<p>Anyone out there attend Ride the Tide in the last 2 days? My S who couldn't attend would love to hear about it and have some feed back and observations. Thanks much.</p>
<p>Is he part of the Admitted Students’ Facebook group? There have been many pictures and posts about RTT! I didn’t attend but everyone I know who did said it was amazing!</p>
<p>My D attended, and was honestly somewhat underwhelmed. She had liked her previous visit to campus and the class she attended, and it was very high on her list before this, but she came away from Ride the Tide with the comment that it would be “easy to get distracted” at Swat if one was in one of the more difficult math/science majors, and also that no one she met could talk about anything except social justice. We are liberal Democrats, but she just felt it was an overwhelming theme on campus. She also felt it wasn’t very well organized compared to the other student accepted visits she has been to recently – no department open houses, for example. It slid from the top of her list down to third place in her current thinking. I guess it could surge again, as you never know in the last couple of weeks of decision making. She did enjoy some of the evening activities away from the actual organized events (panels, etc), and the campus is lovely this time of year. Food was “sketchy” in her opinion, and I have to concur after having the parent lunch in the dining hall.</p>
<p>intparent,
Can you please explain what your daughter meant by “easy to get distracted?”</p>
<p>I personally loved it! As bostonboy already stated, the facebook group is the place you need to check out. I honestly have not heard a bad thing yet about the experience other than the post two above mine. At RTT I met the smartest group of individuals I’ve ever come in contact with.</p>
<p>I think she meant that for kids in math/science/engineering disciplines (especially those with a lot of requirements), the college actually seemed intent on knocking them off those planned courses to some extent. And proud of it… there were several comments and stories told on panels that we also saw as parents that were sort of bragging about that outcome (“Came in as a bio major, went out working for an NGO to supplement the education system in India! Yay!”). She is fine with distribution requirements, but she said it felt like there was too much pride in the fact that you should NOT know what you probably wanted to major in when you started and that seemed almost frowned upon. D said it was like Swat had missed the fact that there was a recession, and both parents and students are pretty focused these days on outcomes, especially given the high cost. I will say that my D went to a liberal-arts type high school and did quite a bit of self study/summer programs with various subjects, so has actually had exposure to a variety of liberal arts subjects along with several math/science areas. So maybe that colored her viewpoint.</p>
<p>Khalilzhad, she definitely thought the people there were smart as well. But she expected that, it is Swat. 
She actually wanted to like it, it just didn’t work out that way for her. Her host was fine, too.</p>
<p>S1 entered wanting to major in math. Graduated with an honors major in math. Currently in a math PhD program. So it is certainly possible to enter as a STEM major and graduate with a STEM major.</p>
<p>Thanks to all for your input. Yes he is indeed a part of the Facebook group since December, and will/has definitely checked it out. Thanks also to Intparent. I think that we all know that there are different things that attract each student and different schools. I definitely don’t think that Swat is for everyone. </p>
<p>Intparent, I wasn’t there and clearly I don’t know your daughter, but maybe what they intended to be encouragement to be open to all the opportunities that Swat offers she took in a different way. It is great to be sure in what you want to do, but in my experience an awful lot of people change their minds. Good luck to your daughter as she makes her decision.</p>
<p>Yes, I think that probably was their point. But I and a few other parents (4 of us parents and my kid) who were chatting in the green space in front of Parrish after lunch on Sunday kind of felt that way about the presentations we saw as well… it is one thing to encourage exploration or adding another major or minor. But I think the parents as a group (and my kid) saw it as kind of… flakey? Like you were encouraged to careen around between subjects. Not just sample them or get some exposure to new things. But a certain ecstasy around a complete direction change. Maybe didn’t strike everyone that way, but I think the group generally did get that impression.</p>
<p>My D has also been in the FB group, and thought they were the most interesting FB accepted group she has joined (she is in at least 2 others).</p>
<p>My D had a great time and came back even more excited than before. She felt very engaged with prospective and current students. Asked her about the majors issues and she took away that there are so many opportunities other than just the ones in the particular study you might currently enjoy/want to major in and to be open when exploring other course studies. The professors she spoke with were helpful in the courses she has an interest and learned about another interesting major at her table discussions.</p>
<p>D commented how welcoming people were when she asked about joining conversations and fun activities. Loved playing quidditch and will probably join that activity as well as a few others.</p>
<p>Her host was a disappointment and was barely around. Luckily she had a great host during DiscoSwat. Nevertheless she didn’t mind as she was putting herself out there to talk to others and attend the various activities.</p>
<p>Generally I think these programs are useful for a student to see their peers and if they feel comfortable with them. The bonus was that she really enjoyed her conversations with professors. She even carried on a conversation in Spanish with one professor who was basically evaluating her probable placement and she felt she had given a good impression and was recommended a higher level. Of course she will need to take the online test but that made her feel quite capapble.</p>
<p>She went to a Biology and Chemistry class and didn’t feel it was too over her head even though her knowledge was at a lower level than what was being covered in those classes. </p>
<p>Wishing all those still in decision mode the best. It is tough to pick someplace for the next four years and let go of the what ifs.</p>
<p>My son had a great time, saying the kids were cool and making a few friends that he’s already friended on FB. He said he could definitely see himself spending the next four years there. I knew Swarthmore was the one when I picked him up at the airport wearing a Swarthmore sweatshirt. It’s really important for kids to attend on-campus visits such as RTT to get a feel for whether the school is right for them. The previous weekend he visited another school, which we thought would be the ideal fit for him, but it turned out not to be.</p>
<p>My son, a current junior @ Swat, entered thinking he wanted to be a science major. He will graduate next year as an Honors science major, and added a second major in the Humanities. The distribution requirements at Swat “forced” him out of his comfort zone and he tried some classes he never would have considered. One of those classes lead him to an incredibly rewarding summer internship, funded by Swat, in a neighboring town. It was not science-related, but will stand him in good stead as he moves forward in life. Every other summer starting with junior year in high school, he has had science- related research positions, so I think he really appreciated the opportunity to tackle something completely different. This summer he will be doing research funded by an NSF grant. If the NSF grant hadn’t come through, Swarthmore was prepared to fund the research.</p>
<p>intparent, sounds like your daughter would be happier at Mudd where she could totally concentrate on the sciences. As for the food at Swat, “sketchy” might not be the adjective I’d choose, but the food is pretty average for college food, and far from gourmet. It’s not the college’s best feature. :)</p>
<p>Well… I just talked to her, and she said she is still seriously considering Swat in spite of her concerns expressed right after the visit. My D actually loves the humanities, too. She spent last night working on a poetry contest submission. It is like watching a horse race. I don’t think I could place an educated bet on the order her top 3 choices will finish in (obviously only the “win” horse will count in the end!). I told her she has to make up her mind by this Friday, as some of her colleges need her decision snail mailed and in their office by May 1.</p>
<p>One of my favorite things my D said was that many students quoted a Ron Weasley phrase when describing their time at Swarthmore… “you will suffer but you will be happy about it.” The descriptions of how they gained so much while putting more work than ever imagined is true at a lot of top colleges but it seemed to describe Swat perfectly.</p>
<p>Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using CC</p>