F&M vs Reed vs Bard vs University of Sydney

Colleges and Universities A-Z Franklin & Marshall College
1

<p>Hello!</p>

<p>I was admitted to the above schools, and I am simply unable to come to a decision. Okay, it is fine to ignore USydney as you offer suggestions, but these are the schools that are practical for me to attend.</p>

<p>F&M and Reed offered me ditto financial aid, so money is not a factor while making the decision between these two. Bard is $4k more expensive per year. Should I even consider Bard? My other options are Macalester and Amherst, but I'm completely turned off by what I've heard about Amherst (after applying), and Macalester, well... I just don't want to go to the Midwest (I would have if I didn't have other options). So those two are out.</p>

<p>What I'm wondering is, how well does F&M prepare students for graduate school? How well does it do to find its graduates jobs? I have an extended family that includes a few Reedies, and it was always assumed that I would go there too, granted I get in (it's a family thing to get a PhD). I have never seen myself as a person who studies all the time, though, so I'm very concerned about the workload and supposedly intense culture of the school (aren't all good schools difficult, by the way??), despite the fact that I love to be challenged. Also, Reed seems to a little.. erm.. conservative academically, and there isn't a lot of freedom to explore to everything because of the annoying distribution requirements (no time to do a course in art history AND philosophy or english, AND also do two years of French if I major in economics, for instance). What's more is that interdisciplinary study has always fascinated me, and I know that I can have that at F&M. There also seems to be more balance between work and play at F&M.</p>

<p>I very, very like F&M, and one of the reasons I am considering it is that I am considering studying computer science. It's an option I would like to have, but I don't know for sure (Reed does not offer this option). However, I just don't know if that's enough reason to attend F&M. How strong is the computer science department at F&M? Are econ, international studies, and math strong? What opportunities are there for summer research? Very competitive? How well-known is F&M in academia? Everybody I know seems to think that it comes down to Reed (after eliminating Amherst and Mac). Would I be making a mistake by not going to Reed? </p>

<p>I've always dreamt of going to a pretty liberal arts college in the northeast where I would have a very <em>romantic</em>, if that makes sense, experience. F&M also seems to filled with super nice people. Reed would just be ... different. I don't know if that is good or bad. Maybe Reed would be a different kind of fun. But I'm just so charmed by F&M's radiant (don't have another word) culture: The people are just so nice! And everyone I know who goes there LOVES it! </p>

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<p>I know F&M is known for very good academics, research opportunities and preparation for grad school. Even though it is “ranked” lower than the others it is a great choice, for you have lots of them! Go where you think you’ll be the happiest and the rest will fall into place. </p>

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<p>Well, I think they’re all great schools. Even Amherst has its pros, academics are amazing (and Amherst is a nice little town, been there a couple of times, since I’m in the 5 College area), although I wouldn’t really like to go there. You should go for the one you like the best, but make sure you do it for good reasons.</p>

<p>For example, the idea of going to school in the northeast might seem appealing, but really, the only difference is that the weather is horribly unpredictable (seriously, we had snow a couple of days ago). I wouldn’t cross out Macalester because of location, it’s a really good school. All of your schools are liberal, so I think it mostly comes down to which environment you like better. I suggest you talk you current students from all schools before deciding.</p>

<p>If I were to be picking, majors aside, I’d probably go for Reed or Macalester. Macalester is one of the schools I applied to, but I never found out if I got in because I withdrew my app (got into ED school). Reed has impressive grad school statistics, but I’m sure the ones for your other schools are also good. And I think it’s better-known, but I wouldn’t really go by that. I don’t think you can go wrong with any of the schools you picked, I think you should really just contact students from each school. </p>

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<p>I’m an international sophomore majoring in Psychology and Computer Science at F&M. I didn’t know anything about CS before taking it last semester. Since F&M has just had CS major recently (about 3 years or so, before that we only had CS minor), the options are somehow limited and they are still working on developing the curriculum. If you have prior experience in CS you will find the classes a lot less challenging than I do (for your information CS majors at F&M spend the first year learning Python and I saw one freshman allowed to skip one class and go straight to the next one because he was too good). I would say the professors are nice and the quality of teaching is good, but currently CS is not our strength. </p>

<p>I have not taken any International Studies class but I have not heard any bad thing. From the website it seems that the program is very flexible. You might need to take one or several Government classes for the major, and Government is F&M’s strength. Overall F&M’s Math program is good, and for Econ it really depends on which professors you have. No matter what your major is, I can confidently say that F&M’s policy for studying abroad is very open and generous compared to many other schools. </p>

<p>F&M also has summer research opportunities (but more likely for sciences like Biology, Chemistry, Physics, etc.), provided that the students proactively contact their professors in advance to ask and show interest. For other disciplines like Econs, Business, etc., there are opportunities but less, and I would assume it’s partly because many students prefer to look for internships. Another thing about research at F&M is that you can do research with professors from different departments so it’s not limited to your major. </p>

<p>As Guitar500 has it, your options are all great schools, and I also think it would be better if you can have more information from the students from each school (including Amherst and Macalester). If it’s about the distribution requirement, you should check F&M’s distribution requirement too to see if you are ok with it. Most F&M people are very nice and love the school, but there are exceptions too. What I mean is that don’t let the “romantic” idea get you too far from other factors. In the end it’s about how you can make the best out of those four years.</p>

<p>I think you have heard of this quote. It might be something to consider if other methods don’t work well. </p>

<p>“When faced with two choices, simply toss a coin. It works not because it settles the question for you, but because in that brief moment when the coin is in the air, you suddenly know what you are hoping for.”</p>

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<p>Thanks guys! I have, though, already eliminated Amherst and Macalester. Amherst’s culture, and what I’ve heard and read about it from current students, is really not for me. The academics are superb, but I’m quite sure that if I’m not happy socially, that will show in my academics. Mac is great, but I just don’t feel anything when it comes to Mac. It’s not as though I’m saying no to Harvard… haha. I won’t regret not attending Amherst.</p>

<p>I tried the coin toss. Didn’t work for me because I thought of the name of a school where I was waitlisted at. </p>

<p>Distribution requirements aren’t a concern. In fact, the fact that Amherst has an open curriculum is a drawback because I would never take certain courses that could potentially be life-changing.</p>

<p>I guess, then, that I shouldn’t consider the lack of a computer science major at Reed while making my decision.</p>

<p>Thanks again!</p>