84 Alford Rd, Great Barrington, MA 01230
Website: Bard College at Simons Rock
No other college in the country does what we do.
We’re a small, selective, supportive, intensive college of the liberal arts and sciences in the middle of the Berkshires, one of the nation’s cultural and natural treasures. All of our 400 students come to us after 10th or 11th grade in high school. We give them a broad-minded, paradigm-shifting education; faculty trained in the country’s best universities; inspired and inspiring classes; first-class facilities for the sciences, the arts, and athletics; and an astonishing range of opportunities for conducting specialized research and gaining hands-on experience. We offer 43 concentrations, many of them interdisciplinary; our academic program leads to an AA or a BA.
Simon’s Rock was founded by Elizabeth Blodgett Hall in 1966. In 1979 we became part of Bard College (established in 1860), one of the country’s outstanding (and most innovative) liberal arts colleges, located 50 miles away, in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.
We offer an education with immediate practical value and lasting implications for our students’ minds and hearts and hands: their intellect, their imagination, the work they’ll do in the world.
We’re a college of the liberal arts and sciences. What does that mean? At Simon’s Rock, it means our students become conversant in the languages of science and math, the humanities, the social sciences, and the arts. It means they’re able to translate from one language to another, to find commonalities, connections. We also expect our students to write (and write, and write) in every class, tangible proof of their ability to think clearly and coherently and to develop a complex, persuasive argument. Finally—and crucially—we ask our students to take responsibility for the shape and scope of their education, working with advisors and professors to choose (or design) courses, independent projects, and off-campus opportunities.
Our education, in other words, isn’t just a series of isolated classes; it’s part of the fabric of our students’ daily lives. Wrestling with unfamiliar and complicated ideas, dreaming about improbable solutions, finding a new language to describe the human condition—this is the kind of thing we do at a seminar table, in the dining hall, in the meadow, and in a friend’s room in the darkest hours of the morning.
Bard College at Simon's Rock, more commonly known as Simon's Rock and previously as Simon's Rock College of Bard (see below), is a small, residential, selective four-year liberal arts college located in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. The foremost of the many unusual things about Simon's Rock is that it is an "early college", designed for students to enroll immediately after completing the tenth or eleventh grade, rather than after graduating from high school. Students who attend Simon's Rock rarely earn a high school diploma, and matriculate, on average, at the age of 16.
The college's founder, Elizabeth Blodgett Hall, had formerly been a private girls' school headmistress at Concord Academy. She concluded from her experience, and that of her colleagues, that for many students the latter two years of high school are wasted on repetitious and overly constrained work. Many young students, she thought, are ready to pursue college-level academic work some time before the usual system asks it of them.
While Simon's Rock is the only accredited four-year early college to date and still the singular college or university to take this approach with all of its students, it is now one of a number of early college entrance programs that provide opportunities for students to enter college one or more years ahead of their traditional high school graduation date.
Because Simon's Rock provides this accelerated program, it also attracts many students who might not consider a "liberal arts" education if they had to wait two more years. Computer science, pre-med, and math students read Plato, Dante and Nietzsche, alongside dancers, artists, and literary students. A majority of students transfer to larger institutions after receiving an Associate of Arts degree degree after two years, although many stay for four to receive a Bachelor of Arts.
