Amherst College vs Northwestern University

Colleges and Universities A-Z Amherst College
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Got into both schools and I feel very blessed to be given these options, but trying to decide between these two schools is so daunting… Also, I’m the first in my family to ever attend college (and one in America!), so this is a huge task! :smiley:

Still waiting on financial aid for both schools, but say they were about the same amount…

If you have done research about these schools or you have had to make this decision before too, what did you consider? Please give me your two cents about Northwestern and Amherst (focus more on Amherst if you can, as I will be posting this on the Northwestern board as well) in terms of the following:

Location: Internship opportunities, Job opportunities, Weather, Campus safety, Surrounding area safety
Academics: Strongest and weakest departments, degrees of competition or collaboration, research opportunities, faculty involvement
Social: Degree of social pressure, fixed hierarchy/fluidity, general personality of school (“summed up in one word”, school spirit, duck syndrome, etc.) clubs/organizations
Best for what types of students:
Future preparation: Job placement, name recognition

Currently, I want to major in Neuroscience and then go off to dental school… but I know that many people change their minds in college, so my questions are:
Based on current interests, how are the neuroscience/cognitive programs?
If my interests do change, how easy is it to change majors/tracks?

I would really appreciate any additional comments!
Thank you all so much!

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Congratulations, @TheOtterOne‌! Which school did you apply to at Northwestern?

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@michigandermom‌ Thank you! I applied to Weinberg!

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@TheOtterOne, I don’t know too much about Northwestern specifically. It’s very prestigious, and probably more widely recognized than Amherst college (although Amherst obviously is a very prestigious LAC).

Northwestern is within easy public transportation distance of Chicago, which is a wonderful city. It is also right on Lake Michigan if you like anything water related. As far as weather, the weather between the two is somewhat similar, but it is on average colder (probably about 10F colder) during the winter in Illinois, and always windy.

The two places probably get about the same amount of snow, but Amherst is in lush New England which overall is gets more precipitation than the midwest. Conversely, it’s also a little bit sunnier.

Amherst is in the middle of mountainous, woodsy massachussetts, not rural exactly because it is in a small New England town (with picturesque town square and all), but right next to two other small towns, where a total of about 30K students who attend 5 different schools live. As a result, although Amherst itself is small (~1600 students) it is situated in a large and vibrant community. The leaves changing color in the fall will definitely make you want to write poetry.

In my opinion, undergraduates get more attention at Amherst because its a small school with no graduate students, and it seems to be relatively easy to get research opportunities, and it also does very well at sending students on to graduate school:
http://www3.amherst.edu/~sageorge/outcomes.html
Because of the 5 college consortium, you do have access to all the courses from all the schools, when gives depth to a curriculum such a necessarily small faculty can provide.

It also has an open curriculum which means there are no ‘core’ requirements, only requirements in your major. That gives you the most opportunity to experiment as student.

However, I didn’t go there. Someone recommended it to my D at the beginning of her Junior year and she was wowed by it for all those reasons, and it has been at or near the top of her list since. She’s currently deciding between University of Michigan, Oberlin, and Amherst, but Amherst is pretty much a lock.

You will be able to see all of this about Amherst when you visit. Just make sure you learn more about Northwestern. Good luck!

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I’m sorry, I realized looking over the post I answered very few of your questions! Of the questions I can answer, I can really only answer for Amherst.
As far as safety, I would consider Amherst to have a very safe campus and town. Northwestern is more of a city town (although Evanston is not a large city) so there is probably a bit more crime there but certainly nothing to remark on.

I’m no so sure that there would be job opportunities in Amherst Ma and surrounding areas. However, Boston and NY are both nearby (Boston is about 100 miles away, NY about 150). In Chicago, of course, there should be plenty).
There seems to be a lot of research opportunities and money to pay for them at Amherst, including working at UMass Amherst.

The faculty are very involved with the students at Amherst. It also has a very high graduation rate, excellent placement in graduate programs, and has excellent name recognition among graduate schools. I’m not so sure about other kinds of jobs right out of college (ie, Wall Street). It definitely does not have general name recognition the same way that Northwestern does.

I don’t know much about the neuroscience program at Amherst. Amherst is currently involved in a push to improve its STEM offerings, which might mean they are not considered as strong as at some other places, I don’t know. My D is interested in genetics however, and she is very happy with their biology offerings.

It’s very easy to change majors as well as explore your options at Amherst.

Good luck!

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@michigandermom Thank you so much; I really appreciate your input!! This thread was meant to focus more on Amherst, and your post was perfect.
I look forward to visiting Amherst to experience the overall school environment. Will you and your daughter be visiting as well?

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@TheOtterOne my D will be visiting on April 22 or 23 (they are only paying for one ticket so not me!). She can’t make the admitted student open house because of her school play in which she gets to play a gangster, and would not miss for anything…:slight_smile: Let us know what you decide!

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@TheOtterOne‌ I am in a similar boat! I want to study philosophy or something deep in the humanities, so Amherst seems my best choice.

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@Wells14‌ I just found out that Amherst was actually “the first institution to offer an undergraduate major in Neuroscience”
I’m so excited :smiley:

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@theotterone my wife and I loved Amherst and both wish we could re-live undergrad and go to school there !

There is probably no better preparation for grad or professional school than a liberal arts education.

I’m certain you will love it. My DD ,although accepted to Amherst, is most likely headed to Williams. Congrats and good luck.

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@Singersdad‌ It’s so nice to hear that both you and your wife both enjoyed the Amherst experience.

Both Amherst and Williams are great schools, so I’m sure she will do great things there too!

Is there anything that you would have liked to change about Amherst?

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I would take Amherst, Bowdoin, Tufts and Williams over NU. Better student teacher ratios

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Thank you everyone who helped me make this decision. I just wanted to update this thread and announce that I am very proudly headed to Amherst this fall! I visited the campus and decided that the small-town feel was very suitable for me, and everyone that I met there was so friendly. It felt just like home.
Also, I am more than happy to answer any questions that prospective students have. Just PM me!

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My D chose it also. I hope Amherst parents hang out here a bit starting this year :slight_smile:

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My daughter almost made her final decision between Northwestern and Amherst- and chose Amherst. Perhaps we should make a parents’ page?

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@OHMomof2 and @SoapyMango - There is a parent’s page on facebook called “Amherst Parents of the Class of 2019.” I am headed there this fall as well.

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strange. I just found it but it wouldn’t pull up for me at first. Thank you!

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I found it last week and joined thanks!

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I could only find U of Mass Class of 2019. Can you post a link to the Amherst College Class of 2019 page?

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Here you go @rmsdad! facebook… /groups/406485516205615/