<p>Hey guys, could you help me out and explain some of the differences between these two schools? From what I've read thus far, it seems like there aren't many. Both are outdoorsy, athletic, and out in the middle of nowhere. So how do these two institutions differ?</p>
<p>Size is about the only significant difference. The student body is virtually identical, except for an even stronger emphasis on varsity athletes at Williams (39% of all male students).</p>
<p>That's actually the only thing that I could find that was different, too. I still find it a bit odd that there aren't larger differences...</p>
<p>There are a ton of differences. My sister is going to Williams, I want Dartmouth. Williams is tiny and is very much like a prep school experience where you know everything about everyone on campus. It's a jock school, but at that size, how exciting can it be? Williams is less diverse, still of the rich wasp ilk. Great academics at both, but you really need to want super small and intimate to spend 4 years in Williamstown!!</p>
<p>Ok, so size appears to be the biggest factor thus far (thought both are pretty small 2000ish v. 4000ish)</p>
<p>As for the rich WASP thing, I would imagine you'd get that at any top LAC or ivy...just comes with the territory; however, I too have heard about Williams rather rich side more than I have about that scene at Dartmouth.</p>
<p>Dartmouth has an active greek scene, and Williams doesnt have frats. Hanover is a bigger town than Williamstown, but neither is bustling. Dartmouth also has some small grad schools attached to it that Williams lacks. Thats about all I can think of.</p>
<p>I was looking at both of them, and was on days on campus</p>
<p>Dartmouth is much bigger than Williams, Williams has lots of athletics too, and Williams seems to be more New England preppy-ish than Dartmouth. </p>
<p>Of course my narrow experiences at each of them limit my view - similarities include: both top schools, both give lots of attention to undergrad (or all in Williams' case), both have lots of school spirit, both have big party scenes, and both are great places if you enjoy the outdoors, green, and white (must like snow)</p>
<p>Does anybody happen to know which is closer to a medium sized town (i.e. 50,000+)?</p>
<p>Neither one. They are both pretty comprehensively out in the middle of nowhere.</p>
<p>Williams is really far away from anything.</p>
<p>Dartmouth is close to some other middle-sized towns, close being about 35 minutes</p>
<p>I very seriously considered both and liked both.
I visited Williams and Dartmouth three times apiece. </p>
<p>[I will not try to knock you down with statistics, my view is unashamedly based on my subjective feelings of the two.]</p>
<p>I more or less knew it was Dartmouth for me from the beginning, but I also longed for the classical LAC campus and education. In the end I just couldnt make myself feel Williams in the way that Dartmouth always felt awesome. </p>
<p>Williams has a breathtakingly beautiful campus in the middle of the mountainsyou have a view of the mountains in every direction. The buildings are also beautiful and many are unique. In my visits, I cant say I was overwhelmed with kindness but people were friendly.</p>
<p>Williamstown is small to non-existent and not much to speak of.
Hanover looks like an idealized quaint traditional American small-town.</p>
<p>Im supposing the academics at both are fantastic and unsurpassed.</p>
<p>Dartmouth presents itself as a more traditional campus.
The campus is built with three sides around a green and the town of Hanover faces the 4th. The students are amazingly welcoming, friendly, intelligent and down to earth (though I expect that the Williams students are similar, I didnt experience it to the same degree in Williamstown).</p>
<p>To me, Dartmouth represents some of the best attributes of both a LAC and a universitythe size is best described as the classical Golden Mean.</p>
<p>Dartmouth exceeded all of my expectations in a college, I visited 22 of them leading up to my choice including Swarthmore, Amherst, Yale, Harvard, Brown, Duke, Penn, Princeton, Haverford, Wellesley, Columbia and more.</p>
<p>Dartmouth was far and away the one that stood out from the crowd. However, I imagine I would have been happy at Williams if I would have gone there.</p>
<p>Good luck, but dont do anything until you see Dartmouth, it has a spirit about it like no others.</p>
<p>Thanks so much for the post. Unfortunately, I live in WA state, and I'm not exactly rolling in the money, so I won't be able to visit :< Though from the sounds of it, I think that I'd fit right in.</p>
<p>Williams is about 45 minutes from the city of Pittsfield, I call it a large town, and it's probably 30 minutes from Berkshire Mall. North Adams is next door to Williamstown, and also I can say that there is a lot more to do in the Berkshires than New Hampshire total.</p>
<p>Take it from me, my boarding school is out here, my town is population 1,400 and yet we have a ball with weekend trips, and most of us are kids from New York City, that is saying a lot, we are definitely not bored.</p>
<p>Pittsfield certainly isn't a bustling city, though. Once you get past like. . .Springfield. . .on I-90 Massachusetts just blends in with the wilderness. I could never imagine going to school out there, there is literally nothing to do.</p>
<p>Williams is awesome in the arts..... world class museum in Williamstown(the Clark Museum), one of the best art history departments in the country (alma mater of Kurt Varnadoe former curator at MOMA and film director John Frankenheimer) and theater (the Williamstown Players is one of the best regional theaters in the country).</p>
<p>Ecliptica, that is where youre wrong, if a bunch of city kids from NYC, Boston, San Francisco, and Houston can have a ball out here then you obviously haven't tried. I mean not to far past Springfield is the start of Berkshire County, and it ends with Albany.</p>
<p>I mean, if you compare the two:</p>
<p>Dartmouth---->next door to Lebanon pop. 12,500...20.44 people per sq. mile
- 60 miles from nearest big town---->Concord pop.40,500...632.86 people per sq. mile
- There is no other place within 60 mile radius nearing 50,000 people, why b/c you're caught between the big yawn..I mean New Hampshire and cow country, Vermont.</p>
<p>*Williams----->next door to North Adams, pop. 14,500...20.44 people per sq. mile
- 20 miles from nearest large town---->Pittsfield pop. 45,500...1,124 people per sq. mile
- 40 miles from next large town---->Albany pop. 95,500...4,474.57 people per sq. mile</p>
<p>Also note that Graffton County is approx. half the population of Berkshire County.</p>
<p>Williams is 30 mins from Pittsfield. Some movie theatres here, and the Berkshire Mall.</p>
<p>Williams is a little less than an hour from Albany. There is a huge mall here (Crossgates? Crossways?). Some night life but not much. The airport Williams kids fly in and out of is in Albany. Saratoga is about an hour away from Williamstown - tons of bars here. Amherst is about 45 mins from Williams.</p>
<p>Having said that, I wouldn't call either Pittsfield or Albany a selling point when it comes to Williams!</p>
<p>Crossgates Mall, that's right. I know that neither are much, but would you rather have Albany or a bunch of cows?</p>
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would you rather have Albany or a bunch of cows?
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<p>Having been to Albany/Troy/Schenectedy on many a college road trip, I vote for the cows!</p>
<p>I did have too much fun at a "Commander Cody and the Lost Planet Airmen" concert at SUNY-Albany one time, though.</p>
<p>Dartmouth has frats which really change the culture of the place. The d-plan is also a pretty big difference between Dartmouth and Williams. Also, being a university, Darmouth has slightly more course offerings, but also has slightly less undergraduate focus. Williams has the tutorial program (modeled after Oxford's tutorials) where you take courses that have 2 students and one professor in them. Students can take tutorials beginning as early as their frosh year, although most students wait until their sophomore year to take one.</p>
<p>Do overnight visits at both and see which feels better to you. Both are great schools, but there are some pretty serious campus-culture differences. I was admitted to both and thought I would like both equally but ended up having no difficulty choosing Williams over Dartmouth.</p>