Allegheny Featured in “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges”

Aug. 28, 2012 – Allegheny College is once again among the schools chosen for inclusion in “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges.” The new edition of Loren Pope’s highly influential guidebook—which has undergone 24 printings—has been revised and updated by Hilary Masell Oswald.

Colleges That Change Lives book cover“All of the CTCL schools are characterized by sincere care for students,” said Oswald. “At Allegheny College, that care is characterized not just by faculty, staff and administrators, but by the students themselves. The students I talked to said they chose Allegheny because ‘it just felt like home’ or ‘this place is really accepting.’ They were also quick to point out that Allegheny is challenging, and I think the academic rigor, paired with the supportive environment, makes for a powerful and delightful campus culture. Allegheny is doing the work that more American colleges and universities should be doing: challenging students and holding them accountable to their potential.”

For the latest edition of the guide, Oswald conducted all new school tours and in-depth interviews, building on Loren Pope’s original work to create a completely updated, more expansive work. Each profile includes information about admissions standards, the curriculum, extracurricular activities and educational philosophies.

Oswald also offers a new chapter about how students with learning disabilities can find schools that fit their needs.

Topics also include the look and feel of the campus, the quality of dining hall food, the percentage of students who study abroad, the percentage of students who go to graduate school, average SAT/ACT scores and what professors have to say about their schools.

“Students and families tell us all the time how helpful ‘Colleges That Change Lives’ was to them in their college search,” said Brian F. Dalton, vice president for enrollment and communications at Allegheny College. “While including detailed information, it gets beyond numbers and statistics to give students a very real sense of the culture of a college campus—and thus an idea of how they might fit in. It also describes what the very best colleges offer students in terms of a rigorous education that prepares them for challenging careers and a lifetime of opportunities.”

The former education editor of the New York Times, Loren Pope died in 2008. Hilary Masell Oswald is an education writer whose work has appeared in Newsday, the Chicago Tribune, Edutopia and other publications and websites.

The 32nd oldest college in the nation, Allegheny College will celebrate its bicentennial in 2015. A selective, residential liberal arts college, Allegheny is featured in many of the nation’s most influential guidebooks, including Princeton Review’s “The Best 377 Colleges,” as well as “Harvard Schmarvard: Getting Beyond the Ivy League to the College That Is Best for You” and Peterson’s “440 Great Colleges for Top Students.”