A printable application form is available online at http://www.simons-rock.edu/admissions/application/applic.pdf

It is also possible to apply online through College Link (http://www.collegelink.com)

• Student essay
• Parent essay
• 2 recommendations (1 from current teacher)
• Scores from at least one of SAT, ACT, P-SAT, PLAN
• Personal interview
• Foreign students must also submit TOEFL scores.
• $40 application fee.
• Additional application for financial aid.

As the only young scholars' college, Simon’s Rock (SRC) is currently unique in the US, if not the world. Unlike all the other early entrance programs, SRC is a full liberal arts college catering exclusively to advanced young students. This small, fully accredited liberal arts college offers its students Associate of Arts or Bachelor of Arts degrees in a variety of fields. These degrees are designed as 2-year and 4-year programs, respectively.

The rural campus with small class sizes provides an excellent environment for meeting the needs of young gifted students. This type of program is not necessarily better or worse than more common early entrance programs located within traditional college settings. Certainly, this program has a challenge to establish a suitable level of curriculum without the advantages of a pre-existing college environment, but to their advantage they are not bound by the traditional mold. SRC also sidesteps conflicts that can occur when early entrance students are subject to different rules than ordinary students on the campuses in which they reside. The bottom line is that SRC is built from the ground up to serve the needs of early entrance students. The downside is the limited resources of its relatively small size and the potential for exclusionary attitudes that may develop in the absence of interaction with a more varied peer group.

SRC is administratively affiliated with Bard College (more information in the “Sponsoring College” section below), and this alliance allows SRC access to resources and materials you would not normally expect in a program its size.

First year students are required to live on campus and have three dorms reserved for them (male, female and coed) each of which has staff available to help ease the transition. Upper class students serve as “resident assistants” and along with staff “residence directors” live in the same dorms to help ease the transition and see to student needs. Students are actively involved in decision making process at SRC, including “House Councils”, campus-wide “Judicial Committee” and serving in advisory roles on the committees responsible for awarding scholarships and approving curriculum.

“There are also a variety of support systems in place to promote healthy personal development. Topics such as dealing with stress, sexuality, nutrition, and environmental influences on health are addressed in the annual series of campus lectures and discussions for new students. Nurses, physicians, and mental health counselors offer a variety of clinical services through the health service facility located on campus.” - Simon’s Rock College of Bard: The College for Younger Scholars , p 56.

The campus itself is located in a semi-rural forested environment with plenty of open spaces, but still part of the larger community of Great Barrington and the Southern Berkshires. Many of the campus facilities and most of the events are open to the surrounding community. Many students volunteer in some form of community service and the college enjoys good rapport with locals.

SRC is accredited by the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, and offers its students Associate of the Arts (AA) and Bachelor of the Arts (BA) degrees.

The program is divided into two branches each lasting approximately 2 years, respectively the “Lower College” and “Upper College”. As one might expect, graduates of the Lower College receive AA degrees and then have the option of proceeding to the Upper College to pursue a BA degree. The AA program is unspecialized in that the degree earned does not reflect on any particular major or course of study. Instead students are required to complete a basic curriculum of about 30 credits and an additional 30 credits of electives, chosen from any appropriate courses the college offers.

• AA degree requirements:
  • Writing and Thinking Workshop
  • First-Year Seminar I & II
  • Sophomore Seminar
  • A Cultural Perspectives Seminar
  • Approved Arts Course(s)
  • A Mathematics Course
  • Approved Natural Science Course
  • A year of Foreign Language
  • Four non-credit Recreational Activities Program courses

SRC places a good deal of emphasis on “Writing and Thinking” as well as other forms of self-expression. “New students are often surprised to learn that ... papers are required in math and dance classes as well as in literature, philosophy or social studies.” ( Simon’s Rock College of Bard: The College for Younger Scholars , p 9). They also emphasize a holistic and interdisciplinary approach to ensure that all students have the basic skills with which to be effective members of society, including training in basic math and science. Throughout one’s education at SRC, students will find small classes size (8-12) and lots of personal attention, which are the trademarks of a small college such as this. In this way, SRC works to further the development of critical thinking skills, independence and self-confidence in its students.

