Smith's Political Science Department Versus Wellesley's

Colleges and Universities A-Z Smith College
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<p>Hello, I'm a junior looking to apply to both schools (one I'm considering for Early Decision.)</p>

<p>How does Smith stack up in terms of the strength of the political science department v Wellesley? Wellesley seems like the "better" school for political science, and all of the girls on the panel said they had internships (not official or guaranteed ones as with PRAXIS) beginning their freshman year. </p>

<p>I'm torn between these two schools, just as the many young women on CC have been. Wellesley has the better social and academic fit for me, but I like the surrounding town of Smith better. </p>

<p>I know this topic has come up before, but I've noticed that Smith students were more "in your face" about their sexuality as opposed to Wellesley students (there were lesbians there, but they just "went about their business.")
I'm not a homophobe or a bigot or anything; I'm a member of the LGBT community myself. I don't "put myself out there" like I've noticed the Smith women do. I can't really explain it...</p>

<p>It seems that Wellesley has the upper hand with political alumnae (not 100% sure on this.)
I'm also interested in neuroscience and computer science, but I'll most likely stick to poly sci seeing as though I'll be president someday :)</p>

<p>I'll definitely be EDing to one of these schools. It was first Smith when I visited, but then it changed to Wellesley when I visited and I <em>knew</em> that it was a better fit for me. I think walking through Platform 9 and 3/4 changed me ;)</p>

<p>Anyway, any help is appreciated, thank you!</p>

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<p>The one thing that’s jumping out at me is that you say you’re EDing to one of the schools. If you make a post saying that you’re torn between two schools, the general consensus on this board is going to be that you ought not to do early decision. That should only be an option if your first choice is extremely clear.</p>

<p>I’m not particularly familiar with Smith’s gov department, but most people I know who have taken classes in that department are satisfied. Hopefully, someone who is more familiar will come along to speak to it. </p>

<p>Not all Smith women “put themselves out there” in terms of sexuality. I mean, I don’t run around telling everyone that I’m straight, nor do I feel pressured to be loud about it. Likewise, many of my friends who do fall into the LGBTQA spectrum, while not ashamed of their sexuality, feel no need to make a fuss about it. I was accepted to Wellesley as well and almost went there, so I do know what you’re trying to say, but I just want to set the record straight. :slight_smile: </p>

<p>Smith has a lot of political alumnae. Yes, Wellesley has Albright and Clinton, but Smith counts numerous politicos among its alumnae as well. A quick Google search should point you in the right direction for that.</p>

<p>The surrounding town is an element to consider when looking at schools, but honestly I don’t think that should be the tipping point in any instance. Northampton has a lot for students to do, but you won’t be in town nearly as often as you might think at first, thanks to homework, exams, and all that general college stuff. Wellesley the town is in itself a bit more “laid back” and less geared toward students, but you can get away from it if you want to. Either way, I think you do yourself a disservice if you make that the deciding factor.</p>

<p>In general, though, you do seem to be clearly more excited about Wellesley.</p>

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<p>Smith has an excellent Government department (our term for poli sci), I was a graduate of it and I was able to land a great job right out of college in the top of my field, mostly because of the internship I was able to do through Smith’s Semester in Washington program. The Gov department is one of the largest, best funded, and most popular in the school. </p>

<p>Because of the semester in Washington program I was actually able to do two summer internships funded by Smith. First year I interned in a local congressional office, then the summer after sophomore year I spent the summer in Washington with funding through the Semester in Washington program, and I also spent fall semester of junior year in Washington, interning full time and also taking classes at night, sort of a grad school lite experience. Junior spring I was studying abroad and then the summer after junior year I interned at a US Embassy overseas. </p>

<p>I don’t consider my experience to be at all atypical of a Smith gov major. Smith has a lot of great connections for internships, and an excellent Career Development Office, to really help you make the most of your time. We can’t boast two secretaries of state, but we can boast two first ladies and a number of Smithies working in high placed positions within the Obama administration (Julianna Smoot, Farah Pandith, Stephanie Cutter, etc.) or in Washington (Celinda Lake is one name that comes to mind). As well as a whole passel of alums whose names might not be as well known outside of the beltway, but who are well known and respected by those in the know. We have a good reputation as a school with a number of organizations in Washington, thanks to the hard work of the Smithies that went before you. </p>

<p>I can’t say how it stacks up against Wellesley, I don’t have any experience there. But my own experience with Smith’s gov department has been great. It’s made a major difference in helping me launch myself into the kind of public servant I want to be. </p>

