Smith vs Carleton College

[AHFD23x2]

To comment on your Cons of Smith:

I went to Smith many years ago and my daughter will be a first year there this fall. Neither of us are hugely political, and I can say from my experience there while, yes, there are a fair amount of very left leaning, highly political things that happen on campus, you can definitely lead a good and happy life at Smith without partaking in them. I was friends with people who were more right leaning, and they, too, were just fine. You can choose to be involved with the political atmosphere, or not. It’s really not a big deal and there will be plenty of other kids who feel the same as you (my daughter in that mix, too).

As far as Northampton goes. It is safe. I would have no issues with my daughter walking downtown by herself if she wants to go to CVS or some other store for something. Would I recommend that she go with other people if she decides to go downtown at night? Sure. But I would say the same for ANY college town. There are definitely characters in downtown Northampton. You just need to learn to walk by them and ignore what they are saying. In my experience there, it’s never been a problem (and I’ve been there at lot in the past few months).

As far as the segregated thing goes, I know that there is a lot of affinity housing, so that may be why you see what looks like segregation within race. Honestly, I think you’ll probably see that to some degree at any campus.

Marijuana is going to be everywhere. It just happens to be legal in MA (or I assume it is given the number of stores we passed on the highway in Springfield). Here, too, it’s something in which you can choose to partake, or not. At any school you fill find kids smoking pot. If it’s not your thing, you won’t be looked down upon. People won’t care if you smoke, or not. Just make sure you put in your housing form that do you don’t want a roommate who smokes.

Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions. I can also put you in touch with my daughter if you want to chat with another incoming first year.

Unfortunately, I can’t comment much on Carleton as my daughter wasn’t interested in the trimester system, so we didn’t look there. That said, we were there in February looking at St. Olaf, and Northfield is a lovely town.

Good luck with your decision!!

[Alqbamine32]

@LurkerJoe

I have a hard time seeing Northampton as anything other than a plus. Northampton is my favorite small city in the world. Lots of great restaurants and arts, and the music scene is fantastic.

^This! I’m actually surprised to hear Northampton described as unsafe. But in any case, I know students who have thrived at both Smith and Carleton. Both are fantastic colleges. Congrats, but such a hard decision!

[merc81]

@Abigail_Anton

I hate to say it but it seems like Carleton is more prestigious

Of possible interest, Smith’s acceptance rate for this year appears to be lower than Carleton’s. This site indicates that Carleton’s rounded rate is 22% and Smith’s is 19%:

Class of 2027 Admission Rates | IvyWise

(Note that since waiting list students, such as yourself, have yet to be included as additional acceptances, these figures remain preliminary.)

[aquapt]

I don’t think small differences in acceptance rate are an accurate proxy for prestige. Geography has a significant effect on application volume at various schools. Carleton’s admitted student stats are higher than Smith’s.

But the whole concept of “prestige” is about perception anyway. In reality, both schools are excellent, and small gradations in supposed prestige should not be a factor in this decision; what matters at this point is fit.

[happy1]

I view Smith and Carleton as peer institutions academically. The OP should (and appears to) be focused on fit.

@Abigail_Anton Please let us know what you decide. And congrats again on the two wonderful acceptances.

[merc81]

(1) The OP stated she is split 50/50 on this decision. (2) She introduced prestige as one of her many criteria. (3) Statistical aspects influence perceptions of prestige. (4) Every OP doesn’t need to be disabused of her criteria. (5) Countering statistical aspects with other statistical aspects, such as in your post, seems to undermine the intent of your comments. (6) I posted some fairly narrow information, without much of an associated opinion; the OP should feel free to determine what weight she assigns to it.

[happy1]

Agree that if the OP wants to consider prestige as a factor that is certain her prerogative. My point is that I don’t feel there is any meaningful difference in prestige between Smith and Carleton. I can’t imagine that any future employer or grad school admission officer will know or care about the 3 point difference in acceptance rate of the schools, the USNWR ranking etc. Both of these schools are well known and well respected by both employers and grad schools.

IMO the OP’s future success will have much more to do with what she achieves during college rather than which one of these fine LACs she decides to attend. I’d recommend in the case of these two options that the OP focus on academic and social fit.

[Abigail_Anton]

Hello again! Goodness, I never expected to get this many responses. Thank you so, so much to everyone who commented. I got a lot of great advice, and I think this would have been a much harder decision (not that it was easy!) without all your help!

I ended up committing to Carleton, and am very happy about it! For any future students facing a similar dilemma, here’s what tipped me:

• Trimester system: After talking with my mom, who attended a trimester school before transferring to a semester school, and listening to many of the responses here, I decided I’d prefer a trimester system! Focusing on 3 classes at once (some of which don’t even have midterms/finals) seems actually less stressful, and allows me to explore more subjects that interest me in the same amount of time. It also means that my breaks are actually breaks—I’ll never have a final hanging over my head while I’m back visiting home
• Math/STEM departments. I went over the course offerings at both schools, and Carleton had (counting emereti faculty) over twice the number of math professors Smith did. Their courses also seemed more rigorous, and they had a higher percentage of STEM majors. Overall, their facilities and offerings were stronger, and the classes sounded more interesting to me
• Teaching quality. Everyone I’ve asked says all the professors at Carleton are amazing, and as someone who really likes being in the classroom and learning from another person, this was a big priority
• The atmosphere. I just didn’t seem to “fit” with Smith. Carleton seemed more down-to-earth, more academic, and more quirky (in a good way!). I’ve been talking to current students and have been on the admitted students discord, and I think I feel like I fit in there in a way that I didn’t with Smith.

At the end of the day, I think I would have done fine at either school. It was really hard to say no to Smith because I do like them—I just think Carleton fits me more. The only thing I regret is not having the chance to experience a women’s college, and having to deal with the Minnesota cold. Other than that, I’m really happy with how everything turned out, and I’m more than excited to be going to Northfield this fall :))

[happy1]

Congrats! Sounds like a great (and thoughtful) choice. Time to order a hoodie and celebrate!

All best wishes at Carleton!

[3SailAway]

Thanks so much for sharing your reasoning and decision! I do think it’s helpful to other students and families.

From my personal experience, especially with smaller schools, gut feelings about fit and vibe are most likely right. Congrats on a great outcome and best wishes at Carleton !