<p>Should I apply to Swarthmore if I want to study art history? Are there any good resources, museums in the area, etc? How about the qualification of the teachers?</p>
<p>Also since there's more to college life than academics how would you characterize the student body? I'm an international student (from Romania) so open mindedness and diversity are rather important factors. Another thing that could influence my decision is the environment. I'd love to live in a green campus with old buildings and alleys and ancient trees. For some reason, the idea of reading under a canopy of leaves just appeals to me. Now, from what I've seen on their website, the campus looks nice enough. Oh but how's the library? However I'm eager to do a lot more than daydream in the grass; I want to know I have a lot of options in terms of leisure just as much as I want to be academically challenged. So exactly how interesting is Swarthmore? What's unusual about it?</p>
<p>Oh but before all that, what are my chances to be accepted? I got my SAT scores today as follows: 800 CR, 710 M, 720 W (essay 9). I have to say, I'm not too satisfied with my essay score since a large part of my list of EC is related to writing. I recently won a national contest for short prose but the joy which came along with that was overshadowed by SAT essay score.</p>
<p>I appreciate any opinions from students and prospective students alike.</p>
<p>A top LAC with one of the strongest art history programs in the country is Williams: you should definitely look there as well. Swarthmore’s department is strong but small.</p>
<p>Although my experience is dated I do know of Swarthmore grads who have found employment at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the NY Metropolitan Museum.</p>
<p>Thank you both! I’m actually considering Williams too.
The Barnes Foundation does look amazing! I see it houses an impressive number of Impressionist paintings which are my personal favourites (I know, everybody says Impressionism is their favourite, but really, it’s easy to love it).
Can anyone answer to my other inquires please? :)</p>
<p>Don’t forget that all of the NY museums are within two hours of Swarthmore. My daughter and her friends went to the Guggenheim and MOMA in New York on weekend trips from Swarthmore.</p>
<p>Here’s a speech by one of Swathmore’s more illustrious art history majors in which he talks about the connection to the NYC art world:</p>
<p>Williams definitely is one of the best in the country for Art History. The ‘Williams Mafia’ dominate the art world in this country, being curators in many famous museums including MOMA. Williams also has a great Art museum too.</p>
<p>Swarthmore’s Art History department is smaller but has some very engaging professors. The introductory Art History course is very well known and liked. Don’t know more than that. I think Robert Storr was presented the honorary degree in 2008, when my son was graduating. We (our family) thought his speech was very interesting, especially when he mentioned the path he had taken in life. Btw, Robert Storr was not an Art History major but majored in French and History. He then got an MFA from the Art Institute of Chicago.</p>
<p>Agree with all of the above. In terms of your other questions, the student body is diverse and tends to be very intellectual both inside and outside of the classroom. The library (McCabe) is great, somewhat fortress-like (some serious studying going on) and centrally located. Your chances…hard to say as is a highly competitive applicant pool, but sounds as though you have a shot!</p>
<p>The campus is in an arboretum, so it is surrounded not only by trees, but many different kinds of trees. The campus is small but beautiful. Williams, Swarthmore, and Amherst all accept about 16-17 percent of the people who apply there, so nobody can count on getting in, no matter how qualified he or she is. These schools want people who are not only brilliant but who are a good fit for the school. Of these two schools, Williams is a little more athletic (probably a lot more), and Swarthmore is a little more intensely intellectual. But kids at both schools are equally intelligent. Swarthmore is founded on Quaker principles, which are liberal and humane and a bit idiosyncratic. I’m not sure about Williams, but I’m sure it was some kind of also humane kind of mainline Protestantism.</p>
<p>Swarthmore welcomes extra items (no more than five pages) in your admission file. Submitting a sample of your winning prose with your application would more than make up for the SAT writing score. For a really interesting article on two of Swarthmore’s art history professors, read the following from a recent alumni magazine feature: [A</a> Survey in Progress - Swarthmore College Bulletin](<a href=“http://media.swarthmore.edu/bulletin/?p=417]A”>Page has moved) . The college, as noted above, is on the grounds of an arboretum with many very old trees and a gorgeous rose garden. In addition, Crum Woods (with stream running through it) borders the campus. My daughter attends Swarthmore and goes for runs daily in the Woods.</p>