After visiting both Swarthmore and Williams a few months ago, I decided to apply to Swarthmore ED due almost entirely to practical reasons (i.e., the nearest airport being 20 minutes away instead of an hour), but I loved both of them. Unfortunately, I got rejected from Swarthmore on Friday night so I am going to go back and apply to Williams. What are my chances, especially considering that I got rejected ED from Swarthmore?
Also, if you think that Williams is too much of a reach at this point, could you please give me some advice regarding other schools to apply to, preferably in the Northeast? I am already applying to Haverford, which I also visited, and I really liked the feel at the school and have reached out for an interview (it was a quick trip, I didn’t have time to interview there). I’m still applying to my in-state schools, UF, UCF, and FSU. I do like UF but I haven’t really been to UCF/FSU. Stats are posted below. Thanks!
3rd in my class of 492
4.0 uw GPA, 4.5 w
AP Classes
— AP Human Geography: 5
— AP World History: 5
— AP Seminar: 4
— AP Music Theory: 2 (not reporting)
— AP Lang: 5
— AP Calc AB: 2 (also not reporting)
— AP Research: 4
— APUSH: 5
Senior Class Load: AP Calc BC, AP Environmental Science, AP Art History, AP Latin, AP Gov, AP Macro, AP European History, Band, AP Lit
SAT: 1420 ss (740 English, 680 Math, 6/6/6 on Essay)
ACT: 31 (35 E, 35 R, 25 M - my rechargeable calculator shut down 5 minutes in!, 28 S, 12 on Essay)
Extracurriculars:
Band all 4 years---I play bassoon and mellophone
Captain of Brain Bowl Team
President of school chapter of English Honor Society
Treasurer of school Mu Alpha Theta chapter
Member of Rho Kappa (Social Studies Honce Society)
Member of National Honor Society
Very involved in Latin Club, and just Latin in general (I've taken it all 3 years so far, taking AP now)
~100 volunteer hours with hand and in the classroom
St. Jude Teen Formal---a group of kids from the Orlando area were selected to organize a teen fundraising formal with the intent of making this a nationwide movement. I am helping plan this event and am in charge of the social media pages of the event. This is pretty close to my heart, especially since my late aunt was an early patient at St. Jude in the 70s.
Awards:
Several regional- and state-level awards in Latin (Florida Junior Classical League)
Magna cum laude, National Latin Exam (Freshman and Junior years)
Summa cum laude (highest award), National Latin Exam (Sophomore year)
Brain Bowl team was 2nd place overall this year
Various school awards (9th grade English award, 10th grade Social Studies award, et al.)
Various church awards
Solo and Ensemble Festival for band (superiors since 9th grade)
Chance threads are unreliable. We posters are a mix of fellow applicants, parents, students and alumni— very few are admissions officers, and no one has read your full file and those of the other applicants.
If you like Williams, by all means apply. And be proud of your impressive accomplishments, regardless of what happens.
That said, you need a range of colleges that includes some with easier admissions. What is it that you like most about Swarthmore and Williams?
If you like small colleges in particular, then instead of just the larger Florida public schools, why not apply to the small, public and well regarded New College of Florida?
And in the northeast- perhaps Vassar, Bates, Hamilton and Colgate, as well as the still wonderful but easier to get into Connecticut College and Skidmore? Safeties- Wheaton in Massachusetts or Clark?
Good luck!
Admission at the top schools is never predictable, outside of saying its unlikely for everyone. That said, don’t let that hold you back if not applying to Williams would make you say “what if” for the rest of your life.
Given the statistical likelihood that you won’t get into Williams either, what is your plan for RD other than Haverford? The highly selective NE schools that @TheGreyKing mentioned, including Bates, Colgate, Hamilton and Vassar are all great; I would also throw in Colby.
Bates, Vassar and Hamilton would seem to be other appropriate choices for you, or at least schools to research further. I wouldn’t recommend you choose a school based on an admission strategy, but Vassar statistically offers an edge to male applicants, if that applies. Colby, which might somewhat favor female applicants, could be another school to consider.
Colgate, Conn College, Weslyan, Hamilton. For Williams, and Amherst I think you need a significant hook. There’s also, Holy Cross, Stonehill, Villanova
Given that Swarthmore and Williams are in very different settings and have very different vibes, what characteristics of a school are important to you - large vs small, urban vs suburban vs rural, preppy vs sporty vs crunchy, big frat/sorority focus vs small vs none, intense academic focus (SWARTHMORE) vs more balanced?
Agreed that it is hard to assess chances generally, you have a strong record and should apply regardless of the response from Swarthmore. Also, Bowdoin is test optional so could be easier to the extent your scores are below the median. Your transcript looks strong.
My son really liked Swarthmore and Williams, too. Also really liked Middlebury, Bowdoin, and Amherst. They’re all of the same type. Maybe also consider Hamilton, Wesleyan, Vassar, and, if you’re a woman, Smith, Bryn Mawr, and Mount Holyoke? It’s an embarrassment of riches.
@TheGreyKing thank you for your response. I looked into New College but I deemed that the campus culture just didn’t seem to suit me.
As far as what I like about Swarthmore, I was really attracted to the Quaker philosophy and sense of communalism that pervades the place (that’s why I’m also applying to Haverford, which is very similar in this regard). As for Williams, I loved the sense of community that I actually witnessed at the place rather than the community I experienced Swarthmore, which seemed more committed to an abstracted communalism, one which existed more in the minds of the kids than in their day-to-day actions. Of course, this is not an entirely fair assessment, since I did get to spend more time at Williams than at Swat. I’m also not trying to come down hard on Swat; I did apply there ED, after all. I hope this gives you some more insight into why I’m attracted to both schools.
@Chembiodad I have also looked into those schools and have gone back and forth on whether or not to apply to Hamilton and Vassar. After Friday’s decision, I probably will - the only thing holding me back from doing so earlier was the financial strain of applying to so many colleges.
Regarding desirable characteristics in a school, I prefer smaller schools mainly because I thrive in small, collaborative settings (i.e., the classroom). I liked the convenience of having Philly right next door to Swat/Haverford, but I also deeply appreciated the beauty and seclusion of the environment at Williams. I would say that each has its strengths and weaknesses. I like challenging academics insofar as they are meaningful, but I doubt that I would be doing much busy work at any of these schools. I’m not athletic (something you may have been able to gather from my profile, lol) and I’m pretty opposed to a big Greek scene anywhere.
@TennisParent I have considered Bowdoin but I thought that the test optional policy meant that even if you didn’t submit any test scores, you’d better have something that made up for not putting them on there. Perhaps I am mistaken.
Bowdoin and Swarthmore both have 10% acceptance rates - IMHO the result would be the same. Agree that test optional for a non-hooked applicant at Bowdoin means have a 4.0 UW GPA and have some amazing mission driven EC’s.
If interested in ED2, better to pick a highly selective school where admission for a 1420 SAT / 31 is more achievable such as Hamilton or Vassar - still a reach as that is still in the bottom 25% for each, but the acceptance %'s are higher. At Bates, you would have an even better chance.
Haverford can be compared to Hamilton and Vassar with regards to likelihood of acceptance, which will be better during ED2. Given that RD will be even reachier at these schools, do you have match schools that you will be applying to just in case?
@Chembiodad my parents would rather me not apply ED2 anywhere because of financial reasons (they were a bit apprehensive about my ED1 application). As for match schools, could you please give me some ideas on what would be considered a match for me? Thanks.