Greenes' Guides to Educational Planning: The Hidden Ivies: Thirty Colleges of Excellence [Paperback]

Howard Greene (Author), Matthew W. Greene (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 25, 2000 | Series: Greenes' Guides to Educational Planning

The Hidden Ivies focuses on liberal arts colleges and universities that are comparable quality to the Ivies. Based on surveys and interviews with students as well as college presidents, deans of faculty, and other administrators, The Hidden Ivies presents an insider perspective of thirty leading institutions of exceptional merit. Thee colleges and universities provide an outstanding educational experience for the gifted college-bound student and provide the foundations for life after graduation.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Greenes’ Guides have always been a source of great information and timely advice, and these new editions are no exception.” (Tina Segalla Grant, Director of College Counseling, Choate Rosemary Hall School )

About the Author

Howard Greene, M.A., M.Ed., is the president of Howard Greene & Associates, the nation's leading independent educational consulting company, and is a former Princeton University admissions officer and member of the Faculty Board of Advisors. Howard has counseled thousands of students for almost forty years and has been a consultant for numerous schools, colleges, and corporations. A graduate of Dartmouth College, he holds master's degrees from Harvard and New York University. He lives in Wilton, Connecticut.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Collins Reference; 1 edition (July 25, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060953624
• ISBN-13: 978-0060953621
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,368,442 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best College Guide for Academic Stars, December 18, 2001

By 

Bennet Goldberg (Los Altos, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greenes' Guides to Educational Planning: The Hidden Ivies: Thirty Colleges of Excellence (Paperback)

The Greenes' "Hidden Ivies" is the best overall guide to the best colleges that are not covered in their other book covering the Ivy League universities. The contents are up to date, detailed, cover all aspects of these schools, and are free of the kneejerk conservative agenda that underlie some of the other detailed college guides, e.g. "The Best 100 Colleges". The approach in this book is somewhat similar to Pope's "40 Colleges That Change Lives", although the latter is geared more to B students, while this book is geared to A students (to oversimplify!)

What comes across clearly in the Greenes' approach is that these schools are the equal of the Ivy League schools in every respect, with perhaps a bit less stress and pressure. In fact, a number of these schools (e.g. Amherst, Middlebury, and Pomona) are actually more selective than at least some of the Ivies. Additionally this book, like Pope's, gets the point across that there are advantages to the more personal learning approach of the liberal arts colleges versus the larger class environments of the Ivy League universities. Students at the top of their class really owe it to themselves to consider these schools in addition to the Ivies. After all, the fact that eight excellent universities decided to formally band together in the 1950s to form an athletic league hardly makes those eight universities "the best" per se. Are Penn and Cornell really "better" than Amherst or Middlebury? Some may think so, but even then it's not because they're in the "Ivy League" (By that measure Stanford, Chicago, and Johns Hopkins wouldn't be top tier either - an assertion that would be ridiculous). In any case, this book is essential reading for any high school achiever interested in going to a top school, i.e. any one of the top 30-40 schools!

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best info on this specific subject., January 1, 2004

By 

Gaetan Lion - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Greenes' Guides to Educational Planning: The Hidden Ivies: Thirty Colleges of Excellence (Paperback)

The Greenes have written numerous college guides. I have read a couple of them. And, based on my firsthand experience they are excellent. They typically address a specific topic. Thus, they avoid or go beyond the bland generalities conveyed by other not so good college guides.

In this book, the Greenes focus on what they call the Hidden Ivies, or 30 schools that they consider meet the educational standards of the actual Ivies. These are mainly top-notch small liberal arts colleges often located on the East Coast. Within this list of 30 schools there are not any surprises. These are very well established renowned institutions, which are often nearly as selective as the Ivy League themselves. In other words, the Hidden Ivies are not so hidden. Indeed, try getting in Amherst, Claremont McKenna, Pomona, or Middlebury. If you can, one could argue you may as well apply to Yale, Princeton, and Harvard.

The Greenes make a good case that the Hidden Ivies offer a superior education that even the actual Ivies can't match. This superior education is a liberal arts curriculum offered on small residential campuses where the institution is often dedicated solely to undergraduate students. This is in contrast to the more prestigious Ivies where a significant amount of resources is diverted towards graduate programs and research. The Greenes further advance their case by sharing the superior record that some of the smaller Hidden Ivies have in the % of their graduates they send on to complete PhDs.

This book is filled with very useful information, including: a) main tips for parents with a child going through the admission process at a Hidden Ivy, b) tips for students, c) tips on what it takes to get in, and d) indication for parents that the actual college choice was a success.

Also, the 30 school profiles are very extensive. Each school is described in detail over 6 pages. It is the result of an extensive survey of the faculty, the administration, and the students. You get many direct quotes from students on how they like (or not) various aspects of their respective schools. By reading these school profiles you will get an excellent idea if a specific school is the right fit for you (or your child). And, for the Greenes, the proper school fit between student and college is far more important than the actual name recognition of the college. In other words, a happy and successful student at Emory will have a far better start in his academic and professional life than his counterpart who may feel isolated and over pressured at Princeton. Thus, the proper match is the key.

The authors style is very lively and makes this book easy to read. If you are considering one of these schools, this book is a must read.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Second Tier is not Second Best, December 2, 2001

By 

realitycheck66 "PJ" (San Carlos, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greenes' Guides to Educational Planning: The Hidden Ivies: Thirty Colleges of Excellence (Paperback)

People know of the Ivy League schools because they're old and established, have produced numerous notable people, have some tremendous programs, and have received lots of PR. Often they're selected for potential to impart a "credential" or "reputation." But there are trade-offs. (I read about them in Greene's other eye-opening book on the Elite Colleges.)

I'm a parent and I wanted to start a list of potential colleges for my child that didn't have quite the hype, but offered strong academic programs, meaningful relationships with teachers, and perhaps not quite the stress and snobbery. This, and Loren Pope's books, are the best ones I've found to do that. Includes schools you might not have ever considered.

Balance these with something like the Fiske guide to give you a real sense of what it feels like to be at these colleges. Slim on West Coast schools, but maybe not too many fit the bill. Good for West Coast students, who often don't consider colleges outside of their state university and college system.

High Schools should have this and the Pope and Fiske books on the College Center shelves. Probably they don't, or the students wouldn't know it was worth it to look at. So, kick in the bucks and share among friends.