Middlebury College (reviews)

Middlebury College is such a beautiful institution that fosters a wonderful community of students and lecturers. The lecturers are fantastic and inventive, creating a fun and engaging learning environment. The campus is not too small to be difficult to navigate, but it is large enough not to be overwhelming. Middlebury College is an outstanding educational establishment with a vibrant student body, dedicated instructors, and a stunning campus.

Middlebury College is genuinely a great school and I’m happy to be a part of it. The classes are generally small (around 15-20 students per section), lectures are bigger, and the professors care about their students. Even my lecture professor knows everyone’s name. The general student body is friendly and wants to get to know you. It’s also not a competitive environment at all. The accommodations (residences, dining halls, etc) are from what I’ve seen pretty good. The academics, it goes without saying are amazing, especially the language and science programs. There are some cons to Middlebury. In my opinion, the registration process is the worst. As a freshman it’s pretty hard to get all the classes you want, but there’s ways to get around it sometimes. It’s also pretty isolated which makes flying (or driving) home a pretty long trip, unless you live in one of the primary Northeast coast cities. Despite this I still love Middlebury and would urge anyone who is considering it to apply.

I enjoyed my time and was certainly challenged academically at Middlebury – although perhaps not pushed and mentored as much as I could/should have been.
It can feel a bit isolated (Vermont rural life) and you need to really embrace outdoor activities and winter sports to get the most from your time there.
I studied for my BA and MA at Middlebury, including summers in the French and Spanish schools and two years with Middlebury in Paris. Summer on campus is intense and you make a lot of progress – although one could argue the same progress could be made for less financial investment with a summer abroad.
Some of the classes we took at the Uni in Paris were less solid than those on campus, but the experience of study abroad is nevertheless invaluable and I believe improvements have been made.
While I am proud to say Middlebury is my alma mater and I have lifelong friends and great memories, I’m not sure the cost of a Middlebury education is completely justified. While the classes are small, the facilities are great, and most of the professors are top notch, you pay for a lot of bells and whistles beyond pure academics, as at many American colleges of this caliber. It depends what you are looking for in a college experience and what you are prepared to spend.

Great for people who like outdoor experience and who seek a broad knowledge base rather than deep and specific. Yet, there are many opportunities available for those who want to change from broad to specific in the form of study abroad, exchange programs, dual degree programs and so on. I would say it is one of the best choices for people who are considering a degree in languages and social sciences.