Learn more about Associate Degree Programs
A program that is a structured combination of the arts, biological and physical sciences, social sciences, and humanities, emphasizing breadth of study. Includes instruction in independently designed, individualized, or regular programs. See more Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies Schools or Online Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies School Degree Programs
Learn more about Bachelor’s Degree Programs
A program that focuses on environment-related issues using scientific, social scientific, or humanistic approaches or a combination. Includes instruction in the basic principles of ecology and environmental science and related subjects such as policy, politics, law, economics, social aspects, planning, pollution control, natural resources, and the interactions of human beings and nature. See more Environmental Studies. Schools or Online Environmental Studies. School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the process and techniques of original composition in various literary forms such as the short story, poetry, the novel, and others. Includes instruction in technical and editorial skills, criticism, and the marketing of finished manuscripts. See more Creative Writing Schools or Online Creative Writing School Degree Programs
A general program that focuses on the English language, including its history, structure and related communications skills; and the literature and culture of English-speaking peoples. See more English Language and Literature Schools or Online English Language and Literature School Degree Programs
An acting program instructs individuals in the art of communicating dramatic information and ideas in a natural and believable fashion. This program includes instruction in voice and acting speech, stage dialects, movement, improvisation, acting styles, theatre history, script interpretation, and actor coaching. See more Acting Schools
A program that focuses on the general study of dramatic works and their performance. Includes instruction in major works of dramatic literature, dramatic styles and types, and the principles of organizing and producing full live or filmed productions. See more Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts Schools or Online Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the principles and techniques for communicating dramatic information, ideas, moods, and feelings through the composition of creative written works for the theatre and/or film. Includes instruction in creative writing craft, scene writing, script development, stage and/or camera instructions, line and moment analysis, script reading, script editing, and the creation of full productions See more Playwriting and Screenwriting Schools
A program that prepares individuals to apply artistic, technical and dramatic principles and techniques to the communication of dramatic information, ideas, moods, and feelings through technical theatre methods. Includes instruction in set design, lighting design, sound effects, theatre acoustics, scene painting, property management, costume design, and technical direction and production and use of computer applications to support these functions above. See more Technical Theatre/Theatre Design and Technology Schools
A program that focuses on the French language and related dialects and creoles. Includes instruction in French philology, Metropolitan French, Canadian French, African and Caribbean Creoles, French regional dialects, and applications in business, science/technology, and other settings. See more French Language and Literature Schools
A program that focuses on language, language development, and relationships among languages and language groups from a humanistic and/or scientific perspective. Includes instruction in subjects such as psycholinguistics, behavioral linguistics, language acquisition, sociolinguistics, mathematical and computational linguistics, grammatical theory and theoretical linguistics, philosophical linguistics, philology and historical linguistics, comparative linguistics, phonetics, phonemics, dialectology, semantics, functional grammar and linguistics, language typology, lexicography, morphology and syntax, orthography, stylistics, structuralism, rhetoric, and applications to artificial intelligence. See more Linguistics Schools
A program that focuses on the Spanish language and related dialects. Includes instruction in Spanish philology, Modern Castillan, various Latin American dialects, regional Spanish dialects, and applications in business, science/technology, and other settings. See more Spanish Language and Literature Schools
This major program studies the history of America from the Pre-Columbian period to the present. This program includes instruction in American historiography, American history sources and materials, historical research methods, and applications to the study of specific themes, issues, periods, and institutions. See more American History United States Schools
A program that focuses on the general study and interpretation of the past, including the gathering, recording, synthesizing and criticizing of evidence and theories about past events. Includes instruction in historiography; historical research methods; studies of specific periods, issues and cultures; and applications to areas such as historic preservation, public policy, and records administration. See more History Schools or Online History School Degree Programs
A general program that focuses on the introductory study and appreciation of music and the performing arts. Includes instruction in music, dance, and other performing arts media. See more General Music Schools or Online General Music School Degree Programs
A general program that prepares individuals to express ideas, feelings, and/or inner visions through the performance of one or more of the dance disciplines, including but not limited to ballet, modern, jazz, ethnic, and folk dance, and that focuses on the study and analysis of dance as a cultural phenomenon. Includes instruction in technique, choreography, Laban notation, dance history and criticism, and dance production. See more General Dance Schools
