<p>I was accepted to Smith and McGill, waitlisted at Wellesley. I plan to study French, and cost really isn't a huge issue (although McGill is a great deal).</p>
<p>Size is also not a huge factor. Smith and Wellesley are both approximately 2,500 UG, whereas McGill has 20,000!</p>
<p>I love the areas surrounding Smith (artsy town), and McGill (Montreal!). Wellesley isn't quite as nice in my opinion, but it runs hourly buses to Boston.</p>
<p>I think I'm asking more about prestige here. Wellesley seems to be the most well-known of the 3 (but I'm technically not in..) McGill has a great international rep, but isn't that known in the US. Neither is Smith, it seems.</p>
<p>Accept your place on the wait list at Wellesley (this does not mean you have to go there if the eventually offer you a place). I think Smith is well-known, and I've heard of McGill. Smith is in a great town - Northampton - that is only about 2 hr from Boston. I grew up near there. But it also has a reputation for activism - sometimes, false activism. In the words of one graduate I know, "All the girls who go there become lesbian activists for whatever cause for four years, then go off and get married and drive SUVs." Montreal is great but the locals can be snotty to you if you do not speak French - which obviously you do, so it would probably be great immersion for you, but there is the attitude still to consider. And so what if it is not well known in the U.S.? Statistically, people in the US know (on average) the least about the actual people/culture of other nations than do people from anywhere else.</p>
<p>Actually, it's much more likely that the locals will switch to English the second they notice you're not a native French speaker. And that makes Montreal one of the worst place for French immersion purposes. </p>
<p>But if you are considering McGill's Honours French lit program, then you should check whether you can apply for Quebec tuition (dirt cheap), because differential tuition (between in province/out of province/international) in Quebec actually has a lot of exceptions that people may not know about, one of them being that taking an approved program in French language/Quebec culture allows you to get an exemption from international tuition (caveat: even if you are in such a program, you have to seek and fill out a form, it's not done automatically, plus there might be a limited number exemptions available).</p>
<p>I am not that familiar with Canadian schools; however, Wellesley does have a MUCH better reputation than Smith (#4 liberal arts college in the country). May daughter attended and said its academics were first rate and the college really catered to its students. It is true that the area around Wellesley does not offer as much as Northampton but, as you said, there is a Wellesley bus to Boston, and Wellesley students do use it. My daughter said this arrangement helped her to study during the week but gave her access to a lot more activities than Northampton could offer on the weekends. That is what I can share about the area and the national reputation for the two schools.</p>
<p>Your decision might consider the feel of the schools and the the kind of surroundings you want. Montreal is a large, international city, and one that I have to be rather friendly, as big cities go. They also have lots of wonderful festivals, many with free activities. Smith is in a small, but bustling town and you can take courses at other colleges as part of the 5 college consortium. Wellesley, I believe, is not as integrated into the local town but Boston is nearby.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your time and information!
Since I can't count on W right now, I'm deciding between M and S. </p>
<p>Most likely I'll put my deposit down for Smith. I love McGill also, but I'd rather err on the side of going to a smaller, closer, more intimate LAC than to a huge university several hours away with less handholding. </p>
<p>Also, I'm a little intimidated by rumors of grade deflation and unhelpful advisors at McGill. I'm not trying to say that Smith won't be challenging, but it's a little less likely that I'll slip through the cracks there. If I feel like a big Mardoufish in a little Smithpond, I can always transfer to McGill or consider it for grad school.</p>
<p>Living in MA has my perspective a little skewed -- is Smith known or respected outside the Northeast? I had to explain what it was to my Southern relatives who hold Texas A&M College Station up as the very image of perfection.</p>
<p>What does prestige matter? In the end what matters is where you get the best education for you. I got into McGill as well, but I've pretty much crossed it off my list. After thinking over my acceptance to Trinity, I decided that it wasn't the school for me either. At this point it boils down to Smith and a LAC that ranks about 50 something.
Name recognition means very little. Sure the Seven Sisters may be seen as a North East thing due to their location, but if you travel in knowledgeable enough circles, the people in them definitely respect Wellesley and Smith. If you're talking about walking up to any average American, it's highly likely they only know the big schools and schools with successful sports teams. But in the end, is that who you really want to impress?
Anyone who matters or is worth your time should be knowledgeable enough to know of these schools.</p>
<p>I've encountered some very positive reactions when I mentioned Smith. I've heard "Oh, I know some people who love it there!" and "I've heard that you get a lot of attention there." Stuff like that. I am actually surprised by how many people know about it and/or know people who went there, considering that I'm not in New England. I've also had very few negative reactions in comparison to the positive ones.</p>
<p>But really, don't make fame that huge of a factor. If you have relatives who think Texas A&M is the best, there's not a whole lot you can do to change that. And, as baublestrinkets said, some of the most well-known schools are large universities with good football teams.</p>