<p>I was wondering if any other 2013ers, alumni, or current students could comment on Yale versus a liberal arts school. I was accepted early into Yale and also into Carleton and Swarthmore, though I like Carleton more than Swarthmore. I'll visit Carleton next week and unless I hate it my choice of school is going to come down to Yale vs. Carleton, university vs. LAC. The Yale's caliber and prestige is very attractive, but so is the intimate education of a LAC.</p>
<p>I’m a Carleton Alum. What Majors are you considering? Any thoughts on what you might want to do after undergrad?</p>
<p>When you visit Carleton, I’d strongly recommend you speak to the professors and students for the majors which you’re interested in. Make sure you’re a good fit.</p>
<p>What I’m wondering is how did you apply early to all of those schools? I understand Yale has early action, but is it not ‘single-choice’ early action, meaning you are not allowed to apply early to any other schools? Beyond that, though, don’t Carleton and Swarthmore not offer early action, only binding early decision? How is it possible that you can choose between these when two are binding and the other is single-choice?</p>
<p>That said, I had a similarly difficult decision to make between Dartmouth and Carleton. I ended up deciding in the past week to attend Carleton based on what I’ve read about it–and about Dartmouth. What made the difference for me was the intimacy of the liberal arts college compared to the national research university… It just seems like it’s the kind of environment that’s conducive to real learning, where one and a few others have the undivided attention of an eminently qualified professor willing to help no matter what–a luxury one isn’t afforded, or at least not to the same degree, by the Ivies or other top 10, top 20 schools on the U.S. News national university rankings. I also looked through Princeton Review and the lists Carleton was included in, what students had said about it, etc, seemed much more to my liking than did the information on Dartmouth. Plus, I was told there are much more stringent distribution requirements at Dartmouth.</p>
<p>Visiting both schools and speaking with many current students will be key in making your decision, along with comparing financial aid offers and whatnot. Sit in on classes, both lower-level (numbered in 100s at Carleton) and upper-level (200+). Try to talk to upperclassmen, since they will be able to speak to the good/bad of life at Carleton and each department better than freshmen can. (Ditto with Yale, of course. Freshmen everywhere will paint a school more rosily than the upperclassmen will.) I have in mind things like how hard it is to get the classes you want, rigidity of requirements, extent of bureaucratic garbage to apply for research grants or study abroad, helpfulness of campus offices, juggling part-time jobs with coursework, activities to do during the week, activities to do on weekends, party scene, relationship of RAs and security with students, and all sorts of other things that might not be addressed by admissions materials or known by first-year students.</p>
<p>You can’t go wrong with either school, but one will probably jibe with your better than the other. I got into schools that were considerably better known than Carleton when I went through the process, but I just couldn’t see myself feeling as connected to those institutions. It was very much a gut thing, and having come out the other end of college to the real world, I’m still satisfied with my decision. You probably know if you would regret turning down one school for the other, so don’t ignore those instincts.</p>
<p>Well, this is a pretty old comparison ('81 grads) - but a friend went to Carleton and her husband to Yale. He feels that she got the better education. He teaches at Stanford, and their son is going to Carleton.<br>
But I totally agree with others that visiting will be your best bet - do the kids you meet seem like your group of friends? You can also get a sense of the student body from reading the Carleton student blogs (I don’t know if Yale has any, but a quick call to admissions would answer that) and check out the Facebook groups.<br>
Good luck</p>
<p>While you mention “intimate education” as a selling point for Carleton, I’d probably argue that it’s the intimate social experience here that even more sets it apart from our larger university breathren. Carleton’s alumni giving rate is well known to be the highest in the country, but I believe that few fully comprehend what underlies it. </p>
<p>Four years at Carleton bond people in a way few other college experiences do. Graduation simply turns these into living memories. Wedding receptions 8 years later look a lot like reunion events. Looking for a house to share when returning to grad school? Expect a network of alums to find you a place to bed down. And for those formal I-swear-I’ll-never-be-caught-dead-there 10 year, 20 year, 30 year reunions? Expect to be caught live there. The show rates in Northfield are astronomical, and telling. </p>
<p>For many schools, reunions mimick marketing events. It’s either about the networking and fundraising or about ego gratification and self promotion. The rose colored glasses come out in force for these events. Without them, many could never bring themselves to return to those same gilded campuses.</p>
<p>At Carleton, it’s about keeping forever alive four wondrous years. Four years of memories in the making to sustain you when the real world bids you enter. This is a very long term investment you’re about to make.</p>
<p>Yale is a wonderful school that will offer great opportunities but will it offer you enough intimacy, enough of this kind of experience? New Haven is not Northfield and its Village Green is not the Arb. Two great but very different choices. Yale and its siblings will still be there in four years offering the same name branding and prestige. It will offer this then when it matters most - attached to a graduate degree. Carleton will present itself this one and only time. No second opportunities.</p>
<p>My son is in a similar situation. He has narrowed his choices to an Ivy league school and a top LAC. He is blessed. We are going to have him revisit both before he decides. We will support either choice. In the end we want him to go where he is happy. He will get a great education at either school.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your help! I really appreciate it. To answer a few posts, yes I applied to Yale early and Carleton and Swarthmore regular decision. Sorry for the ambiguity. </p>
<p>I’m most likely going to be a History or Political Science major. 1190 thank you so much for your two threads and your long post about Carleton. You put into words a lot of things going through my head as pros for Carleton. dietcokewithlime thanks for the questions!</p>
<p>I’m going to Carleton’s admitted students days and will hopefully get to revisit Yale for their Bulldog Days. This is going to be tough!</p>