A program that focuses on ideas and their logical structure, including arguments and investigations about abstract and real phenomena. Includes instruction in logic, ethics, aesthetics, epistemology, metaphysics, symbolism, and history of philosophy, and applications to the theoretical foundations and methods of other disciplines. See more General Philosophy Schools or Online General Philosophy School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the nature of religious belief and specific religious and quasi-religious systems. Includes instruction in phenomenology; the sociology, psychology, philosophy, anthropology, literature and art of religion; mythology; scriptural and textual studies; religious history and politics; and specific studies of particular faith communities and their behavior. See more General Religion/Religious Studies Schools or Online General Religion/Religious Studies School Degree Programs
A general, undifferentiated program that focuses on the visual and performing arts and that may prepare individuals in any of the visual artistic media or performing disciplines. See more Visual and Performing Arts Schools
Students of Art History study of the historical development of art as a social and intellectual phenomenon. Art History programs include the analysis of works of art, and art conservation, art history research methods, connoisseurship, the preservation and conservation of works of art, and the study of specific periods, cultures, styles, and themes. See more Art History, Criticism and Conservation Schools or Online Art History, Criticism and Conservation School Degree Programs
A program that prepares individuals creatively and technically to express emotions, ideas, or inner visions by constructing art works from woven or non-woven fabrics and fibrous materials. Includes instruction in weaving techniques and loom operation; non-woven techniques such as knitting, coiling, netting, and crocheting; quilting; dyeing and pigmentation; printing and other finishing techniques; pattern design; tapestry; and personal style development. See more Fiber, Textile and Weaving Arts Schools
A program that prepares individuals to generally function as creative artists in the visual and plastic media. Includes instruction in the traditional fine arts media (drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, CAD/CAM) and/or modern media (ceramics, textiles, intermedia, photography, digital images); theory of art; color theory; composition and perspective; anatomy; the techniques and procedures for maintaining equipment and managing a studio; and art portfolio marketing. See more Fine/Studio Arts Schools
A program that prepares individuals to apply artistic principles and techniques to the professional design of commercial fashions, apparel, and accessories, and the management of fashion development projects. Includes instruction in apparel design; accessory design; the design of men's', women's', and children's' wear; flat pattern design; computer-assisted design and manufacturing; concept planning; designing in specific materials; labor and cost analysis; history of fashion; fabric art and printing; and the principles of management and operations in the fashion industry. See more Fashion/Apparel Design Schools or Online Fashion/Apparel Design School Degree Programs
A program in the applied visual arts that focuses on the general principles and techniques for effectively communicating ideas and information, and packaging products, in digital and other formats to business and consumer audiences, and that may prepare individuals in any of the applied art media. See more Design & Visual Communications Schools or Online Design & Visual Communications School Degree Programs
Learn to communicate dramatic information, ideas, moods, and feelings through the making and producing of films and videos. This major includes instruction in the theory of film; film technology and equipment operation; film production; film directing; film editing; cinematographic art; film audio; techniques for making specific types of films and/or videos; the , use of computer applications to record or enhance images, audio or effect and the planning and management of film/video operations. See more Film/Video & Cinematography Schools or Online Film/Video & Cinematography School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the principles and techniques of communicating information, ideas, moods, and feelings through the creation of images on photographic film, plates, digital images and that may prepare individuals to be professional photographic artists. Includes instruction in camera and equipment operation and maintenance, film and plate developing, light and composition, films and printing media, color and special effects, photographic art, photographic history, use of computer applications to record or enhance images and applications to the photography of various subjects. See more Photography Schools or Online Photography School Degree Programs
A program that prepares individuals creatively and technically to express emotions, ideas, or inner visions in either two or three dimensions, through simultaneous use of a variety of materials and media. See more Intermedia/Multimedia Schools or Online Intermedia/Multimedia School Degree Programs
A program that generally prepares individuals to apply mathematical and scientific principles to solve a wide variety of practical problems in industry, social organization, public works, and commerce. See more General Engineering Schools or Online General Engineering School Degree Programs
A program that prepares individuals for admission to a first-professional program in medicine, osteopathic medicine, or podiatric medicine. See more Pre-Medicine/Pre-Medical Studies Schools
