Lake Forest College

Lake Forest College, fittingly located on the shore of Lake Michigan, offers its about 1,500 undergrads a liberal arts education with around 40 majors from which to choose. Also on offer: four dual-degree programs -- whereby students receive their bachelor's as well as an advanced degree -- with partner universities, in subjects ranging from law to engineering to pharmacy. With its campus 30 miles north of Chicago, Lake Forest makes the most of the opportunities and resources the city provides. In fact, it has an on-campus hub -- the Center for Chicago Programs -- that arranges field trips, brings in speakers, and coordinates academic projects in the city. Students can even spend a semester living and learning in Lake Forest's College in the Loop program; they live downtown and study Chicago-specific topics. The Loop program is only one of the many off-campus learning programs available; the college offers an impressive array of overseas and domestic opportunities, including the research-based Oak Ridge Science Semester in Tennessee. Popular majors include finance, communications, and biology. Incoming students are enrolled in the First-Year Studies Program, which emphasizes critical thinking and writing skills through specialized introductory courses in a variety of topics examining cultures, religions, and literature. And while Chicago is only an hour's train ride away, students experience a bucolic setting on campus with its wooded ravines and proximity to Lake Michigan.