Today's college spotlight takes us to the small town of Collegeville, Pennsylvania, where we find Ursinus College's attractive 170-acre campus. Ursinus is in many ways the quintessential undergraduate liberal arts college. The school's teaching philosophy focuses on lots of interaction between students and faculty, and with just over 1,500 students and a 12 to 1 student / faculty ratio, Ursinus provides an intimate educational experience for its students.

It's perhaps not too surprising that U.S. News & World Report ranked Ursinus #2 in their list of "up-and-coming liberal arts colleges." The college college's campus features a new performing arts facility, an art museum, and an excellent observatory. Ursinus's quality academics have earned it membership in Phi Beta Kappa. At the same time, Ursinus is not as difficult to get into as the country's most competitive colleges, so mere humans have a chance of taking advantage of the college's educational opportunities.

As a private college just outside of Philadelphia, Ursinus does have a hefty price tag. Luckily, the school does well on the financial aid front. In 2006-7, 94% of students received institutional grants with an average value near $18,000.

To learn more about the costs and admissions requirements of Ursinus College, be sure to check out the Ursinus profile and visit the official Ursinus website. If you're familiar with Ursinus, please share your impressions in the Ursinus College discussion thread in the College Admissions Forum.

Every week I spotlight a great college that might be off the radar of college applicants. If you'd like to recommend a school for a future spotlight, please do so here in the forum.

The personal essay is often a huge source of frustration during the college admissions process. The essay demands a difficult balancing act as you try to make yourself sound good without boasting, as you try to be funny without being trivial, and as you try to write with depth without being long-winded.

I just posted a new sample essay that handles these challenges with great success. Felicity responded to option #4 on the Common Application: "Describe a character in fiction, a historical figure, or a creative work (as in art, music, science, etc.) that has had an influence on you, and explain that influence."

Felicity's essay "Porkopolis" discusses the challenges of being a vegetarian in the South. There to help Felicity in her decision is a rather unusual role model: Lisa Simpson. Is a cartoon character a wise choice for the focus of the personal essay? Read the essay and the critique to decide for yourself.

Today's college spotlight features one of the great undergraduate science and engineering colleges in the United States. While places like M.I.T. and Stanford often top the rankings of best engineering programs, some future engineers prefer a more intimate and personal educational setting. With an entirely undergraduate focus and a mere 735 students, Harvey Mudd College provides just that. The school's 9 to 1 student / faculty ratio means that students get to know their professors well, and undergraduates won't be competing with grad students to do research with the faculty.

Harvey Mudd's curriculum emphasizes the liberal arts and sciences as an essential part of an engineering degree. As a member of the Claremont Colleges, Harvey Mudd gives its students access to all of the academic offerings of the member colleges. The five undergraduate colleges in the consortium mean that a Harvey Mudd student can easily take an English class at Pomona, Sociology at Pitzer, and a language class at Scripps. Library, dining, and other resources are also shared between colleges.

Harvey Mudd College has a hefty price tag, but they do pretty well with financial aid. 85% of students receive aid, and the average institutional grant is over $20,000.

To learn more about the costs and admissions requirements of Harvey Mudd College, be sure to check out the Harvey Mudd profile and visit the official Harvey Mudd website. If you're familiar with Harvey Mudd, please share your thoughts in the Harvey Mudd College discussion thread in the College Admissions Forum.

Every week I spotlight a great college that might be off the radar of college applicants. If you'd like to recommend a school for a future spotlight, please do so here in the forum.

Last week saw a lot of attention on the SAT and ACT when NACAC, the National Association for College Admission Counseling, presented a report criticizing the over-emphasis of standardized test scores in the college admissions process. The heads of admissions from top colleges and universities including Harvard noted that the exam scores aren't the best predictors of college success, and that many institutions place too much weight on the tests when making admissions decisions.

This criticism is good news for students who aren't fans of the ACT and SAT. Despite all the media play, however, the NACAC critique won't have much impact on students applying to college this year. If a school's admissions officers have historically placed significant weight on test scores, chances are they still are.

Non-seniors, however, are likely to see the list of test-optional colleges grow in the near future. I've created a list of the most selective test-optional colleges, and FairTest.org maintains the complete list of over 775 four-year test-optional colleges here.