<p>I did pretty well in high school, partly because my best friend (who was at the top of the class) was always willing to help me when I had a hard time. During 11th and 12th grade I caught up with her, and in a way, we were competing for the top spot. Still, she willingly tutored me whenever I needed it, and I returned the favor whenever I could. </p>
<p>How competitive are Smithies, specifically those who are majoring in science? I study best in study groups where everyone helps each other, just like we did in high school.</p>
<p>Also, does Smith offer tutoring?</p>
<p>Smith offers tons of help. They have a Quantitative Learning Center where you can get help with the math parts of your science courses, and they have master physics tutors. I’m a mom of a student just offered admission this spring, and when I looked up how much help Smith offers, I counted 5 different people who can help you with physics, and that doesn’t even count informal homework groups. They teach first year physics in a way that promotes working in groups while learning. So while I can’t speak from direct experience, I would guess that the students are more cooperative than competitive.</p>
<p>My daughter has found Smithies to be helpful and collaborative, rather than competitive with each other. She typically studies for science tests by meeting with a small group of friends from the class (usually students she met in the class, as opposed to students from her normal group of friends).</p>
<p>Some classes actively encourage collaboration. For example, a couple of the early programming assignments in the intro to computer science class must be done with a partner, and the remainder can be done that way if you want.</p>