<p>Though I am only applying to carleton, what would the debate between these two great schools be, and on undergrad.</p>
<p>Harvard > Carleton</p>
<p>No competition.</p>
<p>What similarities do you even see in them? Hahaa they differ in everything from size to student body dynamics.</p>
<p>Wow, well played 
If your goal was to outrage the Statistical Society here, consider it done.</p>
<p>You better learn to spell first. Sorry. Just a pet pieve of mine.</p>
<p>Comparing colleges with the intent of saying one is better than the other, rather than which one is best for you individually, is a silly game and only engenders hate filled comments, arrogance, condescension and otherwise the worst that CC has to offer.</p>
<p>Don’t do it.</p>
<p>LOL that spelling is your pet *peeve.</p>
<p>I doubt there could be a meaningful debate between these two schools. More appropriate would be a debate by an individual about what he or she is seeking in a school. The differences between Carleton and Harvard are blatant enough to point out how important it is to think about fit. </p>
<p>Harvard’s strengths don’t really need repeating: arguably greatest name recognition in education in the world, Nobel heavy faculty, top achieving student body, Cambridge/Boston environs. But the school caters best, moreso than almost any other I know, to goal-driven individuals for whom Harvard fits into a grand plan. The undergraduate experience is seen more as an opportunity to move towards a goal than an end in itself. The emotional connections to the school tend to be few, in my experience with alums, though most are appreciative of what the college did to further their ambitions.</p>
<p>Carleton’s strengths, like those found at most top LACs without quite the name recognition of a Harvard, lies in the undergraduate experience first and foremost. Long term goals are still important and Carls may drive themselves no less hard than Harvard students do. But students leave Northfield after four years much more emotionally connected to their alma mater, the professors they came to know so personally, and the close friendships nurtured. Alumni giving rates reflect this bond and are the highest to be found among any college in the US. The fondness with which they look back on these years even decades after graduating is truly remarkable.</p>
<p>Harvard vs. Carleton? No global right or wrong answer. Any one person should carefully weigh his/her long term goals and what is sought experientially in four years of college. Make sure the fit is right.</p>
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<p>If Harvard = Zeus, Carleton = Imporcitor</p>
<p>On a more serious note, Harvard is far superior to Carleton in general. Carleton is equivalent to BC and Case Western in terms of its student body. However, if you like to spend four years in a nice college town in the Midwest, then do consider choosing Carleton over Harvard. I wonder if anyone has ever made this choice between these two schools in the past three decades.</p>
<p>^^^^^^^^BC’s student body is more qualified than Case Western’s</p>
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<p>I’m sure that people have.</p>
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<p>Carleton is more selective than BC and significantly more so than Case Western. 75th% M+CR = 1490 (same as JHU, Georgetown, CMU; higher than Wesleyan, Middlebury, Vanderbilt, Bowdoin). Carleton is 6th highest among all LACs and universities in alumni PhDs per capita for all disciplines. </p>
<p>Harvard v. Carleton is not a very fitting cross-admit contest. The more appropriate question is, how many applicants choose it over Swarthmore, Amherst, Williams, Pomona, etc.? It is easily the most selective and arguably the best LAC for hundreds of miles in any direction, so presumably quite a few do.</p>
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Oh, I’m sure they have - and I’m equally sure some chose Carleton.</p>
<p>One poster, for instance, chose Pomona over Harvard and “Not once [has she] felt any regret for [her] decision.”</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/484896-rejecting-harvard.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/484896-rejecting-harvard.html</a></p>
<p>Prestige only takes one so far.</p>
<p>Though my two Ds have both loved Harvard, I’d probably take Carleton myself if given the choice. Carleton is the equal of any LAC in the country; its location makes it less selective than the Eastern or California LACs.</p>
<p>To be honest, I think that you’re talking about schools that cater to different types of students. </p>
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<p>I disagree. Carleton is more selective than BC, with a lower percentage of applicants admitted, and significantly more so than Case Western. Also, as tk pointed out, Carleton’s 75th% CR+M SAT is 1490. Case Western’s is a 1410; BC’s is 1430. In terms of student body, Carleton students are far more similar to students at other top LACs - Williams (1520), Bowdoin (1470), Middlebury (1480), Haverford (1490), etc. As well as to the students at the schools that tk listed. Georgetown, Tufts, JHU and CMU all have the same SAT scores; Cornell, Northwestern, Claremont McKenna, Wesleyan, and Vanderbilt are all within a 10-point margin.</p>
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<p>I don’t know anyone who has, but for what it’s worth, my friend chose Carleton over Yale this year (and Williams and Middlebury, but that’s beyond the point). I also chose Carleton over Northwestern, Vanderbilt, UVa and Cornell. Not exactly the same thing, but perhaps that will help you to understand that Carleton isn’t just some midwestern school to be written off. </p>
<p>Obviously in terms of overall academic reputation, selectivity and worldwide prestige, Harvard is unquestionably the winner. But I don’t think you should brush off Carleton so easily as “the Imporcitor.” I think 1190 summed it up best:
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<p>^ But would you choose Carleton over Harvard, if you got accepted to Harvard? I can guess you wouldn’t.</p>
<p>Probably not, but I’ll never know. I didn’t apply to Harvard. For what it’s worth, I probably would have chosen Princeton over it had I not been waitlisted, but I’m happy with my choice and I really could care less.</p>
<p>(CYeah, I know it’s “couldn’t care less”…but it doesn’t sound good)</p>
<p>There are plenty of reasons not to go to Harvard, even assuming you were admitted. Harvard can be a very unforgiving place for people unsure of what they want academically or where they fit socially. No one’s going to hand you a road map for success; a lot of what passes for faculty advising is just smug reliance on Harvard being “the best at everything”. With luck, you’ll get to know the residents of your house and receive a great diploma. But, I’ve met far too many people who are still trying to figure out what the heck happened to them in the ensuing four years. It all goes by very fast.</p>
<p>If you’re interested in advanced grad school, Carleton grads later earn PhDs at a higher rate than Harvard grads (all disciplines combined).</p>
<p>^ Glad I’m studying the sciences at any rate.</p>