<p>Yes-- I was referring to the population of the schools-- 2000 at Williams, 5600 undergrad plus grad/med school at Brown.</p>
<p>Sam Lee piqued my curiosity-- in terms of acreage, Brown reports the campus as 140 acres, compared to Williams' 450 acres. That's assuming you dont count the 2500 outlyng acres that Wiliams owns, 2200 of which is forest.
By the way, I think (??) it is Williams that had some really funky study carrels in the library-- kind reminds you of bunk beds. Am I remembering correctly--- anyone?
One last memory-- Williams is proud of its tutorial program-- classes with only one or 2 students, offering an in-depth learning experience.</p>
<p>LACs and Brown are full of arty kids that want to discover the truth about life without taking evolutionary bio. No offense but literature cannot even come close to illuminating the human condition. Yeah evo-bio rocks.</p>
<p>BTW- If you like these two look into Dartmouth. There is a big preppy athletic contingent, but also a big quirky contingent. Its social scene is much bigger than Williams so its hard to get bored (big parties every weekend). I chose it over Brown but it was a really hard decision.</p>
<p>What other aspects of Dartmouth do you like slipper1234 and what reasons made you choose Dartmouth over Brown? Thanks to everyone for the input and for answering my questions.</p>
<p>Just a note of caution: Visiting in summer will not give you as accurate a picture of life at Williams, since there will be very few students around. Willimstown will be bustling becuase of the theater festival and the general ambience of the Berkshires, but that is not the same as seeing what Williams itself is like. The mood of the campus is really a key factor there, as for other schools, especially small ones. Try to go during the school year so you can see mor than the student tour guides. In my experience this makes a major difference in the impression you get of the school. I don't know enough about Brown personally to know whether that would be the case there as well; I know that at Dartmouth you would see some regular students even in summer because of the sophomore academic schedule.</p>
<p>I will give you my take seeing both several years ago:</p>
<p>Williams: Really nice and picturesque. It has a small student body ( no more than 2000 if I remember); thus, you get to know a lot of people, and they get to know you! Very close student faculty relationships ( faculty have students over for dinner at their homes at times). Like Columbia, they have a strong distribution requirement. It is in a VERY remote area. Williams kids tended to be much more conservative. I also met a lot of preppy kids from private schools. </p>
<p>Brown: It is in an urban setting and has a lot more to do since it is in a great area of providence. It also has a formal tie in with RISD, which allows Brown kids to be able to take some fabulous art and photography courses. RISD is arguably the finest art and design school in the US. Also, the college hill area is very artsy, which gives that area a very different feel than what I got at Williams. Brown kids tend to be more liberal than their Williams' counterpart.</p>
<p>Most importantly, Brown has NO DISTRIBUTION requirements. In fact, it may be the only ivy school that has that benefit. This way you can structure your own education and not have to pay for courses that you don't want and questionably need. </p>
<p>Certainly an argument can be made for requiring a strong core curriculum such as that found at Columbia; however, if you are smart enough to get into Brown, I don't see the need for students to take a core curriculum. However, if you want that, you can always take similar courses at Brown. The point is that it is your choice!</p>
<p>This also will enable you to have either a very strong emphasis in a major or even to have several majors. Frankly, knowing what I know now, unless you are a kid that needs a lot of structured curriculum, I would suggest to my kids to attend Brown over Williams.</p>
<p>As I have pointed out before on another thread, most Brown students (about 90%) <em>do</em> wind up taking a very wide distribution of courses, that parallel a typical core distribution requirement, just out of natural curiousity and interest. </p>
<p>Also, one discovers quickly that 4 humanities classes = untenable amount of reading and multiple papers all due at same time; 4 science classes= untenable amount of lab hours & 4 exams to prep at same time... you get the idea. Thus distribution is inherently appealing on a practical level too.</p>
<p>Med- I am Brown grad. I also looked at Williams and liked it very much. </p>
<p>With respect to physical campus: Brown is set apart from city in a beautiful residential neighborhood on a hilltop overlooking Providence. The neighborhood, "College Hill," has its own commercial street (on the other side, away from the city) that caters to college kids. The architecture of the homes that surround the campus is quite charming (not unlike Cambridge's residential areas in look & feel.)</p>
<p>Though you are in a city, it is a very attractive campus with skyline views, diverse architecture, stately buildings ringing large grassy quads-- very, very pretty. One crosses streets to cross campus because the campus is really the merged former campuses of two schools, Brown & Pembroke, and because Brown has grown outwards into the residential neighborhoods over time.</p>
<p>One other advantage of a city is TONS of internships and job possibilities. I worked for a t.v. news dept, a local edition of a magazine show, and the state atty generals office during my 4 years-- plus had paid employment.</p>
<p>My son's friend who attends and loves Williams said what she likes best is knowing she will see the same people every day. This is exactly what didn't appeal to him. It just depends on who you are. If you can't visit both places when there are classes, at least talk to as many current students there as you can.</p>