Amherst vs. Brown

Colleges and Universities A-Z Amherst College
1

<p>Hi! I’m having a REALLY hard time deciding between these two schools. Both of them have an open curriculum (which I love), both offer a fantastic education. What I’m really looking for is an intellectual student body - people who will be very interested in their classes and who will want to talk about academic topics outside of class. The Huffington Post listed Brown as #1 on its list of “Top 10 Most Intellectual Colleges,” so that would seem like I should be in favor of Brown (Amherst wasn’t even on the list). But Amherst is so selective that I would imagine it has a similar atmosphere. Am I correct in that assumption? My parents are concerned that Amherst has an atmosphere more like Dartmouth - a college I didn’t like that much because of its fratty feel and obsession with alcohol/sports. Maybe that’s unfair characterization of Dartmouth because I know it’s a good school, but I just don’t think it’s for me. I’m also worried about the arts opportunities offered at Amherst. I love visual art, I play two instruments, and I am very interested in films. Because of Amherst’s location, will I be limited in terms of arts opportunities?</p>

<p>Besides the “intellectualism” of the students and the arts opportunities, my other concern is the rigor of the Amherst courseload. When I visited on a recent tour, the tour guide said that Amherst is ranked 2nd behind Columbia for most rigorous academics. I’m not trying to be lazy during college, but I have had extended time accommodations all throughout high school. In college, I will continue to have those accommodations on tests. However, what most people don’t realize is that extended time translates into actual school work as well. I have really struggled with getting enough sleep throughout high school because every assignment I do takes about 1.5 times as long for me as it does for my classmates. At Amherst, will I be swamped with work and sleep-deprived? Brown, from what I’ve heard, is full of hardworking students; however, it does not seem to have the same reputation as Amherst does when it comes to the amount of homework.</p>

<p>It might sound like I’m leaning towards Brown, but I really do love the size of Amherst and I think the campus is beautiful! I just want to hear some feedback about my concerns to help me make a decision.</p>

<p>If this helps, I would like to major in English and am considering being a college professor or an arts critic. Thanks!</p>

2

<p>One of our closest friends DS started at Brown last year, he is very much like you and he LOVEs Brown and I think you will too. Go where you are inclined to be and you will be happy and at one of the best schools in the country. All your points about Amherst I would concur, why are Brown students amongst the happiest in the country?</p>

3

<p>According to the Princeton Review neither college is top 20. Besides, what is the definition of being a happy student? I suspect it could vary significantly, each review using its own criteria, which may or may not align with an individual. Furthermore, list of colleges with happiest students is noticeably different from colleges with happiest freshmen. What does it say?</p>

<p>There are 5 colleges around Amherst that you can take classes from, plenty to choose from. </p>

<p>Both of these colleges are great places to study, you could not go wrong with either one. Besides athletics, the biggest difference is the campus size; do you like a small school feel or medium size campus.</p>

4

<p>Is one school a better financial fit than the other? You sound like you have a long way to go with your education. Which school offered you a better financial deal? You are “shopping” after all. :)</p>

5

<p>I think the decision was already made, since Amherst has May 1st is a deadline for acceptances.</p>

6

<p>The most rigorous academics are definitely not Amherst as second. I would rate them as Caltech then MIT, maybe cornell, princeton, washu coming behind.</p>

7

<p>I’d assume that OP was not interested in engineering program, otherwise Amherst would not be a good consideration. Based on that assumption, comparing engineering schools to LACs is not helpful; engineering schools are always at the top. </p>