<p>Hi, I've been lurking on this board for quite a while now, and you have been such a supportive and helpful resource for everything HWS! My D was accepted, and was up there this week for the Trustee Scholar event. We (my DH, D and I) think the school is beautiful, well run and has the potential to be a wonderful place for her to spend the next four years. I've seen some comments from other kids that some of their classmates are "uninspired". I'm wondering what your S's experience has been with the caliber of his classmates, if he feels challenged, but not overwhelmed. How have his professors been? We got the impression that it's a very personal touch school...has that been your experience? How do you feel about the school? What made him choose Hobart? Any pearls of wisdom?</p>
<p>HMSmom, I’m so sorry I didn’t see your post till now. I think our son has been challenged, but not overwhelmed. He would agree that some students are “uninspired,” but frankly that’s going to be true at any school; there are always achievers and slackers at almost any school, and when I’ve pointed this out to him, he’s acknowledged that fact. He has made a point to find friends who challenge themselves academically and I think he’s been successful. He has really enjoyed his professors; his advisor has done well steering him to interesting classes with lively professors, although I’m sure there are less than scintillating professors at HWS as on any campus.</p>
<p>Yes, I think HWS is a “personal touch” school; it’s large enough to provide variety yet small enough that you don’t get lost. He even has a friendship with Dean Baer, the Dean of Hobart Students. I was pleased with the measures the administration takes regarding first-years to make sure that students don’t fall through the cracks. You have probably seen my postings from last year; I still agree with them. I think President Mark Gearan is doing a fantastic job at HWS.</p>
<p>When our son was looking at LACs, he wanted a college where he could sail and ski and HWS was one of them that filled the bill (it doesn’t really matter that he’s decided not to do much of either). We were also impressed with their strong track record of getting students into law schools. Of the LACs that accepted him, HWS frankly gave him the best financial support as a combination of financial aid and merit scholarship. He’s been on the Dean’s List for three semesters now and he continues to burn up the course. It’s been a great school for him to figure out who he’s becoming–academically, socially, emotionally. He holds a leadership position in the Philosophy Club and sings in the Chorale and the more select group, Cantori (they all just returned from a quick tour to NYC; we ran down to Manhattan and heard them; they’re fantastic!).</p>
<p>I’m a strong believer in LACs. I don’t know what schools your daughter has as options but I think HWS offers a lot–a personalized approach, a good variety of activities, a strong emphasis on service and world citizenship, and flexible distribution requirements. I also like that HWS students have not only depth but breadth in their education by the requirement that they have some combination of single disciplines and multi-disciplines for their major and minor choices. </p>
<p>I especially like the coordinate colleges idea so that the William Smith women have their own sense of identity through their leadership opportunities in student government and athletics instead of taking a back seat to the men, as is so common in most coed colleges. There is a recent statistic out there that 90% the student leadership in coed colleges is held by men, despite the fact the the ratio of women to men in college these days is 60:40. At William Smith, the equality is more built in. Brilliant!</p>
<p>Please let me know if you have any other questions I can answer. I wish your daughter well wherever she chooses to attend college, but I hope she seriously considers HWS.</p>