<p>Hi I'm new on these boards, but I have an issue deciding where to put down my deposit. I'm currently on a LOT of waitlists but while I'm waiting/hoping for some good news I'm forced to decide between Mt Holyoke and U-Wisconsin-Madison-I know these schools are polar opposites. I want to major in Political Science/International Relations with a concentration in middle eastern studies and I intend to go on to law school after college. Ideally I'd like a co-ed environment but academically small classes with an intellectual atmosphere, problem is that neither of these schools fits these criteria completely......and thus I need help.</p>
<p>Go to UW Madison. They have killer parties there and it is probably in the top ten of all party schools nationwide. Plus the academic aspect is very stimulating if you are in to that sort of thing.</p>
<p>"Both of these schools have excellent science programs. Any chance you'll be considering a switch from Political Science to Pre-Med?"
No chance at all, I may switch to history or something along the social science route but pre-med, math, science etc are not options.</p>
<p>"Go to UW Madison. They have killer parties there and it is probably in the top ten of all party schools nationwide." - This is also one of my concerns about UW, I want a social enviornment but not a huge party school. MHC on the other hand, seems like the other extreme socially, which I don't want either. I really want a social AND intellectually stimulating climate.</p>
<p>Our choice here was between Mount Holyoke and University of Minnesota. (Admitted to Wisconsin-Madison but no grants because we are not Wisconsin residents.)</p>
<p>Madison is one of the top public schools in the country. You will receive an excellent education and since Madision is very much a college town, you will get a "college experience." You might be able to mitigate some of the "bigness" of Wisconsin via housing options. For example, Liz Waters will give you a bit of the Mt. Holyoke feel. Chadbourne and Bradley also provide more of a LAC-type community. </p>
<p>What other factors are involved -- e.g., merit aid, honors program, etc.? I would suggest doing a "pros/cons" list. Make a "logical" decision, based on your list. Then sleep on it for two days. See how you feel and then, go with your gut.</p>
<p>Our choices were Minnesota (lotsa' bucks!) and Holyoke (good but not great aid). Minnesota is very strong in medicine, engineering, IT and business. My daughter will major in the humanites, so she'll be at Holyoke in the fall.</p>
<p>It would be helpful to know more about you, but if I go only on what you said in your post:</p>
<p>co-ed environment: favors Wisconsin. Nothing, apparently, can be done about that at MH.</p>
<p>Small classes: favors MH, BUT if you are going to pursue middle eastern studies (will you be studying Arabic?) it wouldn't surprise me if many of your most important classes at Wisconsin would be small too.</p>
<p>intellectual atmosphere: Hard to say. The thing about big schools is that they can become what you make them. Others may be studying the Badgers next home game, but you will be able to find a good number of friends and classmates who want to be intellectual. </p>
<p>So, it would seem that your criteria favor Wisconsin in the very specific sense that you can make Wisconsin into what you want more than you can make MH into what you want.</p>
<p>But a deeper test is this: does an argument favoring Wisconsin disappoint you (which might mean that truly you yourself favor MH) or please you (which might mean that truly you yourself are leaning toward Wisconsin)?</p>
<p>Hanna: I visited Mt-Holyoke this wknd and I've visited Amherst and Smith in the past.</p>
<p>Boxmaker: Money-wise wisconsin's cheaper even though I don't get instate tuition and location wise Mt-Holyoke is closer to home.</p>
<p>ADad- I will def. be taking Arabic in either school. My concern however, is socially I don't feel that Mt-Holyoke is the school for me, the campus seemed dead at night and I don't know if I want to continually travel to other colleges in the consortium for a social life. I'm uncertain as to wisconsin's fit because I'm visiting soon but haven't done so yet. But academically MHC fits. I'm still concerned about the size of wisconsin on an academic level, I enjoy small classes and will probably have many intro/lecture courses if I matriculate there. So as you can see I'm still undecided...</p>
<p>Waitlisted. As a freshmen I took the best class ever. It was a political science course with 500 people. The professor MADE ME WANT TO GO TO CLASS, IN THE SNOW, and sit through lecture. Also, as a freshmen 50% of my classes had less then 20 students. </p>
<p>I am a political science/history double major at UW-Madison. One of my friends here with a 3.7 GPA and a mid 160 LSAT was just admitted to NYU law.</p>