<p>a trusted friend and teacher told me to go to haverford if I got in. He has a poli sci background. Any comments on Haverford?
I haven't visited but some friends of mine have and were turned off to the school, however I don't want to base my judgements on theirs.</p>
<p>The best for what? Like most LACs, Haverford provides an extraordinary experience for some students and is not the right fit for others. v You should visit if you can, do your own more specific research and form your own opinion.</p>
<p>i was just wondering if anyone could tell me about their personal experiences as opposed to the unqualified endorsment my teacher gave.
i've viewed the cd viewbook and browsed online, yet I was hoping someone here could give me an insider's perspective.</p>
<p>Gungadin hit it right on with his precocious advice. :)</p>
<p>Sorry, but there is no "best" but only "best for me". That's what makes your job with deciding on a college challenging, interesting and very exciting. You should directly speak with whomever but ask yourself how credible the info is (as demonstrated from some of the debunked posts on the HC thread in the recent past) and then ask if those reasons resonate with you? Especially at the top LACs, it's more a matter of fit than anything else. As you know, HC is the smallest of the top LACs and with its honor code may not be appealing to some or even many applicants.</p>
<p>There must be a reason why your trusted teacher/friend thinks HC is tops... as there must also be reasons why your friends didn't like their visit (are they afraid of getting bird flu from the ducks?)</p>
<p>Until then, as a sencondary source of info, why don't you try searching some of the posts here. After 3 years, I imagine everything thing that can be said about HC has already been.</p>
<p>i've visited swarthmore along with haverford and couldn't really distinguish between the two.</p>
<p>one can take classes at both, caliber is around the same, architecture is same, puritains, and beautiful campus.</p>
<p>so what are some big differences between the two?</p>
<p>Haverford's honor code is the only i can think of that is clearly different.</p>
<p>1) The Puritans did not create HC nor SC. They were, however, the force behind the Salem Witch hysteria and the term “puritanical”. Quakers are traditionally linked to social and peace activism and also progressive thought.</p>
<p>2) You can take classes in the Tri-co and the van ride between the Bi-co and SC is doable, but it should not be underestimated.</p>
<p>3) Both schools are very similar in terms of campus culture and academics but I’d say there are 2 differences worth noting (like I said some time ago, trying to figure out differences in the Tri-co is like a Republican trying to figure out the differences between Hilary Rodham, John Kerry and Howard Dean)</p>
<p>a) The Honor Code, as you mentioned. Enough has been written about it on CC that it doesn’t bear repeating now. Please do a search if you’d like. The code offers a completely unique college experience for all students but most greatly to those engaged by its ideals. It’s not for everyone. The code, and the types of personalities it attracts, seems to promote a campus culture that is a little more modest, respectful and “community aware” than at SC. In my opinion, this is mostly good, but as I said before, there are issues with this as well.</p>
<p>b) SC has an endowment per student that is the envy of all LACs except for Grinnell. With that, SC can buy some things that other colleges, including HC, cannot including a better dining center. If one were to compare SC to HC alone, I’d say that SC offers more academic and social resources. However, because HC is more HC/BMC, resources in general are more than comparable and, depending on one’s specific interests, may be greater at one school or the other… and these specific differences and differences in campus culture make the deciding factor for many students that are accepted into both schools.</p>
<p>My most important advice is that I’d like to think that students accepted to either school are the types that are resourceful and determined enough so that they can succeed at any school despite whatever resources are available… let alone at 2 schools that are considered the top LACs in the country.</p>
<p>thank you for the response</p>
<p>i guess the biggest difference to me would be the honor code. since it is heavily emphasized, i can't help to be a part in it. i just have to think about this.</p>
<p>i guess that's the point of the essay.</p>
<p>I don't know if this reply is too late for you or not. I'm new, but I just wanted to let you know that I was at Haverford this summer for a program of theirs. I had a really awesome experience there and I'm even considering applying to attend. The campus is really nice, the duck pond is awesome!! haha...it's the perfect setting for me...suburban, but not too far from the city where I like it, it's only a 20 minute train ride on the R5 to Center City. The people there are super super nice, I felt like i clicked with everyone so easily. The campus is also really clean and well kept. I swear every other day they were mowing the lawns when i was there for the month of July. So yea...that was just a nutshell of my experience there this summer. If you have more questions I'd be happy to try and answer =)</p>
<p>Lots of places have a "we don't cheat" honor code. What's different about Hav's, and what makes it a different place, is the social quality of the code. The ethos--sort of an eversion of Quaker meeting--is that if something is happening in your community, or if one of your friends is doing/or saying something that you feel, at heart, to be wrong, you're supposed to speak up and respectfully engage/challenge/listen to/evolve with the other person or group. As opposed to a campus full of people going off and doing their own things, this generates, at it's best, a campus full of people who go around asking "why are we doing this," "how should we do this," etc. to each other and then try to muddle their way through, together and individually. </p>
<pre><code>That's what they mean by "Community." This really distinguishes Hav from the other LACs. If you're a fully formed 17 y.o. with your own strong views which you don't want to consider or have challenged, then this is less important to you, and might even mean you'ld have more fun elsewhere. On the other hand, if you think that life's questions, big and microscopic, are all important and beautiful mysteries whose answers can be approached by you along with your friends, then, ah...what a place.
</code></pre>