A program that focuses on the application of public health specializations, the social and behavioral sciences, and policy and communications methods to the study of health problems in low- and middle-income countries and regions, and prepares individuals to function as professional international health specialists. Includes instruction in health education and promotion, research design and evaluation, infectious disease epidemiology, international health policy and management, public nutrition and food security, information systems, program evaluation, medical anthropology, international communication, behavioral sciences, maternal and child health, demography and population policy, and health care finance and economics. See more International Public Health/International Health Schools or Online International Public Health/International Health School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the dynamic social relations between and among majority and minority groups and different minority groups, and ways to promote mutual tolerance, inter-group cooperation, and the leadership and management of diverse groups and diversity issues in family, educational, recreational, and work settings. Includes instruction in ethnic and cultural studies, group psychology, sociology, anthropology, conflict resolution, human services and resources, and applications to various functional environments. See more Intercultural/Multicultural and Diversity Studies Schools
Students in this program study general biology at an introductory level. This major provides students with a broad overview of biology and includes instruction in general biology and programs covering a variety of biological specializations. See more Biology/Biological Sciences Schools or Online Biology/Biological Sciences School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the scientific study of the relationships and interactions of small-scale biological systems, such as organisms, to each other, to complex and whole systems, and to the physical and other non-biological aspects of their environments. Includes instruction in biogeochemistry; landscape and/or marine/aquatic dynamics; decomposition; global and regional elemental budgets; biotic and abiotic regulation of nutrient cycles; ecophysiology; ecosystem resilience, disturbance, and succession; community and habitat dynamics; organismal interactions (co-evolution, competition, predation); paleoecology, and evolutionary ecology. See more Ecology Schools
A program that focuses on the application of mathematics and statistics to the solution of functional problems in fields such as engineering and the applied sciences. Includes instruction in natural phenomena modeling continuum mechanics, reaction-diffusion, wave propagation, dynamic systems, numerical analysis, controlled theory, asymptotic methods, variation, optimization theory, inverse problems, and applications to specific scientific and industrial topics. See more General Applied Mathematics Schools
A general program that focuses on the analysis of quantities, magnitudes, forms, and their relationships, using symbolic logic and language. Includes instruction in algebra, calculus, functional analysis, geometry, number theory, logic, topology and other mathematical specializations. See more General Mathematics Schools or Online General Mathematics School Degree Programs
A general program that focuses on the scientific study of the composition and behavior of matter, including its micro- and macro-structure, the processes of chemical change, and the theoretical description and laboratory simulation of these phenomena. See more General Chemistry Schools or Online General Chemistry School Degree Programs
A general program that focuses on the scientific study of matter and energy, and the formulation and testing of the laws governing the behavior of the matter-energy continuum. Includes instruction in classical and modern physics, electricity and magnetism, thermodynamics, mechanics, wave properties, nuclear processes, relativity and quantum theory, quantitative methods, and laboratory methods. See more General Physics Schools
A program that focuses on the general study and provision of human and social services to individuals and communities and prepares individuals to work in public and private human services agencies and organizations. Includes instruction in the social sciences, psychology, principles of social service, human services policy, planning and evaluation, social services law and administration, and applications to particular issues, services, localities, and populations. See more Human Services Schools or Online Human Services School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the general study of human social behavior and social institutions using any of the methodologies common to the social sciences and/or history, or an undifferentiated program of study in the social sciences. See more General Social Sciences Schools or Online General Social Sciences School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the systematic study of human beings, their antecedents and related primates, and their cultural behavior and institutions, in comparative perspective. Includes instruction in biological/physical anthropology, primatology, human paleontology and prehistoric archeology, hominid evolution, anthropological linguistics, ethnography, ethnology, ethnohistory, socio-cultural anthropology, psychological anthropology, research methods, and applications to areas such as medicine, forensic pathology, museum studies, and international affairs. See more General Anthropology Schools or Online General Anthropology School Degree Programs
This program studies the history, society, politics, culture, and economics of the United States and its Pre-Columbian and colonial predecessors, including the flow of immigrants from other societies. See more American/United States Studies/Civilization Schools
