At this point, I’ve essentially heard back from all the schools I applied to (with the exception of Reed which I don’t intend to go to if admitted), and I’m deciding between Swarthmore and Carleton. I already appealed for more aid from both schools and submitted non-custodial waivers given that I have some recent issues with my father, and he’s no longer a part of my life, so both offered tremendous FA packages, so that’s no longer a factor I’m considering.
I think I’m leaning toward Swarthmore at this point, but Carleton has many aspects that I love as well. I’m going to admitted student days for both in April, but I’d love to hear other people’s thoughts on the two schools.
Congratulations ! Two great brainiac schools. Go with your gut. No wrong choice between the two. Swarthmore has the advantage of being in a three (or four if UPenn) school consortium.
Do you know what you’d like to major in? What kind of surrounding community would you like? Where is your home (generally speaking; are you close to an airport)?
@rosered55 I’m not really sure what I’d like to major in, but I’m thinking humanities or social sciences. I’m really interested in econ and/or IR. I also really like philosophy and/or comparative lit. Basically, I’m completely undecided. Hence, part of the reason I’d like to go to a LAC.
I’m located in Wyoming, but it’s kind of a pain to go anywhere, so I’m not really worried about the difference in flying to MSP vs. PHL. My mom’s boyfriend works for an airline, so we get really good deals on plane tickets regardless.
As for surrounding community, I’m kind of open to anything. I do really like Swarthmore’s location due to the proximity to Philadelphia and the east coast in general. Plus, the tri-consortium seems really convenient. Given that I’m kind of interested in International Relations, I’ve been looking at Bryn Mawr’s Russian Flagship Program (since I’m fluent in Bulgarian and Kazakh).
On the other hand, I’ve heard great things about Northfield, and I think it could be really nice to be in a college town. And I’ve heard great things about Minnesota in general. I would like to be in a liberal city. Being gay and biracial, it’s been hard growing up in Wyoming, and I’m ready to stop having to worry so much about whether people are going to slander me with hate speech or something. I assume I’d be in a progressive environment at either school though.
Two excellent schools. Congratulations! Some people would describe the environment at Swarthmore as being higher pressure than at Carleton. The fact that one is located in the east and the other in the midwest may also factor into the overall feeling on campus. Visiting may help, if that’s an option for you, but there really is no bad choice here.