<p>They both gave me a full ride and I am in love with them. Their atmospheres are so different, but I can't choose at all!
The only thing that's swaying me right now is their 4-year graduation rates, which Lafayette seems to have higher.</p>
<p>If I’m not mistaken it appears that Lafayette College is only about four points higher than Hamilton college. It doesn’t seem to me that it should create much of a difference. </p>
<p>Are there any clubs, classes, or other activities that one school has that gets your attention more than the other school? Have you looked at the programs available for your major and the employment rates after college?</p>
<p>Make a list of what draws you to each college and see if one offers more opportunities than the other school. It might be easier to decide that way once you have everything out for you to see and examine.</p>
<p>I know very little about Lafayette so I can compare, but Hamilton was one of my son’s top choices (though he ended up going elsewhere). </p>
<p>Hamilton has terrific academics and an energetic and talented student body. The location, however, is not for everyone. The campus is quite isolated and difficult to leave without a car. The nearest town, Clinton, which is really a village, is a good hike. </p>
<p>For my son, who likes nature and outdoorsy activities, the rural location was a plus. You’d have to decide how you’d feel about it. Be sure to visit!</p>
<p>@pippakarenina I was mainly interested in the dual engineering/IR program, which Hamilton doesn’t offer. but Hamilton has a renowned writing curriculum, which I’m also interested in. and the fact that Lafayette has a higher graduation rate and more students… I don’t know :/</p>
<p>@momrath I’ve visited both Hamilton (3 days) and Lafayette (1 day tour and lunch with students). Where does your son go right now? I am from New York City and not sure how to resettle into rural life. I remember when I went there, the organizers filled up the place with events and games so we wouldn’t get bored. How does one get to a city?</p>
<p>No, my son ended up Williams, which although also rural, encompasses the village of Williamstown. Before college, my son had only ever lived in big cities, but he deliberately chose a rural location – as it turned out for both undergraduate and graduate school. He loved the access to nature and outdoorsy activities and misses it now that he back living and working in a city. </p>
<p>You have to make the decision based on the environment you’d prefer for four years. There are always trade offs, but some are more important than others.</p>
<p>If by a city, you mean New York or Boston, I’d say it’s not so easy by public transportation. The nearest major city is Utica which is 9 miles away. There are trains and buses from Utica. Really, though, you should fstart with the assumption that you’d stay on campus on the weekends, not on how to get out. 
</p>
<p>The decision of whether you want an engineering or liberal arts degree is also significant. Hamilton has excellent math and sciences, but a BA is completely different from engineering.</p>
<p>Both are good schools. Which feels best for you? Which offers the most in terms of your interests? Geographic location? Internship options? Career placement offices? Find out the GMATs of their graduates.</p>
<p>Congratulations and good luck!</p>
<p>The graduation rate should be irrelevant if they’re within a few points of each other. The bigger factors are which do you like better and do they offer your major. Other than that, not much counts, not even location. There are people who attend Haverford and never go into Philadelphia. There are even people who attend Columbia and never leave Morningside Heights except to go to the airport or train station. The campus becomes home after awhile.</p>
<p>@dowzerw Thank you! I never thought of the internship opportunities and the GMATs (in my case, the LSATs) available as something to consider. </p>
<p>@momrath Oh shooty, that’s a problem. I live in NYC and don’t have a car haha. Lafayette appealed to me because of the ease of transportation, but Hamilton appealed to me because of the nature and everything (or nothing) that surrounds it.</p>
<p>I’m leaning on Hamilton, but really the only thing that is pulling me back is the rural-ness of it all!
