<p>One thing that differentiates Amherst is its membership in a consortium with UMass, Smith, Hampshire & Mt. Holyoke. I believe students can take 2 courses at a different institution each semester, and there are buses that run between campuses. </p>
<p>Also, the Pioneer Valley (where Amherst is) used to be known as the Happy Valley. It is a beautiful place to live, with tons of stuff to do. My years there were happy, productive, and formative in ways I think might not have been possible in another location. </p>
<p>The previous posting by a justifiably proud Carleton parent inspires to rejoin the discussion. I am a lifelong northerner and often unable to shake the habits and biases that come with that. My older child graduated from the NESCAC school that is way behind Amherst in the alphabet but ahead of it in recent USNWR rankings (not that any of the schools under discussion on this thread officially care about such things), so I fully appreciate the wonders of elite northeastern schools. But, honestly, I am baffled by those on the various CC boards who continue to insist that Davidson's conservative southern aura makes them and/or their children uncomfortable. That is not because I would be comfortable in a place with a conservative southern aura, but because I don't think that is what Davidson has. Warmth, contentment, commitment to excellence in a quiet but very effective way, yes. If that makes it conservative, and if a few accents make it southern, so be it. We could use more of that where I come from.</p>
<p>Davidson's Main Street does not have a Starbucks, but it does have an excellent local coffee shop where you will see lots of people reading (gasp!) the New York Times while discussing a variety of subjects. (You can buy the Times off the outside rack at the bookstore (yes, a real bookstore, with wooden floors and a local owner) next door, and if the store isn't open yet you put the money in the little slot in the door.) And while Davidson, like any town south of Connecticut, lacks a D'Angelo's (a terrific sandwich chain whose charms our family, with then-small children in tow, first discovered in Amherst two decades ago), it does have its very own Soda Shop, where you can get all sorts of good food in the company of other articulate, multi-regional people of various ages and professions. </p>
<p>I can't say that people on campus or on Main Street or on the shores of Lake Norman are always debating the important topics cited by an earlier poster (and one whose posts I usually find in harmony with my own opinions). And I'll be the first to admit being swept away by basketball euphoria last month, thus making me perhaps unfit to judge what important topics of discussion actually are But I also strongly believe that Davidson is a vibrant and cohesive academic community, and one whose social and environmental ethic can more than hold its own with that of its northern cousins. </p>
<p>All this doesn't mean the OP's son shouldn't go to Amherst (or Carleton for that matter if he wants to be closer to home). It just means that typecasting Davidson based on locational code words and historic stereotypes seems out of keeping with the current reality--and with the goal of helping students and families find a really good small school in a really appealing community</p>
<p>The one kid I know who attended Davidson (I think he'd be a senior this year) is from a very liberal family. According to his mom, he loves it there.</p>
<p>A friend of my son's was accepted to Davidson and Reed. These may sound like polar opposites, but he visited both school, so he must have seen something in both that he wanted. He ultimately chose Reed, but I don't know his reasons.</p>
<p>These are small data points, but they are data, nonetheless.;)</p>
<p>My son loves Carleton, and I've heard several academics say that it is one of the top LACs in the country, but it is a personal choice. MN_Dad, if Davidson is one of your son's top two, I really hope he gets a chance to visit. Good luck!</p>
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All this doesn't mean the OP's son shouldn't go to Amherst (or Carleton for that matter if he wants to be closer to home). It just means that typecasting Davidson based on locational code words and historic stereotypes seems out of keeping with the current reality--and with the goal of helping students and families find a really good small school in a really appealing community.
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<p>Great post, mattmom. I concur. (Seems to me from my admittedly limited exposure that ) Davidson has a sense about it of tradition but my gosh, that irreverent student body likes nothing more than to lampoon artifice and poke any stuffed-shirt attitude they encounter. I have commented before about the feel of campus (and that "paper"). I loved it.</p>
<p>Mattmom, When we visited Davidson three years ago, we went into that same coffee shop that you mentioned. Great place! During the student Q&A, one student grumbled about how "tough" the academics were and the "grade deflation", but overall most students seemed very happy with the school. On another note, a good friend of ours works in the admissions office for the Medical University of SC (MUSC) and she said that Davidson graduates command a tremendous amount of credibility when applying for medical school and the primary reason was the difficulty of their curriculum.</p>
<p>yeah..the OP has such a plethora of wonderful schools to choose between..we should all be so blessed. I am enjoying reading..particularly from graduates and current parents at all these institutions. I know a lot of Davidson grads in my region..and they are just such ethical people with work ethics that are outstanding..med school was not so tough after the prep they received at Davidson...and the supportive relationships they had with profs. I am sure that there is "magic" at all these colleges...would love to get to see Carlton and Amherst and maybe should get on a plane with our 09 hs son.</p>