<p>"heady, nervy, and intellectually exciting" ... thank you!</p>
<p>We will be visiting in October.</p>
<p>Smith vs. Wellesley...cited by the current issue of NEWSWEEK as one of the great college rivalries. The description had a decidedly pro-Wellesley slant, talking about Welleslely's engineering options with MIT & Olin, not mentioning Smith's at all and making Smith sound like a quieter, softer, backwater option. Grrrr. I feel a letter to the editor coming on.</p>
<p>The Dad, I would agree that Newsweek made an odd choice by emphasizing Wellesley's cross-registration with MIT and Olin as an "engineering focus" (econ/math/pure science would be the majority of cross-registrations, I would think, and I don't really think anyone would advise someone with a deep interest in engineering to come to Wellesley), but it <em>does</em> mention engineering with regards to Smith: "In 2007 Smith enhanced its reputation for science and engineering—30 percent of Smith students major in the sciences—with the construction of Ford Hall, a $73 million science teaching and research facility."</p>
<p>Beyond that though, I think it was odd to include Wellesley/Smith as a notable college rivalry. I realize that they wanted to have a diversity of categories, but being from Big Ten sports land, all of the LAC "rivalries" sounded silly to me. I was happy that the article didn't really slight Wellesley or parrot annoying stereotypes (like this notion that Wellesley is the snobby, spoiled rich girl's haven--it's really not true and I fail to understand why it is so often repeated, even on CC). I'm (genuinely) sorry you don't feel they were as generous to Smith (they did mention Smith's high number of Pell Grantees, but I do think that "Wellesley for working girls" is an awkward moniker, albeit one offered by a Smith student).</p>
<p>TheDad, I do hope you will write a letter to the editor of Newsweek! I too feel that they had a pro-Wellesley slant, featuring Smith’s houses and off-campus bars, cafes and coffee to Wellesley’s creating ‘outstanding’ leaders, and having an engineering focus. It was slightly outrageous that they didn’t mention Smith’s engineering program at all, in either the print or online version of the story. The sentence noted by advantagious about Smith students and the sciences is not in the print version of Newsweek. </p>
<p>This doesn’t have to do with rivalry between Smith and Wellesley, but about truth vs. slant in reporting.</p>
<p>I would encourage people to write a letter to the editor of Newsweek (email: <a href="mailto:letters@newsweek.com">letters@newsweek.com</a>) about Smith’s Picker Engineering Program. Smith is the first and only accredited engineering program in the nation for women, and has a phenomenal approach to teaching engineering. (Wellesley doesn’t offer an engineering degree.) Furthermore, I think Newsweek ought to do a separate article on Smith’s Picker Engineering Program. And there are plenty of outstanding women leaders who went to Smith.</p>
<p>Smith</a> College: Picker Engineering Program and at: Smith</a> College: Picker Engineering Program</p>
<p>Advantagious, the print issue of NEWSWEEK I hold before me does <em>not</em> mention Smith's engineering program. Smith is described in terms of "big, comfortable, and friendly" and "the off-campus social scene." Nothing about its academics.</p>
<p>Integrity: thanks for the incentive of the link. E-mail sent. They may edit out the "bullfeathers" if they choose to run it.</p>
<p>Btw, there is still a "Wellesley 2008" magnet on our refrigerator and I will always have a soft spot in my heart for the school as it was the first to tip D a "likely" letter after her rejection EA from Yale. I think that for her Smith was the far better "fit," both academically and otherwise. D later said that in hindsight she thinks Wellesley would have reinforced some of her less desirable tendencies.</p>
<p>^Sorry--all I saw was the online article; we don't have a subscription to Newsweek. It didn't occur to me that they might be different. </p>
<p>Still think LAC "rivalries" don't really have anything on some of the more traditional sports-oriented rivalries they mentioned, but I suppose I should be happy for the shout-out.</p>
<p>Silly article. Did not have Williams-Amherst rivalry. Had Amherst-Pomona. How silly.</p>
<p>Williams-Amherst is the oldest college rivalry and competed in the first intercollegiate football game. Winston Churchill's mom, Jenny Jerome attending and rooted for Williams. Natch. (Just kidding Amherst folk.)</p>
<p>Well, the Smith-Wellesley rivalry is better than the Amherst-Williams rivalry but we're less competitive about it.</p>
<p>Better? How so? Okay. I wasn't rating. I was just saying it's a silly article.</p>
<p>Not saying their rivalry was better. Or maybe you're joking?
My best friend's D will be at Smith for class of '12 and I really encouraged them to send her so I couldn't be more appreciative of Smith. I've never seen Wellesley, but I'm sure I'd love it too.</p>
<p>"I'm less competitive than you are" ----> tip-off that it's a joke.</p>
<p>Thanks, TheDad, for writing to Newsweek. Got me going and I emailed them as well.</p>
<p>I chose Smith over Wellesley because I felt more comfortable with the over-all vibe of the campus. I would suggest making a visit to both, walking around, and talking to people in person. If that's not possible than get in touch with the alum associations in your area. The cool thing about Smith is that the alum network is fantastic. When I applied (which was recently) I discovered that the mother of a friend was a Smithie. When I told her I was interested in applying she immediately took me to a club meeting and lecture. I met so many amazing women that day. Wellesley did not capture me the same way. That is just a personal opinion though.</p>
<p>If this is not an official Smith tag line, it should be: "Preparing women of promise for lives of distinction." </p>
<p>We received our DVD of the commencement ceremonies and the line is from President Christ's address. I remember thinking at the time that it captured Smith very well only I wasn't enough in "CC mode" at the time that I was taking notes!</p>
<p>I'm more amused that Newsweek focused on a Wellesley-Smith rivalry at all. As others have said, LAC "rivalries" just aren't as powerful or as apparent as those that involve football. This particular pairing is one that most of my classmates and I had never heard of until we left Wellesley. Our friends who participated in sports discovered it when they traveled to meets, but very few other people knew about the supposed rivalry.</p>
<p>And, really, what's the point of it? You have two top-notch schools that are equals in almost all respects. Why not acknowledge and celebrate the strengths of both without ruffling feathers (and misrepresenting facts)?</p>
<p>Because it doesn't sell magazines, though of course, you're right.</p>
<p>I usually don’t bump old forums, but I came across this thread in a search and wow, can I just say some of these posts are ridiculous to the point I don’t know if the posters are ■■■■■■■■ or genuinely ignorant…</p>
<p>
^ You’re kidding right? Please tell me you were being sarcastic.</p>
<p>There are pros and cons for any college in the US, and there are numerous debates similar to this, whether it’s Yale and Harvard, GT and UGA, etc. As someone who’s past the college admissions process, I guess I just never realized how bigoted some posters can be.</p>