Amherst/Wellesley/Williams

Applying to College
1

<p>I'm having a lot of difficulty deciding between the three. Any advice? </p>

<p>I am going to be a History major, dislike math and science (will try to avoid in college), and plan on attending law school post college. Which school best suits me academically? </p>

<p>I would like to be around kids who value education but also know how to have a good time. I definately do not want to be around stressed out kids who study 24/7 or talk about school all the time. I also would like to be around peers who are not competitive with each other. </p>

<p>Which student body is the most friendliest, laid-back, and fun? I have heard that Amherst kids have the stereotype of being pretentious. Is this true? </p>

<p>Which of the three have the best food and best (and spacious) dorms? Do any of the three offer singles for first-years? Prettiest campus? Best dating scene? Most distinguished faculty? Most academically rigorous? </p>

<p>If you can answer any of my questions for any of the schools, it would be helpful. Meanwhile I'm trying to do my own research but its hard to measure the intangibles. </p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>Amherst...5 College Consortium. Just more choice.</p>

<p>Just an opinion. Pretty similar otherwise.</p>

3

<p>I agree with Isleboy...but Williams is a great school if you like the more rural feel to the college.</p>

4

<p>College, I’ve never been to Wellesley so I can’t comment there. Amherst and Williams are both fine schools. </p>

<p>The environments are somewhat different. Williams is in a small village in the mountains and is self-contained. Amherst is in a small town and is part of a multi-college consortium.</p>

<p>Both have excellent history departments and great track records for getting their graduates into law school. The academic rigor and faculty caliber is identical.</p>

<p>I think there is a wide swathe of overlap in the type of student who attends each – friendly, outgoing, energetic. You would have fun at both.</p>

<p>My son says Williams has great food. There are several (4 or 5) choices of dining halls.</p>

<p>First years at Williams live in groups of about 20-24 kids called entries. The chance of getting a single is very high.</p>

<p>Other points of differentiation at Williams are tutorial system (2 students, 1 professor), Winter Study and the distribution requirements. It may not matter to you but for the record I'd give Williams the edge over Amherst in opportunities in the arts.</p>

5

<p>Given your options, I would choose Williams. Or, of course, you could go to one of the other schools and give those of us on the waitlist a better chance of getting in :). It certainly has a good history program and I hear there is more of a cohesive feel to the school than at Amherst.</p>

<p>Other than that, I think Amherst's lack of core requirements would allow you to avoid math/science far more easily than at Williams. I don't know much about Wellesley, so I can't say much about that. I know it is an excellent school, but I know the lack of guys would bother me (not just for dating reasons, I also think "gender diversity" or whatever you would call it adds to a school's environment).</p>

6

<p>definitely wellesley. i've always wanted to attend all girl school, unfortunately i have a *****...</p>

7

<p>definitely wellesley. i've always wanted to attend all girl school, unfortunately i have a peenis...</p>

8

<p>^hahaha</p>

<p>that's great</p>

9

<p>a good fit for Williams. In terms of avoiding math and econ, easy to do, you do have to take at least three semesters from Division III, which is math and science, but you can take all classes from sciences like biology, geology, comp sci, etc. But at Amherst you have no reqs whatsoever, I believe, so you do have slightly more flexibility.</p>

<p>Dating scene -- as you are obviously a woman, Williams may be the best fit for you there. There isn't much of a true "dating scene" at any of those colleges. Like most liberal arts colleges, the small size of the student body leads to two types of relationships dominating -- random hook-ups or serious, committed couples. Casual dating is just so tough because of the rumor mill and so on. Amherst is probably better for men as they have Mt. Holyoke and Smith to draw from, but that may make it tougher for women. Of course, there is UMass but to be honest I have rarely heard of many UMass/A.C. relationships forming, although they must exist. Wellesley, well, unless you like being bussed to Harvard parties and oggled by Harvard/MIT guys, the dating scene is certainly the worst of the three.</p>

<p>I think Wellesley, yes or no, should be an easy choice -- the academics and environment are similar enough at all three that whether you want to be in a single sex environment, or not, should really be the determinative factor. Amherst and Williams are both slightly more prestigious among grad schools and employers, but not so much so that, if you really want a single sex environment, you should forsake Wellesley.</p>

