<p>I'm choosing between Dartmouth and Williams and need some advice. Though I am not yet 100% sure, I am interested in studying a combination of Econ, Neuroscience, and math. I like that Dartmouth is bigger than Williams and (I think) has better sciences. My biggest concerns with Dartmouth are a) the frat/drinking culture and b) it doesn't seem very intellectual. I'm afraid that Williams may be too small but it does have a reputation of being an intellectual school, although it is also known for its jocks (I am not a jock).</p>
<p>I am going to Dartmouth next year, and I am not at all into drinking. From what I've heard and seen during my visits, its not a huge thing if you don't want it to be. There are always other things to do. I am very artsy (as opposed to being a jock), and am planning to go to alot of performances at the hop. New Age music has a huge culture on campus, as does theater. On the academic side, if you want econ and math, Dartmouth is the place to go. The alumni networking for jobs on Wall Street as well as in science related companies are ridiculous. When applying for jobs in the sciences and business, the name "Dartmouth" will cause a reaction. Also, go to Dartmouth if you want to learn a language as well. I want to study French, and go abroad, so Dartmouth was a natural choice for me because I also want to major in a science. The D-plan makes this possible; at no other school would you be able to do a double major in the sciences as well as study abroad.
Good luck! Make the right choice...</p>
<p>Oh yea, forgot to mention the intellectual thing. I would DEFINATELY consider myself an intellectual. At all colleges, there will be a range of intellectual-ness, and Dartmouth is no exception (neither is Williams). I know some people who went to Williams who were total idiots and only interested in making alot of money when they grew up. I have also met some very sensitive intellectuals at Dartmouth. Both schools are outdoorsy, but for those of us who aren't outdoorsy (like me) there are definitely other things to do.
And may I add yet again that, at the end of the day, you want what you want and Dartmouth will get you there much faster than Williams.</p>
<p>My son is deciding between Dartmouth and Brown. He is very intellectual and nerdy, not at all athletic (though he does do wilderness backpacking, so the outdoorsy stuff has appeal), plays the viola, and has no interest in frats or alcohol (having seen enough of that, thank you very much, at the Big Ten school we live near). He spent two days at Dartmouth last week, spent time with current students who went to our high school, and met a lot of other people. None of them were into the frat/alcohol scene. All were very smart and intellectually engaged, as well as involved in truly impressive social action projects. I don't know how he's going to make a final decision, but I will be thrilled with either one.</p>
<p>I should say that he's let go of the smaller schools he got into -- e.g., Williams, Carleton -- because of the greater range and number of opportunities at the somewhat larger schools (though the friendliness of the Carleton students still pulls on him -- I suspect it's the familiarity of the midwest).</p>
<p>That actually could not be more the opposite. Dartmouth probably has one of the top 5 career services offices in the country (in terms of getting elite firms to recruit). Its legacy in business is a huge strength.</p>
<p>I got into almost all of the top 10 LACs with highest honors (including William Carleton Scholar, trustee scholarships, etc) but Dartmouth is one of my very top choices right now, though I will have to visit the campus before making the final decision. In my opinion, in terms of undergrad focused liberal art education, Dartmouth and Princeton are among the very best.</p>
<p>I have one son who went to Williams and graduated. I cannot say enough good things about Williams. There are a lot of really great athletes there (consistently wins top D-3 college in country) (he was an athlete), but also really brainy kids who are track to be professors, real intellectuals. The jocks are smart, they are not jerks. I thought the mix was great----the smaller size means the athletes and the brainiacs are mixed together more. Lots of 2 kid tutorials, too. I also think the lack of frats made a big difference in the (lack of )boneheadedness of the place-- social scene at Williams seems a lot less out of control. Binge drinking by kids I know from Dartmouth is awful. I have another child who is doing her best to go to dartmouth this year and probably has a decent shot. I’d prefer Williams, but for her particular sport (she’s an athlete–different sport from her brother) D would be better. One more thing—Williams grads are incredibly tight group and really support each other in terms of jobs. My son is working in financial sector–assuming Wall Street even continues to exist, my observation is that Williams provides great access for its grads. I’d say the W’s athletes majoring in econ tended toward Wall Street, the really intellectual kids tended towards grad school and academia.</p>
<p>I’ve heard from a bunch of people that Dartmouth students “play hard and work harder”. I’m not sure how true this statement is, but it seems that you have to work hard to survive an extremely intense quarter system.</p>
<p>As for the frat scene, there are other things to do besides drinking. I found that when I visited, the community of students was very strong and intimate. You’ll find a great group of friends with common interests that don’t include drinking.</p>
<p>As you can see I’m pretty biased in favor of Dartmouth. Can’t help it, absolutely love the school!</p>
<p>I’m a math and economics major, and to be honest, I don’t actually have a lot of friends I can talk serious math and econ with. It’s kind of frustrating. For math, I mostly talk with grad students as only 2 undergrads are in my grad classes and only one of them is staying in the course. The other maht majors in the grad courses are pretty weird. For econ, a lot of people have a really poor grasp of the material. In my macro class the medians would be 60’s and my lowest score was a 95. One time, a friend said that if you expand the monetary supply prices go up. However, these same people are some of the best at having fun.</p>