Bard vs Sarah Lawrence

Hello! I got into both Bard and Sarah Lawrence but am still on the fence a bit about where to go.

I am interested in film and studio art and I know both have very strong film and great art but would appreciate any insight on specifics. also does the size of the school or location have an effect on these programs

I love the city but feel like Sarah Lawrence might be a bit to cramped because of it and i love Bards campus but am worried about the isolation.

I am also wondering about the students at both, I have heard from both that people are intellectual because it is cool and dont actually having meaningful thoughts, and that the students are a bunch of rich kids pretending to be poor because it is cool. Is this accurate for either? Are there other differences in the student body?

Also one last thing, I also got into clark and Hampshire and would love to hear if anyone has any outstanding thoughts about those in comparison with bard and Sarah Lawrence

Thanks!

My son went to Bard. He was not rich and he was not pretending to have meaningful thoughts. Nor were his friends. And, yes, they are still all quite intellectual years after graduation.

Many of the same students apply and are admitted to the four schools you’re choosing among - there will be quite a bit of crossover in the student body. Have you visited the schools? Have you looked at the curriculum requirements? I know Sarah Lawrence has its own unique structure, as does Hampshire, and Bard has quite a few breadth requirements. (I don’t know as much about Clark.) Have you compared the courses offered in film and art? Have you looked into the professors themselves in those fields, and their interests and aesthetics?

My daughter applied to both Bard and Clark. Haven’t been to Sarah Lawrence, but know several people there. Bard and Sarah Lawrence are more similar in feel than Clark. Both have bucolic campuses, although Bard is much more isolated. Both are artsy/intellectual. Clark has a very different feel. It is right in the middle of a gritty city, which is exactly what my daughter liked about it, but isn’t for everyone. All give students good support and attention, but Clark is more outward facing, a lot because of its location and a lot because of conscious decisions by the school. Bard is doing some incredibly amazing things with the community, low income students, non-traditional students, etc. but most are off-campus, so don’t have the same direct effect on students as similar, but smaller scale activities do at Clark. Clark is not as artsy/writer oriented as the other two, but you can get a good education at any of them.