<p>As someone who chose Williams over Amherst some time ago (and honestly, many people come down to those two and it's really 50-50 at that point), I'll give my perspective. First of all, I actually loved Williamstown. Yes, it's a small town, but due to the college and the Berkshire culture scene, it's a very unusual small town. There are two art museums, one world class, in town, and ten minutes away in North Adams is MassMoca, the largest contemporary art museum in the world, which has tons of great events throughout the year. Also in town is Images, a great independent movie theater, two cozy bars, a ton of good restaurants (two delis, Thai, Indian, Latin, Chinese, Burgers, American, pizza), a day spa (on Water Street, the other main commercial street), the best college golf course in the country, and of course tons of hiking, skiing, and other outdoors activities. So it's not like a rural wasteland, it's actually pretty sophisticated, which is why tons of New Yorkers flock there every summer. It is certainly a small town, but I for one never grew sick of it, and I felt like Amherst was sometimes overwhelmed by UMass kids, while Williamstown was a community centered around Williams, which could be bad but I really enjoyed. </p>
<p>Really, no two schools are more similar. I felt Williams students were, in the end, a little more outgoing, quirky, outdoorsy, and fun, while Amherst was more preppy and serious on the whole, but that was just my impression, and it's dangerous to generalize. I am sure someone who chose Amherst would say that Williams is full of dumb jocks, which believe me is equally false (in fact, if you consider that most of the highly-recruited jocks are on the same teams at both schools -- football, hockey, basketball, lacrosse, and those teams are the same size, Amherst actually has a HIGHER percentage of recruited athletes than Williams). But I just loved all the goofy traditions at Williams like end of semester trivia, mountain day, winter carnival and the craziness of Winter Study (a big plus in my book), and I felt that plus the relative isolation did breed a character, uniqueness, and sense of community among the student body that was second to none. I also thought that Amherst was just a little TOO small -- Williams has around 20-25 percent more students, which I think is just enough to keep meeting new people on campus and keep things fresh. Also allows the school to bring in a few more big name speakers and performance artists each year, due to economies of scale. If you look at the list of speakers on campus this fall, it was staggering. But again, there is no "magic" number, Williams' size just felt right to me.</p>
<p>Now, for someone who really gets stir crazy or cabin fever, this could all be a downside. Amherst does provide more opportunities to take classes at the five colleges, escape the bubble, etc. There is certainly more happening, overall, in the five college area than in the Berkshires (not during the summer, but few folks are on campus for the summer). I just didn't see that as a huge advantage since, honestly, (1) overall Williams and Amherst provide I think the best undergrad education (along with Swarthmore and Pomona and Dartmouth) in the country, why pay all that money just to take classes at other schools and (2) I predicted (correctly) that I would never tire of the opportunities and intimate community provided by Williams. </p>
<p>Really, 90 percent of people who love Williams would love Amherst, and vice versa, and 90 percent who hate one would hate the other. You'd be hard pressed to tell a group of 10 Williams students from 10 Amherst students -- hell, they're all wearing purple in any event. So I'd recommend, if at all possible, stay for weekends at both schools, or a night each (they are only 1.5 hours or so apart) and go with your gut, wherever vibe you feel in a comfort zone. Unless, that is, you have a definite, definite interest in an academic area that is clearly featured at one over the other (such as Math or Art History at Williams). Trust me, there is no wrong choice. </p>
<p>There was a thread a month ago (that I posted on) best things about Williams on the Williams site. I think that gives a nice overview of what alums and students really love about Williams. If it hasn't been done, someone should start a similar thread on Amherst. It really gives some perspective into the little, memorable things that can make all the difference.</p>