<p>What do people mean when they describe Swarthmore students as 'quirky'?</p>
<p>It basically means "not preppy".</p>
<p>Swarthmore doesn't attract a lot of "statement" or "radical" students: piercings, goth, blue hair, etc. However, it does attract a cross-section of "smart kids" ranging from pretty normal teenagers to geeks along with a small cadre of "preppy types" and athletes. </p>
<p>Added to this mix is quite a bit of diversity including a large percentage of Asian and Asian-American students. Gay lifestyles are accepted as a matter of course, but aren't terribly "radical".</p>
<p>Well, a lot of them applied to Swarthmore because they loved the school. One has to be slightly different and, imo, have a different outlook on life to love a school that no one has ever heard of and if you tell your family will elicit blank stares. On the other hand, there are many from New England etc. who know about WASP (Williams, Amherst....). In any case, these kids are different from your run-of-the-mill prestige chasing crowd and proud to be that way.</p>