This Week’s College: Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee (A College That Changes Lives)
Rhodes College is located in the heart of one of the most vibrant music cities of in the South. Although its architecture belongs more to a Brontë novel than to Graceland, this small (a little over 2,000 undergrads) liberal arts college takes its location seriously and it uses its placement in Memphis as an opportunity to give back to the community that supports it. Over 80% of the undergraduates at Rhodes are engaged in community service in one form or another at Rhodes and for the last two years Newsweek has listed Rhodes as the #1 Service Oriented College in the country.
The average class size is 14 and the student/professor ratio is small (10:1). 97% of faculty hold terminal degrees in their fields (that’s a lot for a liberal arts college btw) and they do their own teaching (so not TAs, or grad students), so you’re getting real time with real professors in small classes. And that makes a big difference. You know your professors here. And they know you. They are there to help you and to share their research with you as they guide your learning and help you to grow over your time here. A friend of mine who is a professor here was baffled by this when she first came to Rhodes. She was used to UVA and being a TA and having 58 students. But at Rhodes she had only 28. And that was in 3 classes!
Service and small class size are not the only focus at Rhodes. They are also about experiential learning with a whopping 75% doing internships during their time at Rhodes. In addition there are the Rhodes Fellowships which allow students to go out into the community and learn about issues facing Memphis. From art collections, to lead in the soil, to time spent in the Mayor’s office, Rhodes students are bringing their skills, expertise and desire to learn all over Memphis both during the academic year and during the summer (there is a summer program that comes with a stipend to support student investigations and studies).
Professors have high expectations. You won’t be in high school any more when you get here. You’ll be expected to be able to write and do it well, to research (not online), to use primary sources, to come up with original ideas, design your labs, analyze data. You’re expected to go to your professors when you need to ask questions (and they will be available to you which is what’s great about a place like Rhodes). You’ll be expected to advance discussion in classes and even to come to class with questions ready to ask.
For students interested in seeing the connections between liberal arts and the real world, a school like Rhodes is a great place. There isn’t anything low key about Rhodes though. It’s a southern school and about 50% of students participate in Greek Life. The other 50% are probably too busy for Greek life. There is always something going on: some 5K to plan, a charity ball, a fundraiser, a dance-a-thon or something else. This is not a school to go to if you’re interested in being a wallflower or if you’re into just being chill somewhere. It’s the kind of place where you have to be good at making decisions because there is no way you can do it all.
And, keep in mind schools with heavy emphasis on community involvement and service are schools with a strong emphasis on values. Rhodes takes that seriously. They even have a course to fulfill a humanities requirement that more than 50% of all undergrads take based on universal values of western thought (the other humanities course tackles big picture issues as well). This may or may not appeal to you. But it’s important to know that this is a school that addresses the ideas of right and wrong, who you are, where you’re going, and what makes you the best you can be, head on.
Pros:
Rhodes College is located in the heart of one of the most vibrant music cities of in the South. Although its architecture belongs more to a Brontë novel than to Graceland, this small (a little over 2,000 undergrads) liberal arts college takes its location seriously and it uses its placement in Memphis as an opportunity to give back to the community that supports it. Over 80% of the undergraduates at Rhodes are engaged in community service in one form or another at Rhodes and for the last two years Newsweek has listed Rhodes as the #1 Service Oriented College in the country.
The average class size is 14 and the student/professor ratio is small (10:1). 97% of faculty hold terminal degrees in their fields (that’s a lot for a liberal arts college btw) and they do their own teaching (so not TAs, or grad students), so you’re getting real time with real professors in small classes. And that makes a big difference. You know your professors here. And they know you. They are there to help you and to share their research with you as they guide your learning and help you to grow over your time here. A friend of mine who is a professor here was baffled by this when she first came to Rhodes. She was used to UVA and being a TA and having 58 students. But at Rhodes she had only 28. And that was in 3 classes!
Service and small class size are not the only focus at Rhodes. They are also about experiential learning with a whopping 75% doing internships during their time at Rhodes. In addition there are the Rhodes Fellowships which allow students to go out into the community and learn about issues facing Memphis. From art collections, to lead in the soil, to time spent in the Mayor’s office, Rhodes students are bringing their skills, expertise and desire to learn all over Memphis both during the academic year and during the summer (there is a summer program that comes with a stipend to support student investigations and studies).
Professors have high expectations. You won’t be in high school any more when you get here. You’ll be expected to be able to write and do it well, to research (not online), to use primary sources, to come up with original ideas, design your labs, analyze data. You’re expected to go to your professors when you need to ask questions (and they will be available to you which is what’s great about a place like Rhodes). You’ll be expected to advance discussion in classes and even to come to class with questions ready to ask.
For students interested in seeing the connections between liberal arts and the real world, a school like Rhodes is a great place. There isn’t anything low key about Rhodes though. It’s a southern school and about 50% of students participate in Greek Life. The other 50% are probably too busy for Greek life. There is always something going on: some 5K to plan, a charity ball, a fundraiser, a dance-a-thon or something else. This is not a school to go to if you’re interested in being a wallflower or if you’re into just being chill somewhere. It’s the kind of place where you have to be good at making decisions because there is no way you can do it all.
And, keep in mind schools with heavy emphasis on community involvement and service are schools with a strong emphasis on values. Rhodes takes that seriously. They even have a course to fulfill a humanities requirement that more than 50% of all undergrads take based on universal values of western thought (the other humanities course tackles big picture issues as well). This may or may not appeal to you. But it’s important to know that this is a school that addresses the ideas of right and wrong, who you are, where you’re going, and what makes you the best you can be, head on.
Pros:
- Strong emphasis on experiential learning and community service
- Small classes taught by well prepared faculty
- Located in a city with a lot of options
- Moderately selective means that despite the great education it’s less challenging to get in
- They give a lot of credit for AP exams of 4 or better
- Private, so cha ching! (although 62% received financial aid this year)
- Small school
- Located in an urban setting
- Some students are overwhelmed at first by what their professors expect them to do (analyze, research – in a library not online, come up with original ideas, etc)
- Some people feel like it’s a little too “Lilly Pulitzer/Vineyard Vines