<p>I would appreciate any insights into these three schools from parents whose S/D attended. I am a Swarthmore alum and I am also fairly up to date with the Ivies. Let me give you some specifics on my S; 3.8 GPA uw, 2180 SAT, URM (black), also being recruited to play football, interested in government/political science. Attends very diverse mid-sized hs, inc. 100m+. He likes the smaller LAC but we have not yet visited any. Thanks for any help.</p>
<p>My kid is at Amherst. He also seriously considered Williams, but ended up appying early to Amherst. Visiting the colleges can help in making a decision, obviously. From an objective point-of-view, they’d all be outstanding choices of course. It probably has more to do with the subjective sense the student gets of them. Also, talking to the football coaches in your son’s case. That can make a huge difference.</p>
<p>On the other hand, when my kid was trying to decide he met with coaches, and had a good feeling about the Amherst coach in his sport. Turned out in reality though that the personality match between him and the coach was very poor. Not that the coach isn’t a very good coach, just that he wasn’t the right coach for my kid. So, there’s only so much you can tell from those visits with coaches. It’s slogging through the grueling day-to-day stuff that tell the whole story.</p>
<p>Anyway, I’d be happy to share anything I can regarding Amherst. My kid loves it there, and the school has been great to deal with over this and that. It’s great for poli sci/gov’t. Your son might want to check out the Law, Jurisprudence & Social Thought major, too.</p>
<p>Well, I can understand since you are a Swat alum why your son isn’t interested in your alma mater. 
You probably know that Williams is a wonderful school and people always say that it caters to the “sporty, outdoorsy” type. Wesleyan is the largest of the LAC’s and is considered to be more “artsy, counterculture” than Williams. (Less “preppie”) Amherst is also a great school, but I think they’ve had some particular $$ problems since the advent of the financial crisis.</p>
<p>Does your son play another sport, because I know that Swarthmore has a terrific political science department? Good luck with your search!</p>