<p>That being said, if you know that Wellesley is a better fit for you, you should by all means listen to your own instincts. You can’t really go wrong either way. And both Smith and Wellesley have Quidditch teams!</p>

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<p>Can’t imagine you’ll find much daylight between them. As for alums, you’ll find elected Congresspeople from both, I assume, you’ll find both among political advisors and economic advisors, etc. Most alums from either do not get elected to anything, and don’t become members of Presidential cabinets. </p>

<p>Go where you’ll feel comfortable, and challenged, and do well. If you are more excited about Wellesley, go to Wellesley.</p>

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<p>thanks phanatic, S&P, and mini.</p>

<p>i’m also looking into science, and I’ve heard (even from Wellesley students/faculty) that Smith is “better” for science.</p>

<p>i know that’s totally irrelevant to government/political science, but it’s a serious interest of mine. </p>

<p>S&P may i PM you?</p>

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<p>If you like, but I have no insight into the science departments unfortunately!</p>

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<p>oh no it’s about government, thanks!</p>

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<p>CPU, I’m leaning toward a history major and a physics minor at this point, so I know what it’s like to have some odd combination of humanities/social sciences and ‘hard’ sciences. :slight_smile: </p>

<p>Sciences at Smith are pretty awesome. Smith has something like 1/3 of its students pursuing degrees in the sciences; when I visited Wellesley two years ago, they told me they had about 1/5 of the student body pursuing science degrees there. To me, that statistic speaks volumes. </p>

<p>While Wellesley does have the MIT exchange, that university seems to be less accessible than the other Five Colleges in the Pioneer Valley, thanks to distance and to factors within the two colleges themselves. Whereas Wellesley had basically one building for sciences, Smith has an entire “science quad,” complete with library, and the schmancy new Ford Hall on top of that. There are, on the whole, more resources for budding scientists here, from labs to professors to course offerings to research activities. It’s pretty exciting.</p>

<p>(I’m going to give a shameless plug for the physics department here, because Smith physics is fantastic and I had a wonderful experience last semester) </p>

<p>As for CS, I took the intro to computer science course in the fall and found the professor to be engaging, the material challenging, and the resources supporting the students ample. I have an awesome friend at Smith who is a computer science major, and she seems to really enjoy the department for its flexibility and difficult course offerings. The CS department isn’t very large, but it’s larger and seems to have more offerings than Wellesley’s (or at least, it did when I was deciding between the two). I think its size is the sweet spot–small enough where you can get to know everyone, but big enough to offer a good variety of courses.</p>

<p>Feel free to ask me or any of the rest of us more. I know I was a bit general to start off but I hope this helps.</p>

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<p>that was a very helpful post! i just want to apply to one school and be done. it makes it more frustrating when i have to like several schools, and then choose between them.</p>

<p>thanks for your helpful post phanatic, and who knows, maybe i’ll join you at Smith! (if you aren’t almost graduating)</p>

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<p>I’ll echo what Phanatic said: the sciences at Smith are among the best of the LACs. My daughter was a neuroscience major, and she found that she was very well-prepared for graduate school. Of course, as at any college, you have to find and grasp your opportunities. Just getting good grades is not enough.</p>

<p>BUT, if you like Wellesley best, enough so that you wouldn’t care if you were accepted or not at Smith or anywhere else, that should be your ED school. Do take the warning seriously, however, about being absolutely sure about applying ED. My daughter had a few classmates who “played” the ED game – and by the time graduation came around, they regretted it. I suspect they liked the idea of their colleges rather than the colleges themselves. Don’t make that mistake.</p>

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<p>Thanks MWFN. It’s been a confusing time with this college stuff. It’s good to know that my mother is not pressuring me and supports me in whatever I choose, so long as I have a plan. </p>

<p>The sciences run in my family. Well, my mom is an RN and my cousin in another state is an animal surgeon. Guess it doesn’t really “run”, it just hops, skips, and jumps. </p>

<p>I’m torn between this whole idea of a “major.” I feel locked into doing that for the rest of my life once I get that degree. </p>

<p>Politics are an interest, but neuroscience has been one of my dream disciplines since I was young (I’ve always wanted to be a neurosurgeon.) </p>

<p>I apologize if I repeat anything, I’m mobile and it’s a hassle to exit the input screen to check the thread ;)</p>

