<p>S is looking at all 4 of the above schools. Obviously, some similarities but more differences...wanting to hear Pros or Cons of choosing each school.</p>
<p>Looking at possible pre-law preparation with possible majors in Poli Sci, Econ, or Psych. May major in one with minor in another.</p>
<p>Also, plans to play soccer.</p>
<p>I don’t think you’ll hear many cons of attending either Haverford or Swarthmore, but there are some differences. You can find lots of discussion about these schools in the previous two threads:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/haverford-college/539375-haverford-swarthmore.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/haverford-college/539375-haverford-swarthmore.html</a>
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/haverford-college/482150-haverford-compared-swarthmore.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/haverford-college/482150-haverford-compared-swarthmore.html</a></p>
<p>The Univ. of Chicago is similar in some ways, such as having Division III sports and being among the most intellectual (Haverford, Swarthmore and UChicago all make this list: [The</a> 10 Most INTELLECTUAL Colleges (PHOTOS)](<a href=“The 10 Most INTELLECTUAL Colleges (PHOTOS) | HuffPost College”>The 10 Most INTELLECTUAL Colleges (PHOTOS) | HuffPost College)). But otherwise it is very different from your typical liberal arts college. I would encourage visiting if possible, because you will see how different the atmosphere is (urban, huge compared to Haverford or Swarthmore, twice as many postgraduates as undergraduates).</p>
<p>In the end, all three will give you a great education. Yes, he will be able to play soccer at any of the three. Haverford, Swarthmore and UChicago all are strong in those areas of study, with UChicago being legendary in economics. I have not mentioned Dickinson so far because I know nothing about it. There are a lot of good liberal arts colleges spread throughout the country, but I have my doubts it would be at the same level as the other three you mentioned, making it perhaps a good safety school.</p>
<p>Dickinson may be the least demanding academically of the four schools you have mentioned. It may also be the most isolated. However, it does have a very unique program leading to a law degree. It is described on Dickinson’s website:</p>
<p>“The Joint Baccalaureate and Law Degree Program is a six-year program consisting of three years at Dickinson College followed by three years at the Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law program. To qualify for this program, Dickinson students need to complete all requirements for the bachelor’s degree (except one year of elective courses) within three years, attain a 3.5 cumulative grade average (the top 10-15% of the class), and achieve a score on the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) within the top 30% of the national test-takers. Students accepted into the program enroll in the Penn State Dickinson School of Law in lieu of their final year at Dickinson College. After one year of successful study at the law school, students will earn the baccalaureate degree from Dickinson College. After two additional years of study at the law school, the students will complete the law program and earn their JD degree.”</p>
<p>My son and I were very impressed with Dickinson but significantly more satisfied with Haverford.</p>
<p>One can get a good sense of HC from the videos on the admissions page. Outside of this, the main factor I feel important to bring up (again) as it’s not really obvious when comparing schools based on tours or guidebooks is the unique synergy HC has with BMC. HC because of the Bi-Co relationship can provide both a small intimate environment but also the academic/extracurricular opportunities of a school twice its size. It’s really a non-issue to take classes or major on the other campus. Some semesters when I was trying to decide between 2 equally interesting classes but on the different campuses, I’d sometimes choose the BMC class just so I could meet some new people and experience something a bit different. This synergy is great because, for example, in the case of psych as one example, it allows each school to specialize and provide for an unexpected depth and breadth of curriculum… HC’s psych is behavioral and BMC’s is mostly developmental.</p>
<p>Pros/cons depends on what your son is looking for:</p>
<p>1) HC’s honor code may either be a (+) or a (-)
2) Size may be a (+) or a (-). Swarthmore is functionally the smallest of the LACs. This may not be an issue for your son or it may be.</p>
<p>Size:
Super-sized
Barnard (2000+ students and consortium with Columbia)</p>
<p>Have more than 2000 kids
Carleton, Grinnell, Middlebury, Oberlin, Smith, Vassar, Wellesley, Wesleyan, Williams</p>
<p>Functionally more than 2000 kids (true consortium)
Bryn Mawr, CMC, Harvey Mudd, Haverford, Pomona</p>
<p>A little less that 2000 kids (true size or quasi-consortium)
Amherst (quasi consortium), Davidson is close to 1900, Bowdoin is close to 1800</p>
<p>Swat has 1450 kids and it’s in a quasi consortium so my guess is that it functions closer to approximately 1600 kids.</p>
<p>3) I think Swat’s soccer team is a bit more competitive than HC’s but I don’t think that means the kids on HC’s team don’t have fun… they’re currently in Sweden.
[Men?s</a> Soccer in Sweden](<a href=“http://news.haverford.edu/blogs/soccerm/]Men?s”>http://news.haverford.edu/blogs/soccerm/)</p>