DePauw Provides "Quintessential College Experience," According to College Prowler Guide
September 7, 2006
September 7, 2006, Greencastle, Ind. - "DePauw is definitely home to the quintessential college experience," declares College Prowler's updated guide to the University. "As with all universities, the experience is what students make it, but DePauw professors and programs seem to make success especially accessible for those who try. The University is also very conducive to building strong social skills and tight-knit friendships that tend to carry on long after graduation."
College Prowler publishes individual guides to each of the nation's top 200 colleges and universities. It ranks each institution in a number of categories, and boasts that each guide's 160 pages presents "unbiased information" that is "written, reviewed and edited by current students." Indeed, the DePauw book is co-authored by Meredith Siemens '05 and Kellie Lee Hasselbeck '04.
The text offers assessments of DePauw's academic programs, faculty, and student life, and is packed with comments from undergraduates, who are not identified by name. One asserts, "I have a great group of friends, I'm getting an excellent education, I have formed many friendly relationships with professors, and I have a lot of fun and have learned a lot. The campus is beautiful; I love the personal, small college atmosphere, and there are a lot of great ways to get involved." Another student enjoys "getting to be a key part in my small classes. I could never speak out in a discussion group of 100, but 
I can easily give my input in a seminar of 14." A third states, "I have loved DePauw for many reasons. I have been able to play a varsity sport, join a sorority, hold leadership positions on campus, do community service, and get to know my professors, among other things ... I would not trade my experience for anything."
The book also lists the "ten best things about DePauw":
- Student & Faculty Ambition
- Campus Involvement
- Greek Life
- Travel Abroad Opportunities
- Monon Bell Weekend
- Alumni Connections
- Winter Term
- Beautiful Campus
- Honors Programs
- Endowment
In her closing note, Meredith Siemens, who was a Media Fellow at DePauw, writes, "As I register for my last classes, order cords for graduation, stand in the student section for my last basketball game, and attend my final sorority formal, I look back and appreciate what the last four years have given me. I will leave here with a piece of paper to hang on the wall, but I hold the intangible benefits much closer to my heart. DePauw has given me knowledge, ambition to succeed, friendships that will last a lifetime, an appreciation for small town life, more Greek letter shirts than I know what to do with, and most importantly, experience and memories I will carry with me forever. I wish you the same happiness I had in my college career; do not take a moment for granted. Good luck!" 
Co-author Kellie Lee Hasselback concludes by stating, "I thank DePauw for all that it has shown and taught me. I'm thankful for the critical eye DePauw has instilled in me, and I am thankful for the knowledge I have gained in and out of the classroom." She adds, "I am thankful that I was able to write this book -- I discovered a lot about DePauw, and I discovered a lot about myself."
Read more samples from the book at College Prowler's Web site.
The 2007 edition of U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges" ranks DePauw University in the top tier of national liberal arts colleges for a seventh consecutive year. DePauw is again among the The Best 361 Colleges in the
new, 2007 guide, and historic East College is pictured on the cover of America's Best Value Colleges: 2007 Edition, which lists DePauw as one of 150 colleges offering excellent academics, generous financial aid packages and relatively low costs. The National Survey of Student Engagement finds that students at DePauw University enjoy significantly more academic challenges, interactions with faculty, collaborations with others and enriching educational experiences than students at peer institutions and the national average at all colleges and universities. DePauw is also among the "Top 50 Most Unwired College Campuses," a survey of all institutions of higher learning -- big and small -- sponsored by Intel Corporation. DePauw is ranked #30 -- the highest of any liberal arts college in America -- in the report.