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<p>You don’t need to declare a major this early. All you have to do is make sure that your college of choice has enough courses in your current interest AND has courses/majors that would interest you if you changed your mind. My daughter chose Smith because of the strength of its foreign languages and literature but ended up majoring in the sciences. One of her closest friends seemed to have a different major every time we saw her on campus because she kept falling in love with her electives.</p>

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<p>MWFN- that’s been the troubling part. Finding a school that’s well-rounded-ly good in all areas. Most schools are known for one or two things (and some schools are known for sports and not academics.)</p>

<p>Out of all of the schools I’ve looked at, Smith is the only non-lopsided school. Which is a plus.</p>

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<p>Wellesley and Smith, and similar schools, are good all rounders. They might have particular strengths in one area or another, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t good in other areas. They’re strong everywhere and just extra strong in certain parts. I think Wellesley honestly is just as well rounded as Smith. </p>

<p>If you talk to most alums from both schools, most will tell you that their major had very little to do with what they eventually did as their career. This was a frequent theme with alums that would visit Smith. </p>

<p>I know I just wrote a whole post about how my major DID impact my career, but that’s just from one narrow perspective. Over the course of my whole life, who knows what I will study, but just because I majored in government with a focus on international relations, doesn’t mean I won’t suddenly start working on domestic issues. Or maybe getting out of government all together. </p>

<p>I know lots of gov majors from my same year who aren’t working for the government. Some of them work at nonprofits, some are studying to be lawyers, some are doing something totally unrelated. </p>

<p>I think when you’re evaluating schools at this early stage, don’t be fixated on going to a school for one particular thing, you want to pick schools that just don’t close any doors. You want to preserve the option of pursuing any of your passions, including the ones you don’t even know you have yet.</p>

<p>When I came to Smith, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I didn’t come in with a fixed plan, necessarily. I thought maybe English, maybe Govenrment, maybe History, maybe American Studies, maybe Theater or Film Studies or French. Even when I settled on Government, it was kind of a whim and what I thought I would evenutally do (study American Government, go to Law School, work for Congress) was about a million miles from what I ended up doing. I discovered a passion while I was at Smith that I had never imagined before I got there and it really turned all my well laid plans on their head. </p>

<p>So don’t worry about figuring it all out now. Listen to your instincts, go somewhere where you can pursue all that you want, and figure it out as you go along.</p>

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<p>The Chemistry department here is also phenomenal in terms of professors, research, classes, etc. Having Ford Hall means that there is plenty of space in labs, you get to use pretty advanced equipment pretty fast, lots of individual attention and people who’ll guide you and teach you. I’ve heard from a couple of transfer students that it is unbelievable that we get to run IR and NMR spectra ourselves within a couple of weeks of starting Organic Chemistry - at their schools, you’d have to be in at least your third or fourth semester of Orgo to even go near the machines. Academics and research aside though, the department really tries to foster a sense of community - the annual liquid nitrogen ice cream Freeze Off is always a ton of fun, professors will barbeque, each lab has a sense of pride and close knit community, and if you check out their Facebook page you can easily see that they are really proud of their students and do their best to highlight achievements.
My experience with them comes from thinking that I would be a Biochem major, and taking the courses for the first year, but I wound up finding something that I loved more in the humanities, and that department is phenomenal as well - I could go on for ages and ages about them. So going to a well rounded school definitely has its benefits, and you get to figure out what it is at the college level that you truly love.</p>

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<p>I’d like to add that the reason all this major-changing, never-knew-it-existed type of study, happens because college is nothing like high school. If, say, you hated history in high school, it doesn’t necessarily follow that you’ll hate it at the college level because the way it’s taught and the amount of content is different. Of course, a few lower level colleges may seem like an extension of high school, but even among mid-tier schools, this isn’t usually so.</p>

<p>And I agree with S&P that Wellesley and Smith graduate equally well-rounded women. In a smaller college, you can run into the problem of not having both breadth and depth in all departments, simply because the number of faculty and therefore course offerings are smaller, but I don’t think that will be the case at Wellesley and Smith unless you’re interested in a highly specialized niche. Yes, if you want to study chemistry, one may be stronger than the other, but the weaker one will never be weak. And yes, one may offer courses in something that the other doesn’t. But both educate their students in the best of the liberal arts tradition.</p>

<p>I highly recommend that you visit both again in the fall before the ED deadline. You really don’t want to be torn between the two.</p>

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<p>Hey,
I just wanted to add one more to the “satisfied smith gov major” crowd. I really love the department. All the profs have been phenomenal. Best of luck</p>