<p>
By my count, Williams actually has slightly more tenure-track science/math faculty than Wesleyan does, even though Wesleyan has about 40% higher enrollment overall. The difference is mostly due to the greater numbers of math and computer science profs at Williams; the science depts have similar faculty numbers. </p>
<p>
Not exactly. In relative terms, it’s true that Wesleyan has a much smaller proportion of math/science majors. Based on 2008-09 Common Data Sets, the percentage of math/sci majors was about 25.2% at Williams, and only 15.2% at Wesleyan. </p>
<p>But Wesleyan has a much larger total enrollment, so the difference in absolute terms is not that great. Based on 2008-09 CDS, I count 145 science/math majors at Wesleyan and 178 at Williams. Most of the difference reflects the higher number of math and computer science majors at Williams. </p>
<p>
No, this does not appear to be the case. Williams has slightly more math/science majors, but also slightly more faculty, so the difference in faculty/student ratio is probably not great. Furthermore, it would likely diminish or disappear if the Wesleyan graduate students in math/science (who also require faculty attention) were added in. </p>
<p>So (while this is admittedly subjective), I would still peg Williams as the leading NESCAC math/science school, in terms of number of faculty, number of majors, and amount of money. Williams is one of the best endowed LACs to begin with, and the science/math departments presumably can lay claim to an unusually high percentage of the budget, because they enroll an unsually high percentage of majors.</p>
<p>Again, this does not mean that Williams is automatically the best choice for math/science majors, or that there aren’t excellent math/science opportunities at Wesleyan or other NESCAC schools. Other factors will affect your undergraduate experience as much or more than the number of faculty or course offerings.</p>