Saratoga Springs, NY, 12866, United States

Freshmen are immediately integrated into school culture at Skidmore College. Through the First Year Experience Program, freshmen are paired up with peer mentors and placed in introductory Scribner Seminars. Freshmen must live on campus in dorms near other students in their seminar. About 40 adventurous freshman can spend the fall semester in London, part of the First Year Experience program that lets students kick off their college career across the Atlantic. Back at the school’s campus in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., there are close to 100 student clubs and organizations, but no Greek system. Students can eat in traditional dining halls or, if they’re especially ambitious, can cook their own meals in an on-campus kitchen.There are about 50 majors at Skidmore, and students can design their own academic programs, too. All students, regardless of major, will take science and mathematics courses. Outside the classroom, the school sports teams are known as the Thoroughbreds and compete in the NCAA Division III Liberty League. For fun off campus, downtown Saratoga Springs is a mile away. Students can check out horse races at the Saratoga Race Course or tour the historic Saratoga Battlefield. The nearby Adirondack Mountains offer opportunities to ski, snowboard, mountain bike and white water raft, and, for a metropolitan experience, New York, Boston and Montreal are each about a three-hour drive away.Students are encouraged to pair up with faculty members for research projects. Science projects take place in the school’s unique laboratory in the North Woods. The Skidmore student body is about 60 percent female. The curricula at Skidmore has produced notable alumni in the sciences, including Cynthia Carroll, former CEO of mining powerhouse Anglo American; and Laura Taylor, president and CEO of information security company Relevant Technologies.