Students at Trinity College live in an intimate setting in the midst of a bustling state capital. The campus is located in Hartford, Conn., a large city where students can do everything from attending concerts at the Comcast and Webster theatres to learning how to shoot a cannon from the Revolutionary War at the Old State House. Attending school in the states capital also means students have hundreds of opportunities for internships at various organizations throughout the city. Freshmen must live on campus, and will reside and take classes with other students in their selected First-Year Program. Outside of class, students can choose from more than 100 clubs and organizations in which to get involved. There are a handful of Greek organizations on campus. The Trinity sports teams compete in the NCAA Division III New England Small College Athletics Conference, cheered on by the school mascot, a species of rooster known as the bantam. Dont get confused in your college search: Trinity College is a common name for schools of various faiths, but this liberal arts school is nondenominational.In addition to its main location in Hartford, Trinity has a campus in Rome, Italy. More than half of Trinity students study abroad during their time in college. Trinity also has a field station in Ashford, Conn., where students and faculty research subjects in the natural and environmental sciences. Among the colleges notable graduates are Jim Murren, chairman of casino chain MGM Resorts; journalist Tucker Carlson; and columnist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author George Will.

School life is split into three 10 week terms, or trimesters, at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. On the trimester schedule, students take three classes per term and have an extended winter break. All freshmen, who live in residence halls, are randomly assigned to one of seven Minerva Houses, an academic and social community. Upper-class students and faculty can reside in this community. All students can take classes and participate in extracurricular activities in the houses. Each house has its own kitchen for students who want to cook their own meals. There are more than 100 student clubs and organizations, including more than 15 fraternities and sororities. Most Union sports teams, called Dutchmen, compete in the NCAA Division III Liberty League. The Union mens and womens ice hockey teams compete in the Division I ECAC Conference Hockey League. The school mascot is a costumed man known as Dutch. Students can volunteer in the revitalizations efforts going on in downtown Schenectady. New York is about 150 miles away, and more than 60 percent of students travel abroad before graduation. Union Colleges global offerings include year programs, trimester stays and three-week trips known as mini-breaks. Each year, students celebrate the changing seasons at Springfest, a day of concerts by famous performers like Sean Kingston and Matt Nathanson.In addition to its undergraduate majors, Union College offers accelerated professional degree programs in conjunction with other schools. Students can graduate with a law degree from Albany Law School in six years, or with a medical degree from Albany Medical College in eight years. There are additional masters degree accelerated programs in the business and education fields. Among the notable graduates of Union College are several famous television and movie producers: Alan Horn, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios; Rawson Marshall Thurber, who made "Dodgeball" and "Magnum, P.I."; and Ilene Landress, executive producer of "The Sopranos." Other distinguished alumni include Kate White, former editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine; Richard Templeton, CEO of Texas Instruments; and Baruch Samuel Blumberg, who discovered the Hepatitis B virus.