Between these four LAC’s (Bowdoin, Wesleyan, Hamilton and Colgate), thoughts on which one is strongest for someone interested in physics & math and jazz performance (no need to have a program or major)? Ideal is great in all of the above but listed in ranked order of importance – physics, math, jazz.
I think it’s tough. The big publics are generally the strongest in physics - even Astro. I see Bowdoin and Colgate listed higher than others but not high in rank. Same for math with Bowdoin highest but not high.
It’s likely one needs to simply look at curriculum for sub areas. I’m sure all will be fine. Same with math.
I keep reading how these LACs are so different in environment and vibe. It’s likely a fit question. For example, everyone says Hamilton and Colgate are vastly different.
Good luck. If those are four acceptances, it’s pretty impressive.
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These are all such good schools, you can’t make a bad choice. I agree with the above post that this is really more about fit. Your son will be more successful in his academics, if he is happy.
I toured all these schools with my S23 and he really preferred Hamilton to Colgate just based on “feel.” So much so, he didn’t apply to Colgate. Others have the exact opposite reaction as both are great schools. Hamilton and Wesleyan also have a bit different culture.
I would also recommend looking to see how many faculty members do research and teach classes in the areas that your son is interested in at each of these schools. You never want to be in a situation where there are only 1-2 professors and they go on sabbatical/leave, leaving your son temporarily with no mentorship.
Good luck to your son and you making the decision.
Impressive if your son got into all these schools. That is great.quality of education is likely equivalent. Prestige depends on who you ask…perhaps folks will say that Bowdoin is a notch up on that measure…the jazz thing throws me a slight bit. Maybe I’m reaching but perhaps being closer to culture and access to live music is something that is important? Colgate and Hamilton are
Inside tiny little villages. I hear Brunswick is a really cool town with some activity.
Academically, I’d consider these peers. In culture and physical environment they are quite different.
For the areas of interest mentioned, I’d give Wesleyan the edge because of their Master’s and/or BA/MA programs in math and physics.
Wesleyan also has an excellent music department, with ample performance opportunities even for non-majors. Proximity to New York snd Boston is a plus.
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My son is a sophomore math/physics/cs major at Wesleyan. He has loved the open curriculum and minimal gen ed requirements which has allowed him to triple major and focus on the subjects he is most interested in.
The STEM university part of Wesleyan is a necessity for him which we never realized he would need. He has doubled/tripled up on both math and physics courses each semester and has completed all the regularly offered math courses and majority of the advanced electives so will be starting graduate math courses his junior year fall and will reach the same level in physics running out of regularly offered undergraduate options and starting graduate courses by beginning of his senior year. Physics research opportunities are readily available during the school year and this summer my son is doing advanced research with a math professor on a subject that intersects with physics.
I think a lot of schools are still recovering their music scenes from Covid, so that is something you should research more, even by finding the student newspapers and facebook/Instagram sites for the performing groups from each school to see the concerts, performances etc. that are offered.
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With respect to physics, current Hamilton faculty and recent Hamilton graduates have received prominent recognition by the American Physical Society for their activities at Hamilton.
This describes the achievements of a professor:
This describes the achievements of two recent Hamilton graduates who were recognized as Apker Award (LeRoy Apker Award - Wikipedia) finalists (now PhD candidates; UCB and Caltech, respectively):
And
With respect to mathematics, this describes a competition based on the extremely challenging Putnam Exam:
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Wesleyan has the largest STEM faculty of the bunch and regularly appears at the top of any list of LACs receiving the most federal and state tax supported research money. With Math, you always have to worry about burning through the upper level courses. But at Wesleyan an undergraduate can always get permission to take graduate school classes, if they need to. Agree that fit could be a factor for some kids, but my sense is that the NESCAC schools are way more alike than different these days, especially since the last time you went through this process, OP. 
. And lastly, the jazz scene at Wesleyan would, in my estimation, be hard to beat for any school its size.
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Thanks for the responses so far. As @circuitrider alluded, we’ve been through this before and have been to all of these colleges at least a couple times each and know one of them extensively.
