<p>Currently I’m choosing between Amherst, Grinnell, Colby, Carleton, Whitman, and the University of Chicago.</p>
<p>I CAN’T CHOOSE!! (As you can see because I have to choose in about two weeks and I’ve only narrowed it down to six.)</p>
<p>I’ve visited, or am visiting in the next week, all of them, and I’ve liked the ones I’ve visited so far. Does anyone have any insight into how these schools compare academically, socially, etc.?</p>
<p>Any and all help would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Isn’t it a little late for this? Shouldn’t you have done this reconaissance earlier? I can see being torn between two schools at this point, but you haven’t even narrowed your list.</p>
<p>I would say Amherst and UChicago are top tier. The others don’t compare academically, from what I’ve heard. I haven’t even heard of Grinnell and Whitman. What are you looking for in an undergrad experience? On top of that, Amherst’s acceptance rate is way lower than the other five: it was just under 13% this year, while UChicago is in the 20’s. The rest are around 40%.</p>
<p>And ezilrib, you have added nothing of significance to this thread.</p>
<p>It’s worth noting that Amherst and Whitman are quite similar schools. And, that their reputations tend to be “coast-specific.” As an Amherst student from the west coast, I’ve gotten the “oh is that a community college?” reaction more than once mentioning Amherst at home. Similar phenomenon out here when I mention Whitman. Although there are some meaningful differences between the schools, choosing between Amherst and Whitman might come down to geographic preference (east coast v. west coast).</p>
<p>retter, the fact that you’ve never heard of Grinnell or Whitman displays East Coast snobbery. Both are very well respected and sufficiently selective LAC, although in the midwest and West. Yes, Amherst is the most selective of the bunch. I think this comes down to both location and a choice between LAC and research university and still maintain that the OP should have substantially narrowed the choice by now.</p>
<p>First question: How strongly do you feel about being in or near a big city. People usually have pretty clear preferences about this sort of thing.</p>
<p>ezilrib, pardon my ignorance–what exactly is “East Coast snobbery,” and how does the fact that I’ve never heard of those schools make me a snob? Have you ever heard of Trieste, Italy? No? Uh-oh, that’s American snobbery! Listen to what you’re saying.</p>
<p>Amherst of U of Chicago - that is the question. And while Whitman is a good school, it is not in the same tier with Amherst, especially when you factor in the 5 colleges. Personally, I would opt for Chicago, but Amherst would be the same quality so it depends on environment. And I agree you should be down to 2 at this point.</p>
<p>I’ve actually been to Trieste.</p>
<p>The “tier” each school is in shouldn’t probably be the crux of your decision. Those are all very fine schools, congratulations on your acceptances. I know kids at Amherst, Whitman, Carleton and Univ. of Chicago. All of them just love their schools.</p>
<p>You should probably look a the academic programs of each in the fields you’re likely to major in, and think about the surroundings. Do you prefer a big city or a small town? Does it matter to you if you’re in the east, west or midwest?</p>
<p>Amherst has an open curriculum, and I think Grinnell might too… not sure. I know it used to.</p>
<p>I’ll say narrow your list to Amherst and U of Chicago, then the decision will come much more easier to you. You have got fairly similar schools in there (doesn’t help), drop them and then you have got to choose between a big research U in a big city vs a top LAC in a small city.</p>
<p>Hope it helps.</p>
<p>Amherst and U of C are definitely a cut above the rest. Did you recieve any FA/scholarships from the others?</p>
<p>Since you mention that you are not sure what you wnat to study, Amherst does stand out as a choice. It is a part of a 5 college consortium. There, you would have more choice of classes. In addition, Amherst does not have distribution requirements (a quality it shares with Grinnell). You would be able to explore courses that really interest you. Amhst is in a slightly different class from the other LACS. (The University of Chicago. is also in a different class, but it is so different from your other choices that I have put it off to the side.) Rank, however, should not be a deciding factor. Be sure to visit them all. Where do you feel the most at home?</p>
<p>@ezilrib hahahaha you just made my day.
touch</p>
<p>I just disagree that Amherst is a “cut above” unless you’re just talking about rankings or the lower odds of getting accepted. I love Amherst --it was my kid’s first choice school-- but students at Carleton, for example, are not getting a lower level education nor are they studying with less astute professors or fellow students. To think otherwise is just a weird kind of false elitism that college rankings force onto the already sadly distorted process of choosing the right school for you.</p>
<p>You have 6 great options there. Have you visited them? I do agree that UChicago is more of an out-lier just in terms of the kind of school – the others are more traditional small LACs. All excellent.</p>
<p>To dispute the idea of colleges fitting into different tiers is simply ignorance, unless you are talking about solely the education. If you don’t plan on going to grad school after college, or simply getting a job, then I agree: the level of education at all of these schools is comparable. In fact, you could probably get a better education at Carleton than you could at Harvard. However, a large component of the value of a degree from a top tier institution is what it does for you after your four years there. Look at the matriculation rates from an Ivy or from a top LAC to grad schools, and then compare that with other, less respected colleges. The fact is simply that you have a much better chance at getting into a top grad school from a top college than you do from a less known one. And that usually leads to an easier time in the job market. Job recruiters will go to Harvard and Amherst much more often than they will go to Grinnell. Once again, I’m not picking on these schools because they provide a mediocre education, because they really don’t. It’s just a reality that a degree from a better known school is more valuable in the long run.</p>
<p>Maybe, maybe not. There are just way too many variables in the case of any individual to make a pronouncement like that. The most important thing is to think about is who you are, in which environment you will thrive academically, socially, creatively. For example a more free-spirited creative person might do FAR better at Grinnell than a prep school kid who wants to end up in banking. That future banker might find Amherst a much better fit than Grinnell.</p>
<p>Which is not to say there are not creative free-spirits at Amherst, nor to say there are not future bankers at Grinnell. I’m just saying that people will do best in the environment that supports their personalities and ambitions in a multitude of subtle ways.</p>
<p>I agree with that. As far as the experience in itself, you definitely need to find your fit. Plus, the cream generally rises to the top anyways. If you are a really hard worker, you’ll be all set.</p>
<p>If you had your heart set on a non-Amherst, non-Chicago school, I’d say go for it. But you don’t–you haven’t even narrowed your list down to two–and so I’d say those two are as good a top two as any. </p>
<p>Then it comes down to curriculum (open vs. core) and location (suburbs vs. city). A pretty clear dichotomy.</p>
<p>Amherst has an open curriculum, which allows maximum flexibility in selecting classes and perhaps creating highly unusual double majors. UChicago has a universally required core curriculum of classes. Philosophically, these are your polar opposites and the other schools fall somewhere in between. Would you thrive where you have maximum flexibility to choose all your own classes, outside of your major’s requirements? Or would you prefer to journey with your classmates along a standardized “package tour,” where nearly everyone has had certain core experiences together, but where you have less say as an individual?</p>
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<p>UChicago acceptance rate fell below 16% this year; it was in the mid-20s about 3 years ago.</p>