<p>coureur: I think it’s disingenuous to insist that Hillary’s career is not different from Barbara Bush’s or Nancy Regan’s. She was on the cover of Time Magazine and a student at Yale Law School (the most selective in the country) before she met Bill Clinton. She was clearly going places.</p>
<p>Barbara Bush dropped out of Smith to marry George Sr.</p>
<p>And Nancy Reagan was C list movie actress whose greatest achievement was converting an openly liberal head of SAG to her family’s brand of conservative politics. Some may think that a stunning achievement, others not.</p>
<p>And if Hillary made her mark as someone’s wife it wasn’t her choice, it’s the choice of the American public who insisted she change her name from Rodham to Clinton to increase her H’s popularity. And doing something loving for one’s husband is something even we feminists do from time to time. I wouldn’t change my name no matter what the provocation but I am not from the midwest like Hillary. I am an east coast Jewish feminist, and I determined a long time ago I loved my name, I’m a writer and my name is important, and I have been lucky enough to meet two men who supported my decision, my second husband more wholeheartedly, so I guess we are a better match.</p>
<p>I am not going to lay the sexism of the American public at Hillary’s feet.</p>
<p>mythmom, there seems to be a subset (a rather large one) of the American public determined to denigrate and belittle Hillary’s achievements. That is the major reason the lost the Democratic primary…but then again, I’m still bitter about it.</p>
<p>Never mind, totally OT for this thread and probably inappropriate for the forum.</p>
<p>FWIW, I spoke with a former grad student of H’s who is now a professor at Mt. Holyoke. He said he sees no difference between the Smith and MoHo students. He did comment that Mt. Holyoke is in better financial shape than Smith.</p>
<p>@qialah - Really? I find that a little hard to believe, but maybe since Mt. Holyoke is smaller than Smith that plays a factor. I was at Smith during the worst of the recession (or what I hope will be the worst of it) I thought they were handling the financial situation well.</p>
<p>I’m sorry, but this is just more ongoing nonsense from the Smith Mafia. I spend plenty of time in Boston during the week when I was a student at Wellesley, and it was EASY to get back and forth. I went to the MFA, I went to indie movie houses, I went to the Boston Public Library, I just hung out in Cambridge, etc. Although I personally didn’t take classes at MIT–not having a desire to take more science and math or engineering–I had friends who did.</p>
<p>While I think noting the time difference is perfectly reasonable (some people don’t want to spend an hour on the bus to get into the nearest city), people should probably note that to take a class at Amherst College, from Smith, also requires riding the bus for aruond 1 hr, beacuse the bus makes stops at UMASS, the mall, Amherst town center, before stopping at Amherst. On the way back it’s a little faster, but still a ways. Of course, to go to UMASS and Hampshire, the rides are shorter, because there is an express bus to UMASS and the Hampshire bus doesn’t have as many stops. </p>
<p>And you can walk into downtown Northampton in mere minutes. But Northampton is not Boston. </p>
<p>Anyway, the tone’s been so civil so far, can we keep it that way?</p>
<p>Sorry, SmithieandProud, my intention was not to be uncivil. But every time this subject comes up that same few people start with the same old inaccurate nonsense and it has gotten to the point where it annoys the hell out of me. So call them Smith Boosters instead. </p>
<p>BTW, the bus to Boston does not, if memory serves, take an hour. It RUNS every hour.</p>
<p>And thank you for pointing out that the bus that connects the 5 College Exchange is not an instant transporter either. Some people choose to take advantage of the exchanges available at Smith, MHC, BMC, and Wellesley, despite the fact that they have to schedule a bit more carefully than those who don’t. Other don’t. Suffice it to say, the opportunities are there for those who choose to take advantage of them.</p>
<p>Having visited three of the four (not Wellesley) as the parent of a prospective applicant several years ago, I have to say I would not consider MHC as the strongest choice, partly because it’s the most isolated. I also think for reasons that are probably not fair and that I don’t fully understand, it is the one that now unfortunately is least regarded despite its stellar past and strong faculty and resources. It has many international students and seems more generous than most with admission offers and merit aid, which could be a good thing. I found Smith very beautiful but not comfortable for my D or me, and found Northampton, a town I used to really like, to be too transient in feeling for me to want to send a daughter there. (D did not apply in any case because ultimately decided she wanted a coed school.) For setting despite my fondness for rural New England, I much prefer Bryn Mawr–the suburban location and Haverford/Swarthmore/Penn proximity are a big added plus (yes I know about the five-college consortium in the Pioneer Valley). And I guess for glamor, Boston, and the Hillary connection, Wellesley is very appealing. </p>
