DePauw University

DePauw University traces its roots to 1837, when Methodists founded Indiana Asbury amid frontier Indiana woods, renaming it in 1884 after philanthropist Washington C. DePauw, who bankrolled its law school ambitions that evolved into a full liberal arts powerhouse. You'll thrive here if you're collaborative, tradition-loving, and content with small-town rhythms—picture a campus of 1,700 undergrads where professors know your name and classmates become lifers. The school's personality skews wholesome Midwest earnest: spirited rivalries, service trips, and a "Tiger Pride" ethos that binds everyone, but tradeoffs hit hard if you crave urban buzz—Greencastle, population 10,000, sits 45 minutes west of Indianapolis, offering cornfields and quiet nights over nightlife, which means weekends often orbit campus events or a drive to Indy for more action.