<p>Should I choose bates over mount Holyoke or mount Holyoke over Bates? HELP ME!!!</p>
<p>OP, we can’t help you if you don’t tell us more about yourself: have you been admitted to either school? what are you looking for in an LAC? what will you major in? is your family full pay? Help us out.</p>
<p>I am planning on becoming a pediatrician. I also want to be a teacher.</p>
<p>I have not been admitted to both schools but wondering which one to choose for ED-II. </p>
<p>I have all A’s in school and very involved in school organizations. I am president of animal club. Member of Model United Nations, and National Honor Society this year. I also work at the Tower of the Americas. Unfortunately, my SAT and ACT scores are low so that’s a problem. I have all AP classes.</p>
<p>I want to attend an LAC where freedom, great support system, and individualism can be found. I want to attend an LAC where it can open realms I have never discovered. I also want a great diverse community.</p>
<p>I would want a school where it can provide almost 100% financial aid as my parents will not be able to pay such fees.</p>
<p>Thank you but sorry for not being able to provide the necessary information. @jkeil911 </p>
<p>I think you might enjoy Mount Holyoke if you tend to get along with women. Even tho it’s all women, there seems to be quite a bit of economic diversity and 24% of the students are internationals. It has a reputation for good student support, and it could be a really good place to explore all the opportunities you can. They are one of the meets-need schools, and reputedly they’re quite good to those students who get in and need aid. Take a closer look at them. MHC is also part of the 5 college consortium, and so not too far away you can find other places where you can take classes and diversify your experiences even more. </p>
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<p>Both Bates and Mt. Holyoke claim to cover 100% of demonstrated financial need.
However, each college will evaluate your parents’ ability to contribute to your costs, according to its own formula. The financial aid office will generate a number called the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). You can estimate this number by running the online Net Price Calculator for each school that interests you. Just google for [college name] + “net price calculator”, or use the College Abacus service to build a net price estimate for several schools at a time. If your parents are unable/unwilling to cover the EFC, then you need to look for merit scholarships to cover the gap, find a less expensive college with an affordable EFC, or (if the gap is not more than about $8K/year) cover it through “self help” (some combination of student loans and employment). </p>
<p>For a family of 3 earning roughly the national median income (~$60000) with no home equity or significant financial assets (other than $20K in savings/checking), the EFC for Bates would be about $9200, and the EFC for Mt. Holyoke would be about $10300, according to College Abacus. You probably could offset much of these amounts with “self help”. Run your own estimates, which are very sensitive to many details of your family finances. </p>
<p>Generally, an Early Decision application is not a good option for a student with high financial need. If you’re accepted, you won’t be able to compare and choose among competing aid offers. </p>
<p>Hi Sarah,
I typed this answer to the PM you sent me, but thought I’d also copy it here in case anyone else is debating these two schools 
And perhaps others will comment and refute my impressions, who knows.</p>
<p>Diversity:
I live in Maine and am very familiar with Bates. It is definitely not as diverse as Mount Holyoke. It is a bit preppier and a whiter. I was encouraging my daughter to apply, but she did not want to because she felt that it would be “just like my high school” - in other words very white & priveleged. I am sure there is some diversity there… but not as much as Mount Holyoke. My daughter’s “squad” of close friends includes a half-Indian, half-Russian girl from Uzbekistan (her roommate), a hispanic girl from New Jersey, a white girl from Texas, and a Korean girl from California. She has other friends who are internationals from China, African countries, and all over the world.</p>
<p>If you haven’t visited yet, you may also want to consider the physical location. Both are in New England so it will be cold and snowy in winter (you’re from Texas, right?) But Bates in Lewiston, which is <em>ahem</em> not Maine’s finest city. It’s a grim mill town and not the nicest place. The campus itself is on the edge, and is lovely, but if you want to visit nice shops, theaters, museums, etc you will probably want to go to Brunswick (where Bowdoin college is, about 35 minutes away) or the WONDERFUL city of Portland (45 minutes away.) Boston is probably 2.5 hours or so.</p>
<p>Mount Holyoke is in a tiny village, and is absolutely gorgeous… but there is little to walk to other than a coffee shop, theatre, bookstore and 2-3 restaurants… and beautiful forests/fields/mountains. However, there is a free bus system that takes students to all of the other colleges and towns nearby. The 5-college consortium includes Amherst College, Smith, Hampshire and UMass Amherst. They are all located in the lovely Pioneer Valley, with a river in the middle and mountains on the sides. Hampshire is about 15 minutes away, Amherst 20 minutes, etc. The town of Amherst is a pretty college town with a gazillion shops and restaurants. Northampton (where Smith is) is a very groovy/hip town with even more shops/restaurants and a large artist/LGBTQ community. Boston is about 1.5 hours away and there is sometimes a free bus organized by MHC.</p>
<p>The 5-college consortium is another plus at MHC. You can take classes at any of the other schools. My D’s friends go to parties, cultural events, and to the libraries of the other schools… so you have access to a much broader range of things to do/see/meet/earn than just on your home campus.</p>
<p>@jkeil911 I am a very gregarious individual. I love meeting new people. I love being around people girls or boys; there maybe times where I want to be independent but other than that I love having company. </p>
<p>i have decided that I am going to apply to mount Holyoke for ED-II and I am truly hoping for the best with this one. I believe that this school will be able to help me with my future endeavors and open my mind more to what the world has to offer. If i don’t get accepted to this school (hopefully this won’t happen) I will keep on looking for the school that is right for me.</p>
<p>Thank you for the information. @jkeil911 @staceyneil </p>
<p>I’d suggest you apply to more than MHC right now to increase your odds of getting into a school you can afford and want to go to. You might also consider the College of the Holy Cross, Union College, Skidmore, and Hampshire College (one of the Five College Consortium). They are a little easier to get into. </p>
<p>Yes I am going to apply to other colleges for regular decision because I think you can only apply to one school for ED-II, I am not sure but that’s what I think. I will run those schools by my teacher tomorrow so he can help me find which school would fit me best. Thanks so much! 
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<p>It also would be a good idea to discuss the costs with your family before you apply, if you have not done so already. An admission offer will do you no good if you cannot afford to attend.</p>