beautiful andinviting. I recommend Colby to anyone interested in a small liberal artsschool with excellent academics.


Reviewed in 1998