<p>As for A vs. W, that is a much tougher call. I think Williams has a definite edge in campus beauty owing to its Berkshires location, but both have gorgeous grounds; kind of a personal call that you can answer easily enough with campus visits. I also believe that Williams has, along with Haverford, the friendliest, most laid back student body of any of the colleges I've been to (a product in part of choosing to live in the mountains with 2000 peers for four years, and just kind of the outdoorsy, jeans-and-sweatshirt, slightly goofy kind of kids that Williams tends to attract), including Amherst, but Amherst kids were very cool as well and I don't think they are generally pretentious. </p>

<p>I think first years at Williams have a much better chance of getting a single than almost anywhere, particularly now that Mission is becoming first year housing (I believe). Over half of Williams frosh have singles in suites, which is highly unusual. Amherst has some absolutely gorgeous newly renovated first year dorms that are insanely nice, but I think they are mainly doubles. Also, at least some Amherst frosh have been living in glorified trailers due to the reconstruction. I am not certain if that will continue next year or not, but easy to find out. </p>

<p>For you, Williams will probabaly have the overall facilities edge. Williams will be opening a gorgeous new student center next year, and recently renovated a smaller, more intimate student center. Between those two and the gorgeous brand new theater, there are tons of great venues for concerts, shows, movies, and just hanging out available on campus, which I think will really facilitate campus social life. The new student center, for example, will have a very cool snack bar, pub, movie theater, and "great hall", and Goodrich, renovated around 2000, also boasts a very cool space. Pretty much every dorm at Williams has been renovated w/in the last 12 years.</p>

10

<p>My son visited both Williams and Amherst for a few days each. He much preferred Amherst over Williams, as Amherst best suited his personality. My son is also not a big fan of Math, so he was drawn to the open curriculum at Amherst. Williams seemed sort of isolated to him,and he liked the town of Amherst better than Williamstown. He is very social, so the 5 colleges close by were a big factor. The dorm he stayed at was really nice and the people that were on the overnight trip with him were really fun. My son is not competive in the slightest and NEVER talks about school work. I know that one of most important factors in choosing a school for him was the balance of work/fun, and he chose Amherst. Are you from NYC? So were we, until we moved to Long Island 10 years ago My son is still a city kid at heart, yet he still chose Amherst. In any event they are all great schools. Good luck,whatever your choice.</p>

11

<p>Academically, I would say the three are on par with each other. I recommend visiting the 3 schools to see which one would be the best fit for you.</p>

12

<p>I love both Williams and Amherst, but since no one has really given Wellesley a shot here, I'd like to add my two cents. Although I haven't seen Wellesley, I know some women who are there now and who have chosen to attend. They are all great students who love having fun. I recently talked to the mother of a current sophomore, and she said that her d. loves Wellesley even more now than she did when she first entered. </p>

<p>Women's colleges tend to have better dorm and dining facilities than co-ed's, so you might want to consider that. Again, I can't swear it is the case at Wellesley, but I've seen Smith, Mount Holyoke, and Bryn Mawr's residential facilities - and they put most schools to shame.</p>

<p>As for the women's college choice, you might want to hop over to the Smith folder where there is an ongoing thread titled "Why All-Women's Colleges?" The pros and cons discussed there might help you form an opinion about the unique learning environment at such a school.</p>

<p>As you well know, your three choices are excellent. Academically, you can't go wrong with any of them. It all comes down to campus environment and student population, and your personal preferences for each.</p>

13

<p>I say Amherst.. whats the aid situation?</p>

14

<p>Wellesely- dorm and dining situation is probably comparatively good. Campus is beautiful. Academics are great.</p>

<p>As for your other points: social, "laid-back"-ness,stressed out, dating scene-
Frankly from what we observed I doubt that Wellesley will be your top choice with respect to these criteria.</p>

15

<p>since you were/are high on Wellesley, I'd drop Williams to third place, since it feels more yang, than yin, at least according to my S. </p>

<p>Amherst pros: more yin; has the 5 c (which I personally think is no value added), but others feel differently; open curriculum a la Brown; dorms are nicer than Williams, IMO.</p>

16

<p>well dorms, 5 c, dining and even academics - they cant be very different at these places.....
its a simple algorithm
do u wanna be at a girls' place?
if not, rural or urban....</p>

<p><em>bussed to Harvard.....to be ogled....</em> amazing !</p>