<p>Hi, I’m absolutely torn between these two schools, but what does Amherst have to offer more than Dartmouth? And did anyone choose Amherst over Dartmouth?</p>
<p>From what I glean from Princeton Review, students choose one over the other in roughly equal proportions.</p>
<p>Personally, I'm wild about the Northampton area and the Five Colleges but then my D chose that area (Smith) over near-Boston (Wellesley).</p>
<p>Amherst isn't as isolated. Dartmouth has a middle-of-nowhere feel, while Amherst has four other colleges within a short bus ride and a nice small town atmosphere. At Amherst there is a decent amount of things to do off-campus. From what I hear about Hanover, Dartmouth IS the city.</p>
<p>TheDad, where does it in Princeton Review show that they are in roughly equal proportions?</p>
<p>Amherst, Williams and Dartmouth are very similar schools and tend to have a similiar pool of applicants.
My daughter, a freshman was accepted at Amherst, Williams and Dartmouth but chose Dartmouth. If you search the Williams record, the Director of admissions states that there is a 50/50 spilt in people who choose Amherst/Dartmouth over Williams. </p>
<p>The biggest overlap of admitted students is with Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Amherst and Dartmouth the usual suspects, he said. Going head-to-head with places like Harvard, Yale, Princeton, if we get 15 percent of those kids, we are actually doing pretty well. Whereas with Dartmouth and Amherst, we are doing well if we split students 50-50. </p>
<p>I do remember when she was going to admitted students days she did meet a few people at the Amherst days that she also saw at Williams and were going to meet up again with at Dartmouth. Daughter chose Dartmouth for the people, who she sayas are some of the nicest, helpful, most laid back people you will ever meet. Even though people feel that Darmouth is in the middle of nowhere,they are a pretty cohesive group and most of the people at Dartmouth love being there.</p>
<p>Gatsby, in the right hand column for each school, the other school is listed in the "Sometimes Prefer" column. This indicates roughly equal rates. As opposed to "Often Prefer" or "Rarely Prefer."</p>
<p>Note that the two don't have to be in synch...but these are. You could have A sometimes prefer B but B rarely prefer A. In this case, they're roughly matched.</p>
<p>Amherst and Dartmouth are similar, but not extremely so. WILLIAMS and Darthmouth are very similar, though, and Middlebury as well.</p>
<p>Amherst has a pretty different vibe from dartmouth, i think... like another poster points out, williams is more like dartmouth. I applied ED to Amherst and was accepted, so I suppose I chose Amherst over Dartmouth, or at least ranked Amherst higher, in order of my preference.</p>
<p>Of course, I root for you to choose Amherst as well. My dad's friends tell me about how everyone loves the town, and how the community around amherst is solid and accepting. Amherst might offer more contact with professors, in addition the good points rjsmith made.</p>
<p>Anyone else choose Amherst over Dartmouth?</p>
<p>I applied to both and I'm about 90% confident that I'd choose Amherst if accepted to both.</p>
<p>I applied to both and I'm wild about dartmouth, but if I get into both it would be a hard decision, but I would lean to Dartmouth</p>
<p>Dartmouth has the Ivy distinction...so I'd go for the Big Green.</p>
<p>but Amherst is the best LAC...</p>
<p>Whether a school is an Ivy or the best LAC are both really dumb reasons to choose a school. In either case, you're buying a label, not tailoring an experience that best fits you.</p>
<p>It's ridiculous to compare top schools. If you get into a top school, it's really a matter of personal fit. On my hall alone, there's a guy who turned down Penn, a girl who turned down Columbia, and a guy who turned down Stanford- not to mention all the people who got into Cornell and didn't go. If brand name is what you are all about, apply to HYP only. Obviously you aren't very intelligent in the first place.</p>
<p>TheDad, i respect your pwning skills.</p>
<p>amherst08 - one of the reasons i picked applying early to amherst over HYPS was b/c I knew i'd get more time with professors and a more personal education at amherst. i think the size of the small LACs is an advantage they have over more prestigious universities. </p>
<p>and amherst has plenty of name clout among those who matter most.</p>
<p>Dartmouth is less PC than Amherst.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Dartmouth is more conservative than Amherst</p></li>
<li><p>Amherst has a suprisingly vocal conservative minority</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Dartmouth is actually politically similar to Amherst, more liberal than Williams. This election the Dartmouth vote was over 3000 Kerry, less than 500 Bush. Also, they had a huge candlelight vigil after Kerry lost. Claims of Dartmouth being conservative are outdated, although there is that vocal conservative minority element as well.</p>
<p>I would chose Dartmouth for a few reasons: 1) The D-plan is great. You can do up to three study abroads with other Dartmouth students and sophomore summer is the best. You really bond with your class 2) There is a much stronger on campus social scene. Every weekend night there are more than enough big and small parties that its hard to get bored </p>
<p>Granted I am biased...I went to Dartmouth. Either way you cant go wrong though.</p>
<p>yeah...i also really liked both of these schools. i decided to apply to Dartmouth ED and was accepted, but Amherst was one of my second choices. I thought Amherst was just too small...Dartmouth's size seems perfect; it's big enough to offer a lot in terms of academic courses, happenings on campus, and class diversity, but it's small enough to retain that tightly-knit atmosphere. i think amherst could start to feel claustrophobic after a year or so.</p>