Lafayette is beauuuutiful (not as well endowed, but that doesn’t matter. My mom is the one who wants me to go to a more well-known and better endowed school).</p>
<p>I believe Hamilton allows freshmen to have cars, so plenty of your classmates can take you places. Plus there’s a shuttle everywhere. And it’s four hours by train from NYC to Utica, so getting there and back is no problem.</p>
<p>I believe both school have Facebook pages for 2018. You might try talking to some of the people in both classes and see how you interact. It’s not perfect, but it’s something.</p>
<p>Congratulations on having such great choices. If you are still torn between two schools, I’d try to revisit them both once again. My D is at Lafayette and absolutely loves it but my friend’s D had a great experience at Hamilton as well. Think about what you want in a school. They have different locations, different academic attributes (ex. Lafayette has engineering if you want that), and different vibes. Pick the school where you feel most comfortable. If you have any questions I can help you with about Lafayette, you can send me a PM.</p>
<p>@happy1 What surrounds Lafayette? I didn’t visit the surrounding areas, so I’m not sure. (I’m going on 4/12) I know Hamilton basically has nothing, but since Lafayette is sort of suburban, are there little shops/stores, et?</p>
<p>Also, I know Hamilton is quote renowned at my school and no one has heard of Lafayette. Do names and prestige mean anything when I graduate? I checked out the ‘after-graduation’ data for both colleges and Lafayette seems to have their grads making more money and finding jobs quicker.</p>
<p>Lafayette sits at the top of a hill above the town of Easton. As I recall from thirty years ago, it has homes and commercial town streets surrounding it. Not the prettiest town and surroundings, but a far cry from the beauty of Hamilton’s surroundings. But then Hamilton is tiny and in the middle of nowhere, and Easton is 1.5 hours from Philly and NYC. </p>
<p>Hamilton is 10 minutes to Utica, 1 hour to Syracuse, 2 hours to Rochester, 3 hours to Ontario where the drinking age is 19, and 4 hours to NYC, Boston, and Toronto.</p>
<p>About the same, I’d pick Hamilton </p>
<p>@tietodecide12 Why??</p>
<p>OP, you need to work out why you want to go to one of these schools, not why you don’t want to. List the positives for each school. Forget the negatives - they have a way of working themselves out or turning into no big deal. If you have a pick after looking at just the positives, only then make sure there are no dealbreakers. And by dealbreaker, I mean things you absolutely can’t live with, really big things, not things that might be a problem.</p>
<p>The most positives on whatever scale you use (not the mom scale either), no dealbreakers, and there’s your school. The solution should be obvious after a few days thought and sleeping on it.</p>
<p>@MrMom62 I need to reevaluate what’s offered and what’s good in each school. Thank you so much for the advice (What’s the mom scale, haha)</p>
<p>That’s the scale where your mom rates the schools. She may see them differently than you - but you can listen to her arguments, just make your own decision.</p>
<p>@AwkwardAardvark: 4 year graduation rates are largely irrelevant. If you are a motivated student and focused on completing your program in time, I am sure you will have no problem graduating in four years. (The fact that your academics were strong enough to be offered full ride to both schools demonstrates that you have the tools to succeed. It’s up to you to bring your A game to your college experience.)</p>
<p>I know many people who have attended both schools and who have had their children, nieces, nephews, etc. attend both schools. Hamilton is a great liberal arts college that focuses on teaching writing skills (as others have said). Also, because it is truly Centrally Isolated, they encourage their students to do at least a semester abroad and preferentially a year abroad. (They have an agreement with Pembroke College at Oxford to send 5 students every year for a full year’s study.) Also, Hamilton has a remarkable alumni network that could be helpful as you complete your studies. Small classes, engaged, outstanding faculty and everything you would expect from an elite liberal arts college. In fact, if Hamilton was in a more accessible place, their acceptance rate would probably be more in line with schools like Swarthmore and Amherst but it’s in Clinton, NY which is not for everyone. (For context, I went to Cornell and Ithaca is a teeming metropolis compared with Clinton. Clinton is literally an hour from nowhere. Also, winter comes in October and sticks around until about May. Summer appears for about a week somewhere between the end of July and the beginning of August. But central NY is beautiful and the Finger Lakes Region is as pretty as any other place in the US.)</p>
<p>Lafayette is also an outstanding school which offers engineering and D-I athletics, if these things are important to you. It is also a bit over an hour from NYC and Philly which adds convenient cultural options that Hamilton cannot match.</p>
<p>Bottom line: If you are as successful at either of these schools as you were in HS, you will be able to achieve your goals, whatever they may be. What’s most important is that you are comfortable at the school, that you feel like you will fit in among the students that you meet. And in this regard, I think the schools are more alike than they are different.</p>
<p>My D chose Lafayette over Washington and Lee because of the Engineering program and location. Class of 2018</p>