Boulder, Colorado, located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, is known for its laid-back attitude, gorgeous weather, and excellent ski and snowboard access. However, Boulder is also home to the University of Colorado at Boulder- a campus established in 1876 as the flagship school for the University of Colorado system.

While the city of Boulder, with its countless outdoor opportunities, the highest population of Ph. D’s in the county, and a lifestyle that is continually ranked as one of the best in the county, is certainly one of the biggest draws students have towards the University of Colorado, it is not the only one. CU, as it is shortened to, offers 85 majors at the bachelor’s level, and 70 majors at the masters level to its almost 30,000 students. Despite the school’s large size, a remarkable 85% of classes have fewer than 50 students, and over half of all classes have fewer than 20 students.

With over 90 research centers, institutes, and programs it is no wonder that science majors, such as molecular, cellular, and developmental biology, are among the most popular with students. Psychology, pre-journalism, and English are also some of the more well-represented majors. Students at CU certainly take advantage of the large number of majors as many choose to double-major during their time at the University.

The university and the city of Boulder attract some of the brightest minds in the country. Four faculty members at CU have received the Nobel Peace Prize, while another seven have received a MacArthur Fellowship- otherwise known as a “Genius Grants”. An astonishing 91% of the faculty members hold degrees higher than a Bachelor’s degree.

Along with an outstanding faculty, CU was also named one of the “Best Buy” schools by Fiske Guide to Colleges 2008. In 2008, 55% of students received some type of financial aid. Although tuition is slightly steep in comparison to other public universities for out-of-state students, around $24,000 per year, the consensus among students is that the cost is well worth the experience.

To top it all off, CU has recently become a member of the highly competitive PAC 10 conference in athletics. The cross-country, ski, and track teams are among the best in the country, while the annual football game against arch-rival Colorado State is one of the highlights of every student’s fall semesters.

The University of Colorado combines all that one could want in an undergraduate institution; excellent academics, great athletics, outstanding faculty, and a living environment that is hard to top anywhere in the country. If you are looking for a school where you can truly enjoy life while completing your degree there might not be a better choice than heading to Colorado.

Have you ever dreamed of not having to worry about grades?  Do you hate the idea of huge, anonymous lecture halls?  If so, you might want to consider Sarah Lawrence College, which is located roughly fifteen miles north of Manhattan, New York, in a small town called Yonkers.

Founded in 1926 as an all-women’s college, Sarah Lawrence is known for its liberal arts education.  Rather than declaring majors, students are allowed to design their own curricula, or “concentrations.”   All students work closely with their academic advisors, called “dons,” to design their concentrations.

Students choose their courses from four major areas of study: history and the social sciences, humanities, natural sciences and mathematics, and creative and performing arts.  Students only take three courses per semester.  Most classes are run using a seminar-conference system; each class, usually consisting of no more than 10 students, meets twice a week with the professor to have in-depth discussions about projects and readings.  All courses focus heavily on developing students’ writing skills.

Sarah Lawrence has one of the lowest student-to-faculty ratios in the country: 9:1.  Since classes are rather intense – students are limited to only three per semester, and spend dozens of hours in discussion with the professor – students get to interview professors before deciding upon their classes.  At the end of each course, rather than receiving a grade, students receive detailed written evaluations from their professors.

Sarah Lawrence is no longer an all-women’s school; it began accepting males in 1968, and currently men comprise 26% of the 1,240 undergraduates at Sarah Lawrence.  Approximately 37% of applicants are admitted to Sarah Lawrence, and the average high school GPA is 3.6.

You might recall Sarah Lawrence from the movie 10 Things I Hate About You; angsty teen Julia Styles dreams of attending Sarah Lawrence.  There are many well-known, non-fictional Sarah Lawrence alumni, as well.  The school has been home to both individualistic women like Barbara Walters, Yoko Ono, Vera Wang, and Alice Walker, as well as male celebrities like J.J. Abrams (creator of the TV show “LOST”), and Cary Elwes, better known as the “Dread Pirate Roberts” from The Princess Bride.