This four year program focuses on the history, society, politics, culture, and economics of the peoples of the Asian Continent. Asian Studies programs include the study of Asian diasporas overseas. See more Asian Studies/Civilization Schools or Online Asian Studies/Civilization School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the history, society, politics, culture, and economics of one or more of the peoples of East Asia, defined as including China, Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Taiwan, Tibet, related borderlands and island groups, and including the study of the East Asian diasporas overseas. See more East Asian Studies Schools
A program that focuses on the history, society, politics, culture, and economics of one or more of the peoples of the European Continent, including the study of European migration patterns and colonial empires. See more European Studies/Civilization Schools
A program that focuses on the history, society, politics, culture, and economics of Germany, the neighboring countries of Austria and Switzerland, the German minorities in neighboring European countries, and the historical areas of German influence across Europe and overseas. See more German Studies Schools
A program that focuses on the systematic study of the spatial distribution and interrelationships of people, natural resources, plant and animal life. Includes instruction in historical and political geography, cultural geography, economic and physical geography, regional science, cartographic methods, remote sensing, spatial analysis, and applications to areas such as land-use planning, development studies, and analysis of specific countries, regions, and resources. See more General Geography Schools or Online General Geography School Degree Programs
A general program that focuses on the systematic study of political institutions and behavior. Includes instruction in political philosophy, political theory, comparative government and politics, political parties and interest groups, public opinion, political research methods, studies of the government and politics of specific countries, and studies 0f specific political institutions and processes. See more General Political Science and Government Schools or Online General Political Science and Government School Degree Programs
A program that focuses on the systematic study of international politics and institutions, and the conduct of diplomacy and foreign policy. Includes instruction in international relations theory, foreign policy analysis, national security and strategic studies, international law and organization, the comparative study of specific countries and regions, and the theory and practice of diplomacy. See more International Relations and Affairs Schools or Online International Relations and Affairs School Degree Programs
A general program that focuses on the scientific study of individual and collective behavior, the physical and environmental bases of behavior, and the analysis and treatment of behavior problems and disorders. Includes instruction in the principles of the various subfields of psychology, research methods, and psychological assessment and testing methods. See more General Psychology Schools or Online General Psychology School Degree Programs
A general program that focuses on computers, computing problems and solutions, and the design of computer systems and user interfaces from a scientific perspective. Includes instruction in the principles of computational science, and computing theory; computer hardware design; computer development and programming; and applications to a variety of end-use situations. See more General Computer Science Schools or Online General Computer Science School Degree Programs
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| Percent of Students International: | 4% |
| On-Campus Housing Available: | Yes |
| Percent of Students Living On-Campus: | 100% |
| Freshman Students Required to Live on Campus: | No |
| Tuition & Fees (undergraduate) | Expenses | ||
Published Tuition and Fees: |
$ 37,075 | ||
Average Tuition for Full-Time Undergrads: |
$ 36,795 | ||
| Financial Aid | Avg. Amount Received | % of Students Receiving Aid | |
Federal Grants: |
$ 2,496 | 39% | |
State and Local Grants: |
$ 1,509 | 6% | |
Institutional Grants: |
$ 15,574 | 78% | |
Student Loans: |
$ 3,158 | 58% | |
Any Aid: |
86% |
| Acceptance Rate: | 89% (Selective) |
| Test Scores | |
| SAT Scores: | |
| % of Students Submitting SAT Scores: | 25% |
| Bottom 25th Percentile: | Verbal: 620, Math: 535 |
| Top 75th Percentile: | Verbal: 730, Math: 680 |
| ACT Scores: | |
| % of Students Submitting ACT Scores: | 8% |
| Bottom 25th Percentile: | Composite: 24, Verbal: 26, Math: 25 |
| Top 75th Percentile: | Composite: 29, Verbal: 31, Math: 30 |
| Application Fee: | $ 50.00 |
| Formal Demonstration of Competencies: | Recommended |
| High School Diploma or Equivalent: | Not Required |
| High School GPA: | Recommended |
| High School Rank: | Recommended |
| High School Record: | Required |
| Recommendations: | Required |
| TOEFL: | Required |
| Test Scores: | Not Required |
College Advice on Bard College at Simons Rock |
Best AnswerActually you could. Most kids will be about 16, but you absolutely can. I know they have an upper college to which most kids are 18. I would call and ask if the requirements are the same for you. I would also check out Live Journal (simonsrock2) for more info and you should ask questions. I am thinking of applying this fall and I would be 16 if I end up going.You may also check Bard College (one in NY) and you may feel like their more kids your on age. Good Luck! |
Question: Simon's Rock College at Bard? Anybody know anything about it ? PLEASE HELP!?if u know any info or anything about this college or if u go there please tell me! It's very important to me!39 months ago
Best AnswerIt's geared towards high school students who finish a few years earlier (16 and 17). They have really small classes and seem to have a lot more time to devote to each individual student. The curriculum also looks pretty intense. |