Students who complete the AA program have three options, they may enter the Upper College and complete their BA at SRC, they may automatically transfer to Bard College (provided they meet the minimal GPA requirement), or they may transfer to another four-year undergraduate institution where they will typically rank as a junior or sophomore with advanced standing. Counseling and assistance is available to students who wish to transfer to other colleges.

The BA program at SRC is for the most part not markedly different from that available at most other institutions. Currently SRC offers 37 BA Concentrations which students can pursue; these include typical topics such as Music, Photography, and Literary Studies, and less typical BA degrees such as Physics and Mathematics. One important feature of the SRC BA program is that all students are required to spend a year writing a senior thesis:

“The focus of students’ senior year is the Senior Thesis. A year-long, eight-credit project, it offers seniors the opportunity to complete a significant, extended study that is the culmination of their baccalaureate work at Simon’s Rock. ... The responsibility for selecting and organizing the Senior Thesis project rests largely with the student. ... All projects conclude with a substantial written thesis that is eventually bound and placed in the permanent collection in the college library.” - Simon’s Rock College of Bard: Catalog 2001-2002 , p. 18

SRC is a unique opportunity for young students to find a college all their own, and the structure of AA and BA provides students with opportunities to exploit SRC in the way that will be most useful to them. Some students find that they only want an alternative to the last two years of high school while others find that small campus and personalized attention are exactly what they are looking for in an undergraduate education.

The college sponsors a variety of lecture series and cultural events on campus. Recent lecture series include the Humanities Forum, the Kellogg Lectures (dealing with current issues from a feminist perspective), the DuBois Lecture Series (featuring distinguished scholars, historians and writers of African descent), and the Poetry and Fiction Series. The South Berkshire Concerts Series provides for contemporary and classical music performances by accomplished artists several times each year. In addition, film series bring a variety of American and foriegn films to campus.

SRC considers themselves to be part of the Great Barrington community, and thus many of the events and facilities of the campus are open to the community at large. Students also participate in the community through a variety of service projects. Examples of way student have made a contribution include, tutoring at local schools, visiting the nursing home, cleaning trash off local highways, and being active in religious groups in the community. Students also have the responsibility for the recycling program on campus and giving tours to campus visitors.

The required Recreational Activities Program provides students with a variety of team and individual sports options. These include soccer, basketball, volleyball, tennis, swimming and martial arts. In addition, the surrounding forests, rivers, and mountains provide opportunities for camping, backpacking, canoeing, skiing, snowboarding and a variety of other activities.

The college encourages student initiated activities and provides some funds to student groups via the “Community Council”. Student run musical and artistic exhibitions are common. There is also a newspaper, yearbook and literary publication.

SRC also is rich in tradition regarding graduation and other activites.

SRC has its own accreditation as a degree granting institution and is not directly dependant on any other university. Colleges and universities are typically grouped based on the highest degree that they regularly award, which in the case of Simon’s Rock College of Bard is the Bachelor’s degree.

The above data may be as much as five years old. Number of majors may include 4-year pre-professional programs.

SRC is located on the outskirts of Great Barrington, MA (population 7,500) in the southwest corner of the state. This town is approximately 40-50 miles from each of Albany, NY, Springfield, MA, and Hartford, CT. It is also 130 miles north of New York City and 130 miles west of Boston, MA.

SRC is administratively partnered with Bard's College, some distance away in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. This affiliation means that many of the resources of Bard’s College are automatically available to SRC students. This includes the ability to automatically transfer to Bard’s after having earned an AA degree from SRC. Bard College is also involved running the BHSEC early entrance program.

No mission statement is available, however reading about the history of SRC does provide some insights into the goals of Simon’s Rock: http://www.simons-rock.edu/about/history.html For detailed comparison information and college rankings, we recommend America's Best Colleges published by US News & World Reports and available online at a cost of $10.