There is one major downside to Sarah Lawrence; it is now the most expensive school in the country, with one year’s tuition costing roughly $55,000.  But don’t let that deter you – they provide financial aid, and offer many scholarships.

USC is the oldest private research university in the Western United States with a well-deserved reputation for both scholastic and athletic excellence. USC first opened its doors in 1880 and its main campus, University Park, is located just minutes from Downtown Los Angeles. Today it is in the top 1% of all colleges and universities in terms of selectivity and was voted “College of the Year” in 2000 by TIME Magazine and the Princeton Review.

Recent statistics show the average unweighted GPA of entering freshman to be about 3.70 and the middle 50% of admitted students had an SAT range between 1930 – 2150. There are approximate 17,000 undergraduates with more international students than any other U.S. university. Enrollments include students from over 115 countries and the university offers extensive opportunities for internships and study abroad.

The main campus is home to the USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences as well as 17 professional schools. The campus is easily accessible by foot, with cars limited to only a couple streets, and contains many beautiful buildings, a combination of East Coast-style original brick and elegant new facilities. The landscaping is perfectly maintained and “Tommy Trojan”, a statue of an ancient Trojan warrior and the school’s unofficial mascot, stands guard at the center of the main quad.

USC also has a Health Sciences campus, northeast of downtown LA, which houses the Schools of Pharmacy, Medicine as well as programs in Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy.

The school motto is “let whoever earns the palm bear it,” and USC’s student body is both academically diligent and active in its local community. Roughly half of the university’s students volunteer in community-service programs such as the Joint Educational Project, which places students in local schools as teacher’s aides and after-school tutors.

Recently USC became the recipient of five large grants: $120 million to create the Annenberg Center for Communication, $100 million for the USC Annenberg School for Communication, $112.5 million for the Alfred E. Mann Institute for Biomedical Engineering, $110 million for USC’s School of Medicine and $175 million from George Lucas to the USC School of Cinematic Arts.

In addition to its academic excellence, USC is known for its strong sports teams. USC has 19 intercollegiate sports teams and is a member of the Division I-A Pac-10 Conference. USC has won 89 NCAA team championships, and the Trojans football team has won 11 national championships. Seven players have won the Heisman Trophy. USC’s biggest rival is cross-town school UCLA, and the annual football games are popular social events for students. During the week prior to the traditional USC-UCLA game, Tommy Trojan is even covered in duct tape to prevent vandalism from UCLA!

The active social scene largely centers on the Greek system, which involves about a fifth of the student body, and is located on West 28th Street and known as “The Row”. Just off campus, it contains 20 fraternities and 10 sororities, with parties and social events almost every weekend. Other social activities include a number of popular clubs, a large student government, and the famous student newspaper, The Daily Trojan, which has been published continuously since 1912 and famously secured the first interview with Richard Nixon after his resignation.

Just a few of the many famous Trojan alumni include: Neil Armstrong, Will Ferrell, Frank Gehry, Jerry Goldsmith, James Horner, Matt Leinart, George Lucas, Pat Nixon, Carson Palmer, Gene Roddenberry, Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, and John Wayne.

Carleton College is a top-notch liberal arts college located in Northville, Minnesota, a small town some 44 miles south of Minneapolis. Carleton offers awesome academics and a strong community ensconced in one of the most bucolic corners of Minnesota. Some 1986 students call Carleton home; a small population that leads to a considerable amount of interaction; you will get to know your peers here. The average class size is eighteen and the student-faculty ratio is about 9:1, a good number that encourages a great deal of meaningful dialogue between student and professor.

Carleton offers 37 diverse majors, from Biology to Russian. The academics are excellent, and many of the professors are leaders in their fields. Like many liberal arts colleges, here all classes are taught by professors and not teaching assistants. During your four years here, you will be doing research, meeting with a professor about your paper, and finding the tools to become an independent learner. Some famous professors include Minnesota senator Paul Wellstone (now deceased) and philosophy of science writer Ian Barbour.

