<p>Could anybody provide some info/tips? My daughter got the addmissions to them, but not sure which one is better for a girl who is interested in liberal arts--history, debate, marketing, law, etc.</p>
<p>My son looked very closely at Carleton (visited twice) and my daughter attends Smith and is very happy there. They are both top quality liberal arts colleges and are politically liberal. However, they are significantly different in some ways-Smith, single-sex, 5 college area, New England, houses vs. co-ed, relative proximity to a Metropolitan area, midwest, dorms. I know both have strong history departments as my son currently is majoring in that field. Smith has a very strong alumnae-old girl network which is great for internships. It also is probably more ethnically, racially, and socio-economically diverse although Carleton has made big strides in this area in recent years. Alumni/alumnae are very loyal at both schools-Smith has a billion + endowment and Carleton has the highest percentage alumni giving rate in the country (typically 2/3 of all alumni!). Hope this helps. I would definitely suggest visiting and staying overnight at both schools if your daughter has not done so already.</p>
<p>I think the major difference in Smith and Carleton is the gender issue. There are two main results of Smith being girls only, from what I've heard: Female-only classes may differ considerably from what they'll experience in the real world (which is why I only applied to coed schools), and it's harder for single-sex schools to draw the highest pool of applicants. Smith is a fantastic school, but a family friend who teaches there said that they would give me a great scholarship to go there because they have a hard time attracting the highest caliber students, who mostly prefer coed schools these days. Since the quality of your classmates is important for your experience, that might be significant.</p>
<p>Still ... wherever you go would be a great education. So good luck choosing!</p>
<p>PMYEN, PASTARIFFIC, Thanks for your reply. My daughter will visit Carleton shortly. We already visited Smith, D likes the houses and the small town over there.</p>
<p>Does Carleton have a debate team?? I don't think so. Also, I don't think it is very strong in business or marketing. Nevertheless, it is a great college for a many other reasons.</p>
<p>Actually waknor Carleton does have a debate team, I have several friends who are on it. As far as business or marketing, I would agree in the sense that there is no business or marketing major. Carleton is a liberal arts college, so pre-professional majors like that are not given here. However, if you major in economics, political science or some other liberal arts major, you will be prepared to go to grad school for business/law/ect.</p>
<p>WOW! I didn't find that on their website. Good to know! Carleton is really one of the very top LACs in the country - so you can't really go wrong there.</p>
<p>Smith has fallen in selectivity over the past few years. I guess girl's school aren't as popu;ar as they used to be. Carleton. on the other hand, has risen in selectivity.</p>
<p>Smith has not fallen in selectivity. Last year's class was significantly more selective. It's important to note that as a Smith student you can take classes at Amherst and other schools in the 5-college group, and Smith is part of the twelve-college exchange group for junior year. My suggestion is visit them both -- they are both excellent schools.</p>
<p>I was also accepted into both smith and carleton.
at smith, i was admitted to the stride scholars program where i would receive 15,000$ a year and the opportunity to work with a professor on research for the first two years and be paid a research stipend for it. i spent an overnight there and…it just wasn’t right.
carleton gave me (at first) $8,000 before revising my aid to $17,000 the first year. i spent an overnight there where i learned how to pick a lock and walk on a tight wire.
i picked carleton.</p>
<p>Financial Aid… $17,000</p>
<p>“…i learned how to pick a lock and walk on a tight wire.”…Priceless.</p>
<p>Welcome to Carleton</p>