Our son is quite different than our prior kids. Oldest was very self-focused on fit and had no idea what he wanted to major in or do as activities. This one thinks he’s settled in areas of study though the great thing about any good LAC is there’s opportunity to change your mind and deferring major declaration helps with that exploration. He seems disinterested in fit, size, etc. but does have a NE bias. He currently expects to pursue grad studies as well.
He is starting with a bias on this list (and also has great non-SLAC choices) but I don’t think he’s really dived into the specifics differentiating the programs at these schools so I was trying to get ahead of that for future discussion with this inquiry. These are all great LACs so may as well dig into how they differentiate in his declared interests.
I don’t think he considers the jazz strength a showstopper though he would prefer strong performance opportunities as a secondary goal to academic rigor. His program now is at a high level, both personally but also his peers which elevates the experience. We his parents would be sad to see it atrophy.
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S19 is math and physics double major at Bowdoin but he’s not planning on pursuing a graduate degree in either. He’s really loved his classes and professors (for the most part) and most of his fellow math and physics majors are indeed going to grad school. I know you know Bowdoin well but, if you have any specific questions about either major, you can PM me and I’ll see if he can answer. Of course, looking at the available classes at any of these schools is a start to see if the major(s) will work for him.
D21 is at Colgate. All I will say is that it is very remote. Not like Bowdoin. Has a very very specific culture where you either fit or you don’t. Kids who fit love it. Others, it seems, stay for the awesome academics and beautiful campus but aren’t necessarily thriving socially. Feel free to PM me about that as well.
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Well, you hit the mother load for physics among LACs in the northeast didn’t you? As you well know, all of these schools are strong in the topic and so you’re not going to make a mistake. They all show up on really any ranking of top LAC in physics.
I have my personal favorite, but who are we kidding? Your kiddo will receive a top flight physics education at any of them. However, if astro is anywhere in the vicinity of interest, I think Wesleyan stands out a smidge in that group. Its on campus observatory doubles as an astronomy museum and its faculty depth, and discovery and research productivity, are hard to beat for a school its size. I’ve posted about that in other threads you can easily find. It’s also a charter member of the KNAC consortium which also includes Colgate. For reasons unknown to me, Hamilton and Bowdoin are not members. If my kid were interested in astrophysics, that would be a point of differentiation, although it probably means less to a Wes student because they typically have so much in the way of their own funded research opportunities going on that they’re not as dependent on formal REU programs as others might be. As @circuitrider mentioned, there is significantly more research money being spent at Wesleyan as compared to the other choices.
Math is one where at least Bowdoin and Hamilton seem to get cited more often than Wesleyan, but as @circuitrider noted, your kid is less likely to run out of courses to take at Wesleyan than the other two. I don’t track this one as closely so look to others on this point.
I’m also not going to pretend to know anything about music opportunities and will only offer that if I were to have to guess with a gun to my head I’d pick Wes as the likely better choice for that just because its reputation precedes it in the arts.
Lastly, because it wouldn’t be LAC physics discussion with this crew without me saying it: Wesleyan has two Apker winners and two finalists in the PhD division of the award.
PPS, the new science facility at Wes is ahead of schedule too. 
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Thanks for all the replies everyone. We would have loved any of these schools. Our older two kids both went to LACs and we are massive fans. I think the quality of the undergraduate edcuation, access to faculty, paid research opportunities, campus resources, ability to really get to know your classmates, etc. is profoundly strong at these small, well-funded colleges. My oldest son now works in a metro far away from his LAC but has two former classmates as roommates and a robust community of other classmates living nearby who have stayed a close knit community.
However, my youngest got into one of the few schools that would trump these for his interests in his estimation so his attention has shifted there as of a couple days ago. And he found the place (and they found him back) that truly is great for physics, math and jazz. So happy outcome. It couldn’t be more different than these LACs, but he’s fine with that.
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Congratulations @citivas ! Wonderful news and outcome.
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