Felt like opening up this thread for all us international applicants.
Feel free to discuss what you want in the comment section.
Hey! Just wanted to know which countries you guys are from. Anyone else applying ED from India?
Hi! I’m applying to Williams ED as well. I’m from Pakistan. Has anyone heard about the notification date yet ?
I always wonder why an international student would, as a first choice, choose Williams, which is highly isolated and rural. Would you mind sharing your reasons also?
When it comes to us internationals who want a substantial financial aid, our options of colleges is severely limited. In my extensive search, I could only find around 60 schools that gave some sort of aid and that were decent in teaching CS. Out of those, most were colleges like the T20s and T50s where aid is extremely competitive (think sub 5% acceptance rates if you need aid). Among the others, almost all are LACs. And who’s the best in CS among all LACs? Williams is certainly up there.
When I inquired about Acceptance Rates at Williams, they said RD was around 5% vs 11% in ED. Also, I’m not a big fan of CA so Pomona was out of the way too. So, really, it was a choice between Williams and Amherst and I chose Williams.
It really comes down to the aid for me though. Only 5 out of like the 22 colleges I’m applying to are urban not because I specifically chose rural schools, but because those are the only options I have.
@amalolan Thanks for sharing your thoughts. They certainly make sense. Wish you the best of luck.
Hi, I’m applying Williams ED from Pakistan. Good luck to everyone. Anyone have confirmation on notice date? Heard it’s December 7th.
@amalolan Good luck my Indian brother!
@1NJParent My reason for choosing Williams out of the myriad of great schools in the US is probably because of the great Economics department. Now, I know you’ll say that there are so many other schools with great Economics departments etc but the thing is, the factors of a nice small Liberal Arts College combined with good post-grad oppurtunities and close proximity to professors makes it a prime place to apply to. This, ofcourse, combined with their great financial aid practices makes it imperative for me to apply there. (i’m an intl asking for a lot of aid lol)
Now, the rural area isn’t much of a dealbreaker for me although I did a lot of research into that. Massachusetts is still a great state to live in and I think I’d be comfortable more in a laid back rural environment than the hustle bustle of an urban city (I could just visit boston, ny etc theyre pretty close too).
Now, just fingers crossed about my admission 
Williams certainly houses a top-notch economics department: https://ideas.repec.org/top/top.uslacecon.html.
You might also consider Hamilton, which has performed well in coding competitions that included other highly selective LACs such as Middlebury and Wellesley as well as universities:
https://www.hamilton.edu/news/story/comp-sci-department-hosts-college-computing-conference
Yup, Hamilton is at the top of my list as well. I’m considering ED 2 to either Hamilton or Grinnell. I think I might go Grinnell but I’m not too sure.
Since you have applied ED to Williams, let’s hope neither, @amalolan. Nonetheless, this CC forum resource could help with respect to further research, if needed: http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/math-computer-science-majors/1814245-computer-science-at-some-smaller-schools-including-liberal-arts-colleges-p2.html. Note that you might benefit from cross-referencing with current course catalogs for fully up-to-date information.
@CollegePerson23 I agree with @merc81 that Williams has top-notch economics dept. Williams also has probably the best math dept (which is important for economics and CS majors) among LACs. Its Oxbridge-style tutorial system is obviously a big draw for many. Location-wise, though, it’s pretty far from any major city (at least 3 hours away). For international students, easy access to an international airport is usually a consideration. I understand your reasoning and there’re always trade-offs in life. Good luck and hope you get in!
Regarding isolation, the majority of Williams students, whether international or domestic, appear quite willing to travel a long distance to get to their school. Nonetheless, once there, they reside an hour from the capital of New York State. Should they occasionally want to experience the bright lights of a city, Albany is really not that far away.
Thanks a lot, @1NJParent!
Idk about others but access to an airport is actually the least of my concerns. I’d like to avoid coming back here as much as possible (only maybe in summer breaks and even then I’d prefer doing research or going off to an internship) so it really doesn’t matter for me. But even if it did, as @merc81 says, Albany is just an hour away.
The best might be debatable, but the Princeton Review sampling, “Great Schools for Mathematics Majors” – which currently includes LACs such as Harvey Mudd, Haverford, Hamilton, Bowdoin, Reed, Carleton and Grinnell – would certainly be enhanced if it were to include Williams.
@merc81 Harvey Mudd is in a different category, even though it’s often categorized as an LAC. But your point is well taken, there’re other LACs with very good math dept.
@1NJParent Thanks a Lot! Your support means a lot. I personally am not losing sleep over the decision because whatever I get, it’ll be for the better. Bless you.
Decision release for Internationals is the same as domestic? 7th Dec?
@daar7163 same! what school are you from?