<p>Anyway I think unless one really loved Smith, which certainly has its charms and glory, or MHC, which seemed very cozy and does have a great tradition, I would choose between BMC and W partly on the basis of location and partly on the basis of academic perceptions…</p>
<p>Stunted Giraffe, thanks for sticking your neck out and posting…let us know how you decided.</p>
<p>Consolation: I can tell you that my D could not have afforded a two-hour time penalty, in addition to whatever time was spent in the city. Her schedule was just too freakin’ busy. And I’ve heard the same from Wellesley grads about taking courses at MIT: yes, you <em>can</em> do it…but it knocks an awful lot of possibilities out of your schedule at Wellesley. To the point where you need to essentially block out half a day for the days you’re at MIT.</p>
<p>Smith Mafia? Wow. Where do I get my fedora and Tommy gun?</p>
<p>That’s an interesting perspective mattmom. I don’t get the sense that Mt. Holyoke is the least strong choice (I don’t want to say weak). It is ranked evenly with BMC (not that rankings are everything).</p>
<p>@TheDad: you are hearing a different perspective from another W grad. Which you have heard before, and which you continue to ignore. </p>
<p>Let’s face it: with the probable exception of the Claremont Colleges, where I gather it’s almost like one big college campus–I’ve never been there, but that’s what they say–taking part in any college cross-registration program is going to take some careful scheduling and is likely to involve trade-offs.</p>
<p>To get back to the original question, how to decide: I second mathmom’s (see post #12) “spreadsheet” idea, making columns with various categories that could be highly individual (best food, opportunities for extra-curricular activities, etc.) and see as a result if there are any clear front-runners. Another would be - if you eliminated one from the running, does she feel a pang of regret, and how big? Are there any she can “let go of” easier than others?</p>
<p>She is very fortunate to have so many wonderful choices, and she will undoubtedly get a great education at any of those. So now it’s just picking one and moving forward. </p>
<p>When we were expecting our daughter 19+ years ago, we had a whole group of baby names we were considering. We had to pick one (okay, 2 with the middle name) in the end and move on.</p>
<p>stuntedgiraffe, do we know what you might be interested in studying? That could influence your decision. Otherwise, you need to assess the overall vibe of each place. I’m a Mount Holyoke graduate from way back before anyplace was coed, when a women’s college was where you went automatically if you were a certain kind of student. I’m not quite sure why MHC is “less regarded” than the others, but I haven’t seen the data on admitted classes. I really like the students I’ve met recently. The location has always been an issue, but there’s a good bus system. The MHC vs. Smith competition is ancient and frankly not all that compelling to me, because who the heck cares. Both places have assets. It depends on what feels best to you academically and socially. I’m glad you’re considering one of the remaining Seven, and wherever you go, you’ll have a great four years on a beautiful campus, with faculty who care and students who are intelligent, interesting women and will be treasured lifelong friends.</p>
<p>'taking part in any college cross-registration program is going to take some careful scheduling and is likely to involve trade-offs."</p>
<p>This is usually true, and it’s true between BMC and Swat/Penn, but it really isn’t true where BMC and Haverford are concerned. The two function very much like one campus academically, something like half of all students major at the other campus, and the bus ride takes like 5 minutes. The course times are staggered so that it’s easy to take a class at each campus on the same morning. It’s a very unusual, Claremont-level collaboration.</p>
<p>MMm, I have a friend at BMC and she says that taking a class at Haverford does involve SOME careful scheduling and there are trade-offs (hey, they’re used to walking like, 2 feet to class…guess you get lazy). That said, it’s much less of a trade-off than taking a class, at say, UPenn or Swat - which BMC students can also do. Fewer take advantage of these more “name brand” institutions than those that take advantage of Haverford.</p>
<p>It’s a fair point even if it’s not as applicable to Haverford as it is to other schools. I think the transportation and distance between colleges should definitely be considered. How likely you are to participate in the cross-registration opportunities depends on this.</p>
<p>Dorms at Bryn Mawr and Haverford are probably closer to classrooms at the other than the distance between some dorms and classrooms at Stanford, Harvard, Chicago, not to mention many state universities. They are only about a mile apart – hardly even worth taking the bus if it’s not raining.</p>
<p>Well…I think that’s an over-generalization, and to whatever extent it’s true, the reluctance can extend in both directions. You do have to keep in mind that while BMC/HC is a coed community, the female-male ratio is 3 to 1, and that affects the dynamics for straight people. When I was there, a Penn or Swat guy was a more prized commodity than a 'Ford guy.</p>
</p>