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<p>But you know, how about making time, first, for quietly absorbing and reflecting on ideas? You can spend the rest of your life frenetically running around Washington, D.C. and the rest of the world.</p>
<p>Yes, Haverford students can take courses at Swarthmore.
Penn is going to add a huge selection (though it’s not as nearby as the “bi-college” partner, Bryn Mawr).</p>
<p>The quality of the faculty at these three schools will be similar and strong. The surrounding student body will be much stronger at Haverford and CMC. </p>
<p>AU will obviously offer a much, much larger department with more faculty and class opportunities but will present larger class sizes with generally less personal attention. </p>
<p>The raw number of course offerings at CMC, especially when combined with the rest of the 5C’s, is large. Haverford, when combined with Bryn Mawr (what’s all this mythology about Swat and Penn classes? - yes, cross reg permitted, but very rarely exercised due to significant logistical difficulties) offer fewer but still way more classes in the field than one can hope to stuff into 4 undergrad years. </p>
<p>Using AU’s school term available internships to argue against attending Haverford or CMC would also argue against atending the vast majority of top ranked universities or LACs - only very rarely will they allow credit for these. </p>
<p>If going to grad school or law school is an ultimate goal, I’d recommend Haverford or CMC. If interested in going directly post undergrad into a government post, AU stays in the running.</p>
<p>Haverford has an academic atmosphere that is as rigorous, serious, and stimulating as one will find anywhere. It also has a reputation to match. See the Fiske Guide to the Colleges, Barron’s Guide, etc. Virtually every list or ranking of undergraduate feeder schools to the nation’s top law, medical, business, or public policy, etc. schools, rankings of Ph.D. production on per student basis, etc. puts Haverford ahead of the pack. For example, in the Wall Street Journal’s feeder rankings Haverford was #18, CMC was #22, and American didn’t make the list of 50. In terms of Ph.D. production (in social sciences and humanities) on a per student basis of more than 185 U.S. colleges and universities Haverford is #3, CMC #28, and American #104.</p>
<p>Any examination of course offerings must include Haverford + Bryn Mawr combined. The curriculums and departments of the two colleges are extraordinarily well-coordinated and planned. The departments work together to make sure that bi-college offerings are maximized, each school has a faculty sit on the selection committee each and every time the other shool hires a faculty member to make sure that the departments continue to expand opportunities rather than overlap. Not even CMC, Pomona, Scripps, and Pitzer have that degree of coordination. (While Swarthmore and Penn classes are available to Haverford students, most students rarely step foot on either campus.) </p>
<p>At Haverford the principal education mission of the faculty is to focus on research and its undergraduate students. In addition, the College is committed to educating the “whole person.” Finally, it also has a great social environment, students are very happy, and there’s a strong sense of community. IMHO, unless the O.P. wants to be in California or in D.C., I think the Haverford is the clear choice.</p>
<p>Sorry, pointoforder, but strongly disagree that there’s a “clear choice” here.</p>
<p>Haverford and Bryn Mawr can coordinate till the cows come home. But any way you cut it, these two schools, though very geographically close to one another, are discrete, separate campuses with kids usually busing from one to the other. Haverford itself is a very small place with only about 1100 enrolled, signficantly smaller than most other LACs and just too small for a lot of people I know who visited and said no way. </p>
<p>CMC may be just as small, but the 5 colleges adjoin one another with no real geographic boundaries, no fences, and add up to about 5,000 students. Cross registration is very easy, minus the bus. Even cafeterias are shared across the 5 campuses.</p>
<p>There are good reasons the OP might prefer Haverford (it is certainly a much more balanced place academically then CMC), but a “clear choice” this certainly is not.</p>
<p>^^ You make good points and I agree that it isn’t an easy choice but I will say that Bryn Mawr and Haverford share cafeterias as well. Also, it’s a nice, short walk between the two campuses or a shuttle bus – honestly, it’s not a big deal.</p>
<p>For the record, Bryn Mawr and Haverford are like one college with two campuses. Except for dorms and traditions, the two might as well be called Bryn Mawr-Haverford College. The bus runs regularly, and it’s only a 10-15 minute ride between the two. The colleges have basically divided their courses and departments so that there’s little or no overlap, thus maximizing the number of classes offered. For example, Bryn Mawr’s Japanese majors take their language classes at Haverford, and Haverford’s French students take their French classes at Bryn Mawr. Any consideration of Haverford must also include the course offerings at Bryn Mawr.</p>
<p>The advantages of choosing CMC or Haverford over AU are the options available if you decide IR isn’t for you. Overall, CMC and Haverford have stronger students and stronger faculty members. AU has an excellent reputation in IR – and that’s often the only reason top students apply.</p>
<p>Have you visited any of the campuses? If so, where did you feel comfortable? I can’t think of more disparate choices in terms of environment.</p>
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<p>Dear Mini, feel free to consider me poorly informed. I will, however, continue to point out that your favorite source on this subject remains a deeply flawed survey … a fact you prefer to ignore. </p>
<p>In the meantime, to correct my own ignorance, I rather pay attention to someone who might know a thing of two about the IR program at … Johns Hopkins. Has the latest survey improved its methodology?</p>
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<p>[IR</a> program ranked 19th in nation - News](<a href=“http://media.www.jhunewsletter.com/media/storage/paper932/news/2007/03/29/News/Ir.Program.Ranked.19th.In.Nation-2813781.shtml]IR”>http://media.www.jhunewsletter.com/media/storage/paper932/news/2007/03/29/News/Ir.Program.Ranked.19th.In.Nation-2813781.shtml)</p>