The option is Bowdoin or Williams, but Williams requires a gap year. How much better is academically Williams to deserve investing a (useful) gap year? Assume all other very important parameters equal (location, size, social life, etc) and focus only on academics. I am undecided, so I am looking for passionate professors and academically driven classmates who will inspire me to find my path. Thank you.
These are peer schools. Have you been accepted as a transfer to each?
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No, this will be freshman year in 2023.
Where did you deposit?
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You donât have a deposit at both do you? It sounds like you donât want to take a gap year, so seems like an easy decision.
Hence, the question âhow much better academically is W v Bâ to justify the gap year.
Like I said, they are peer schools. Williams is not academically better than Bowdoin.
If you have deposited at both, you have prevented someone else from getting that spot.
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Bowdoin is a great school. Unless you want to take a gap year, which it sounds like you donât, go to Bowdoin.
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This is thru athletics for next year. No deposits. There is no single ranking that puts B same as W. So, the question if the âdeltaâ in academics/quality of professors (assuming rankings mean something) justifies the gap year.
Got it on the athletics, so you are a 2023 HS grad.
I strongly discourage students from making decisions based on rankings. These are peer schools, and any ranking differences are likely within the margin of error.
If you donât want to take a gap year, go to Bowdoin.
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Yes, HS class 2023. Rankings give the impression that Williams has a national recognition/reputation/strong(er) alum network, while Bowdoin is mostly recognized in New England --more provincial(?) How can this play out for future job opportunities or grad school admissions in the US or Europe? Yes, I need a crystal ball 
Thanks.
What rankings are you talking about? I canât think of any that measure college academics.
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So, I guess you say that all the various rankings (US News, WSJ, Forbes, etc.) measure schools holistically and not âacademicsâ only, right?
I know both schools pretty well, as do other posters here. If you want to engage on what factors are important to you in a school, posters will be willing to help you do that.
What major are you looking at?
What does the future of the team look like? Where will you have the best opportunity to contribute?
Have you visited both schools?
Williams is more isolated than Bowdoin. IMO (of course) Bowdoin has a better/nicer campus, with more of a town adjacent to it.
There is an athlete/non-athlete divide at both. Bowdoin students seem less overtly competitive with each other.
Job outcomes will be similar at both. Williams has the edge in art history/museum mgmt. Williams might have the edge in finance but there have been lots of Bowdoin grads entering finance jobs, including IB, in the last decade.
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You will find those at both places, in roughly comparable proportions
You will also find some dud profs and âtake the easy pathâ classmates at both places, in roughly comparable proportions.
However, the overall campus cultures are pretty different, and you are more likely to find what you are looking for if you choose the one that fits you better. Have you visited both? where did you feel more at home? as an athlete, coach / team dynamics will matter- does one of them have an edge?
The difference in academics isnât the most important metric here: what will have the biggest impact, and shape your college experience the most, is the how you settle in to that school for four years.
Rankings give the impression that Williams has a national recognition/reputation/strong(er) alum network, while Bowdoin is mostly recognized in New England --more provincial(?) How can this play out for future job opportunities or grad school admissions in the US or Europe?
The differences are at hair-splitting levels- the more important differences are in the campus culture / experience. Trust yourself.
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I would think a gap year might be an issue for an athlete- would you still have a team to compete with? Or would you take the year off from your sport? I think those two schools are pretty close to identical in reputation. I prefer Bowdoinâs location on the Maine coast and close to Portland, but Williams is certainly a wonderful school as well.
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My decision at the end will be based on the whole, not just academics. But, for now, I deconstruct the parts as they have different weight factors. Thatâs why on my original question I said âall being equalâ, letâs chat about academics only. From what I read so far, academics are about the same between the two schools and the gap year is a matter of personal taste. Thank you.
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Yes, no issue with the team and me keeping up with the sport.
So, I guess you say that all the various rankings (US News, WSJ, Forbes, etc.) measure schools holistically and not âacademicsâ only, right?
Here are the criteria that USNWR uses. Academic reputation is 20%.
Here is the Forbes methodology. Academic success is 10%
And here is Forbeâs own view on why these rankings should not be the key decision factor:
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To put this in context, less than half of USNWRâs surveys are completed each year. They are sent to senior adminâŠpresidents, deans, enrollment management leaders.
So not only do fewer than 1/2 complete the survey, but some, maybe many, of these executives give the survey to a staffer to complete.
I donât think an executive, let alone a younger admissions rep to take one example I have directly heard, is able to adequately rate many schools on the various factors in the survey.
Can they rate their direct competitors? Probably. Can a Bowdoin AO or academic dean rate University of Denver? ASU? Probably not.
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