A reader question:
Dear Muffy,
I came across this list of the 40 preppiest colleges in the U.S. and thought of your site <https://www.instagram.com/reel/DKvQsujt6SG/>. Their top ten are:
1) Amherst College
2) Bowdoin College
3) Colby College
4) Colgate University
5) Dartmouth College
6) Duke University
7) Georgetown University
8) Middlebury College
9) Princeton University
10) Trinity College
How close do your readers think they got?
Thank you
I think Hampden-Sydney belongs on the list and possibly Washington & Lee.
ReplyDeleteMuffatola! Do you put these postings up just to rankle my ire! First of all, there is no such thing, in 2025, as a "Preppy College". The last campus to even remotely qualify for such appellation may have been Bowdoin, circa 2008. To suggest that places like Amherst, Princeton and Georgetown are, in 2025, "Preppy" is to display the very apex of ignorance. That said, with a nod to George Orwell, "Ignorance is bravery." Accordingly I waste more of precious time to instruct those brave acolytes of Muffy on the "Preppiest Colleges of 1975", in the following order of Prep Majesty:
ReplyDelete1. Trinity
2. Williams
3. Dartmouth
4. Bowdoin
5. Middlebury
6. Hamilton
7. Colgate
8. Lafayette
9. Princeton
10. Smith
Nope
DeleteThese sort of lists appear to be put together by someone who has never set foot on any of the campuses listed.
ReplyDeleteThere are no longer any large schools with a predominantly preppy culture. If it has more than 5,000 undergrads, it's not preppy.
There are no preppy schools in California.
There's more prep culture at some southern and midwestern liberal arts colleges than many New Englanders would readily admit.
But 75% of the schools listed are not preppy.
The account that made this list has 277,000 followers. No wonder the kids often totally misunderstand how the world works.
ReplyDeleteFirst and foremost, take lists like this as 'I can find prep if I look for it.' Most universities and colleges are quite diverse in almost any way one could imagine. Ivy League campuses and students do not, on the whole, feel very preppy today.
ReplyDeleteIn that light, It's a decent list. Places one is more likely to find the prep mindset, to me are NESCAC schools, Ivy League schools, and small private VA schools like Washington & Lee, Hampden-Sydney, Hollins, Sweet Briar, Randolph-Macon. Georgetown, Colgate, Duke? Sure.
Colleges that actually feel preppy today might also include Vanderbilt, Miami University in Ohio, Elon University, St. Lawrence, College of Charleston.
I find your list baffling. Can’t stop shaking my head.
DeleteThe places I listed are popular alternatives to Ivies and small New England or upper New York colleges that are out of reach for many students - even smart children of friends graduating St. Albans, Sidwell, Madeira and Holton Arms often get shut out due to exceedingly competitive admissions. As I said, few if any college campuses feel prep today.
DeleteAgreed on the VA Private Colleges. Very small, very preppy enclaves. The positive trad aspects of these schools have remined unchanged when compared to peer colleges elsewhere in the country.
DeleteColumbia University (Ivy) would hardly qualify as "preppy" these days. Just take a walk around campus, or read the news, and this is clear.
ReplyDeleteThe College of William and Mary decades ago. Today, not so much.
ReplyDeleteIndeed. W&M is more crunchy-haired sandals enthusiasts now. I can think of a half dozen Virginia schools that should be before them on a prep ranking... although Andrew above already spelled those out with the ODAC schools.
Deletemy son goes to Duke- definitely not prep. Most Chinese college- maybe
ReplyDeleteUniversity of Chicago is preppy. LMFAO.
ReplyDeleteCollege of the Holy Cross, ConnCollege, all NESCAC for that matter, to name a few notable preppy colleges. Also, since when are tech school’s preppy?
ReplyDeleteHave to agree with Bud: Washington and Lee as well as Hampden-Sydnery ... collars up !!!
ReplyDeleteLook at it this way... if the students attend class in their pajamas, or the like, it ain't prep. Until schools enforce dress codes and students adhere to them, there are no "prep" schools any more. It's pretty sad, actually.
ReplyDelete