possible transfer...but some questions, and problems

<p>i'm a freshman at colgate university, and honestly, as a korean, it is just not diverse enough for me. </p>

<p>lately, i've been thinking about going into law. so how is pre-law at swarthmore? what kind of classes would i be taking? i'm also interested in anthro/soc and i know that ties in somewhat w/law, and also maybe econ.</p>

<p>but HUGE problem! there is someone at swarthmore that i'd like to avoid. i know it's a small school, so will there be a big chance of me running into that person? i let that factor prevent me from applying last year as a first-year, but i've decided not to let that get in the way of my future. </p>

<p>also, how is the religious life there? i'm a presbyterian-reformed (part of korean-am church). is swat really dry or liberal like, say vassar?</p>

<p>thanks so much for your help! i REALLY appreciate it!</p>

<p>take anything you want to take as far as classes. law schools look for a diverse class just like colleges do, so they'll accept people with degrees in biology (my aunt), english lit (my uncle), poli sci, practically anything.</p>

<p>you'd probably bump into that person, but if you want to come to swarthmore badly enough just buy a fake beard and wear that around.</p>

<p>the school is definitely liberal.</p>

<p>Academics: Social sciences at Swarthmore, including Econ, Poli Sci, Soc/An, and pre law are as good as it gets. These fields have been an historic focus of the school and many of the current students. Swarthmore produces more Social Science PhDs, more Econ PhDs, and more Poli Sci PhDs per graduate than any other college or university in the country. My impression is that the Sociology/Anthropology department has a strong international focus.</p>

<p>Koreans: Swarthmore has a very large Asian American enrollment. On top of that, Korea was the most popular country for international acceptances this year. There are strong Asian student groups on campus. Best be would be to contact some of the Korean American students on campus to find out about church services, etc. The admissions office could probably put you in touch with somebody. There are non-denominational Christian church services on campus each week.</p>

<p>Hiding: I think it's a pretty safe bet that you would see "your friend" in passing from time to time. But, that doesn't mean that you would be forced to hand out with that person. Most Swatties don't hang out with all 1400 students!</p>

<p>Liberal: Swarthmore students tend to be pretty "liberal", whatever that means. They run the gamut from students who enjoy the complexities of political issues, but don't spend their spare time debating politics to gung-ho political activists. If you have a preference one way or the other it's pretty easy to select your friends accordingly. My daughter has found a reasonble balance of views from her professors. Her favorite history professor is an outspoken libertarian. Her poli sci professor has written books on reconstruction and the history of black voting rights, but assigned many "Republican-oriented" readings on Supreme Court issues in her class. The take-home final exam question was extremely open ended and illustrates how Swarthmore expects students to wrestle with issues and express an opinion one way or the other: "What is the point of Supreme Court judical review, really?" I don't think the Professor cared one iota which side of the argument a student took as long as the answer was well-supported and well argued.</p>

<p>By and large, the class discussions at Swat tend to go beyond simple slogans to look at difficult issues from many perspectives. There are some professors with "agendas" (feminism or whatever). But, from what I've seen, Swatties are smart enough to figure out who is who and avoid those classes....or not.</p>