<p>So I know there are quite a few threads about other applicants choosing between Smith and another school, and this is a big repetitive but please bear with me!</p>
<p>I've heard nothing but good things about Smith, and I've always been looking for the east coast college experience with the beautiful campus, small close-knit community, and I don't mind the campus being a little secluded (though I've always hoped my future college could be around half an hour from the nearest big city.) I know people who've gone to Smith and they are incredibly happy there, so I don't doubt I'd have a great time (though the lack of boys I admit is a little unfortunate.) </p>
<p>I was raised in California for a long time however, and where I live now there is much more support for my attending UC Berkeley. I've visited the campus before, and it's very beautiful but the feel of the school is very different from that of Smith. I attend a very small high school so the idea of being with even 1000 new freshmen overwhelms me, nevermind the 6000 that Berkeley has. And I've heard some difficult things about attending a UC at this point in California's economic turn - people have to scramble to get enough credits to graduate because classes aren't as available as they used to be, etc. </p>
<p>Job prospect wise, however, UC Berkeley does have a head up over Smith. As of now I plan to go to law school and this may be sheer statistics but Berkeley's law school acceptance rate is 10% higher than that of Smith. And as an international student, the area where I live in values the name of the school more than anything, so being a UCB kid opens up more doors for me than Smith does (unfortunate, but true.) </p>
<p>Sorry this is so long, thanks to anyone for their help with this!</p>
<p>Thanks for the information spellonyou! I know Smith is a great school in terms of future prospects or else I wouldn’t be debating it against ucb, but those stats do paint a better picture of smith in my mind.</p>
<p>if anyone has more advice on smith in not just the academic sense, but also in terms of social connections, work opportunities, internships, even dorm life, that sort of thing, please feel free to let me know! ive always been curious about the housing system and whether id feel like im missing out or if i’d be getting an enriched experience through it.</p>
<p>Smith offers a <em>paid</em> internship to all students know as the Praxis. The current stipend is $2400 for internships in the U.S. and $3500 for overseas.</p>
<p>Class size is relatively small at Smith. My nephew attends UCB and while he likes it there, he notes the many large classes and difficulty in sometimes getting the ones he would like.</p>
<p>The house system here is one of the top draws of Smith. My daughter, a first year, loves that aspect of Smith and has made many friends who will likely be friends for a lifetime.</p>
<p>The Smith alumnae network is legendary. I would suggest you read the latest issue of the Alumnae Quarterly for more info in that regard. It is a strong and powerful sisterhood.</p>
<p>Berkeley is an amazing school, no doubt about it. But I believe Smith offers you a unique experience you won’t get in a large, state-run school. Good luck on your choice! You have great opportunities on either coast.</p>
<p>My D attended Smith, now in a PhD program at Berkeley. I think Smith is far better for undergrad in many fields than the UC’s; it’s a very focus, distilled experience and you’re not lost in the crowd. Trying to overcome the “name value” of the school thing is hard with some international parents.</p>
<p>I am a graduate-level professor, I attended Yale and UCLA for grad school, but I value my LAC experience for undergrad. I was horrified attending an intro level econ class at UCLA because it was packed. No undergrad was going to have much contact with a professor. As a grad student, I was able to find a small class at RAND that satisfied my program, but as an undergrad, I would have been stuck.</p>
<p>Actually, one of the things I liked best was that it’s a women’s college, with no boys. I visited in April before my first year, and I loved being surrounded by confident, intelligent, interesting girls. It was a very different environment from high school, which had so many genius guys and so many flirty but dumb girls. Plus I live having small classes. My smallest is only 7 people. And I can take classes at any of the other 4 colleges. There also aren’t any general Ed requirements so you’re free to explore all your interests.
However, one thing I noticed was Berkeley has so many more areas of study.</p>
<p>thank you all for the responses! it’s definitely making this pick harder for me though, because over the past few days i’ve been hearing more about berkeley from friends who’ve gotten in as well. but what im hearing on this thread makes smith sound wonderful.</p>
<p>sonali, i completely understand your sentiment about being with interesting people. Maybe I’m being stereotypical but there is a definite sense of “liberal arts” when visiting a girls college. i really love the idea of a small class, and having a connection to my undergraduate years, but at the same time I wonder if maybe I’m just trying to shelter myself from the “real world” (I know college is somewhat of a bubble and that’s one of the reasons why it’s so desired - to learn in that intellectual community) because I’ve been attending a small school for as long as I can remember and I’ve never had to take a class larger than twenty people. </p>
<p>Thank you though for all your input! I really love hearing about the school just because I’ve admired a lot of these schools since I was young with other role models, and I know I should be honoured to be considered one of the same alumnae.</p>
<p>Have you visited Smith? If you haven’t, I strongly recommend your coming to the Open House later this month, if it’s at all possible. You really need to understand what your choices are. We can tell you all kinds of wonderful things about Smith, but you really should see for yourself.</p>
<p>Of course, I don’t know what these numbers mean. Admitted to ANY law school? 72% of total applications? Did it include folks who applied five years after graduation? How many attended? (Would a better metric be what percentage of the total class?) I never quite know what these numbers actually mean, and I think the better question is how well-prepared one is to enter law school should one choose.</p>
<p>carolynb, i do plan to visit! when is the open house, if i may ask? i really wanted to do an overnight, but i read on their website that overnights only went until march, and the last major event i saw on Smith’s calendar was in march as well. I’m visiting both schools but for now it seems Smith is more of a campus tour kind of thing (which is all good, because I’ve never visited before)</p>
<p>mini, i’ve had the same questions as well. i’ve looked into what i could from ucb’s site and didn’t find any substantive data on where the graduates even went, except for a short list of mostly California-based universities. I suppose it’s hard to tell unless you really dig deep.</p>
<p>The “open campus” event is April 19-20. You should be getting some information regarding this directly from the school. Check out other threads on here which provide some insight into what is covered.</p>