The campus is quite beautiful and features Cowling Arboretum that covers 880 acres next door to the main grounds. The environment is quite important here; Carleton students’ sustainable habits are well known and earned the campus an A- from the Sustainable Endowments Institute in 2008. Sports are important at Carleton; do not let their status as Division III fool you. Many students participate in sports, especially club sports like rugby.

As for student life, extra-curriculars abound, including an award-winning Model UN club. During the weekends, there are parties on campus, but the website reminds us that “since this is Carleton, there is probably someone playing Scrabble somewhere, or knitting, or juggling.” If you are looking for the perfect party school, Carleton is not it; of course, if you find knitting fun, then you are in luck.

Carleton is a highly selective college—about thirty percent of students are accepted each year. 74% of Carleton’s 2012 class came from the top tenth of their high school class. As for the ACT , the median score is between 29 and 33. The median scores on the SAT Writing, Verbal, and Math are 650-750, 660-740, and 650-730 respectively. Yet many in the class do not take the SAT. According to the admissions office, they strive to find a class “beyond grades,” one encompassing well-rounded students who care about learning whether inside or outside the classroom. They also strive to have a diverse class, not only in terms of gender, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, but by interests as well. If you are the only left-handed piccolo player in their pile of applicants, you may have an in. It would be a good idea to spend a great deal of time on the essay. Remember, according to the website, “[Carleton students] are an intellectually insatiable group that approaches learning with enthusiasm, energy, and a uniquely Carleton brand of playfulness.” Demonstrate that you are equally unique.

The tuition is steep at about $50,000 per year, but many receive financial aid, in fact some $39.5 million was allocated for that purpose last year. The college promises to cover all demonstrated need. The price tag should not be a reason to dissuade you from applying, in fact, about two thirds of the loans students receive are scholarships or grants, the aid equivalent of a gift.

If you can handle the Minnesota weather, and love to learn, then apply today.

The University of Vermont is located in the bucolic small town of Burlington, Vermont, a stone’s throw away from Lake Champlain. This university with a small school feel defies expectations; it is both approachably small and features enough academic offerings to interest any college student’s most wide-ranging interests. The college has about 10,371 undergraduates and a student-faculty ratio of 17 to 1. Class sizes range from smaller seminars to large lectures; there is about an even mix between the two. The average class size is about 23.

UVM is composed of ten colleges, including the College of Arts and Sciences, where most students enroll. There are about one hundred majors to choose from at UVM and more than 1,882 classes offered. These include a forestry seminar where students become up to date on current themes in the study of forests, and a classics course on “Greek Feminism.” The Honors College attracts the best and brightest from around the country to study in Burlington. UVM is also known for its outstanding environmental program; it has been ranked one of the “greenest colleges” in Forbes. The Rubenstein School of Natural Resources stands out as a center of research and advocacy for the environment.

As for campus life, the school is known for its focus on the environment as much in the classroom as outside. The Outing Club is very popular. A recent (and successful) drive to use all recycled paper for the copiers was spearheaded by students. There is a somewhat active Greek life, including eleven fraternities and seven sororities. The Vermont Cynic, perhaps the greatest-named student newspaper in the country, publishes on-campus every week.

Let’s talk about admissions. The average SAT score for freshman students is 540-640 for reading, 550-640 for math and 540-640 for writing; the average ACT is 24-28 although most applicants take the SAT. As for GPA, the school does not keep track but writes on their admissions website that an incoming student’s average high school grades fall between a B+ and an A-. The cost of the school is reasonable, including room and board it is about $22,550 for Vermont residents and $40,406 for non-residents. Admiringly, UVM gives at least two-thirds of its students merit scholarships; more than half receive financial aid.

If you love academics, the environment, the outdoors, and New England, then look no further than the University of Vermont. With so much to offer, it is no wonder that high school students from around the country are flocking to the school. It is truly a hidden value college, one whose academic profile has only increased in the past few years; it is truly worth a second look.