<p>Hi everyone!</p>
<p>I am interested in International Studies (or Political Science concentrating on international relations) or Anthropology, particularly with a focus on Latin America. Although I'm entirely down to have philosophical or political discussions into the late hours of the night, I am scared I may not be quite nerdy enough for Swarthmore. I'm Latina and love the culture, so I like to see strong diversity and active clubs that hold events like Carnaval at WashU. I'm also very liberal, but don't mind hearing and discussing other people's views.</p>
<p>I'm most attracted to:
- Midd's great International studies and languages, how friendly everyone I met was there, and how other people share my interest in other cultures (despite not being the most diverse)
- WashU's diversity and greater options (in terms of classes, internships, community service) that a larger campus right inside St Louis provides,
- Swarthmore's academic strength and how many students it sends to great grad schools
- Wesleyan's hipstery liberals and campus culture</p>
<p>Regarding the social scene, although I won't be going out three times a weekend getting ****faced, I do want to have different options to enjoy myself each week without having to join a sorority. I had the most fun visiting Wesleyan, but that may have been good luck with the people I was hanging out with.</p>
<p>I have a half-scholarship at WashU's which is tempting, but my parents say it's not a problem if I choose one of the others since they are fans of liberal arts schools.</p>
<p>I've never written one of these before and I hope I've given enough information. Any insight is appreciated, and let me know what else I should be considering! Thanks in advance</p>
<p>The real choice is Wash U vs. a small liberal arts school. If after you make that decision, you decide you want a small liberal arts environment, then start listing the pros/cons of each of those three schools.</p>
<p>There’s been numerous threads on Wash U’s boards about the advantages and disadvantages of a small liberal arts school. I take the abundance of these threads on our boards to mean (in addition to my own personal feelings about our school) that Wash U feels about as liberal-artsy as you can get in a non liberal-arts school. It never feels too large, there is an exceptional amount of support and advising, vast majority of classes outside of pre-med are pretty darn small, the dorms are all in one clustered area so it feels like a real community, and our school is really laid back and friendly as I’m sure you’ve noticed. Also, at least for me, it was important to go to a school that has a fair amount of things to do off-campus. I mean, our campus definitely has a “bubble” feel of seclusion, but walking to the Loop or taking the metro to the central west end or the malls is really easy and free. It’s nice to get off campus and always be able to try something new, as opposed to the limitations of the towns where some of the smaller colleges are located. </p>
<p>I think going to a school like Wash U is so appealing to someone with your interests because you have the best of both worlds: a great school with really smart peers that provides an amazing education, while offering far more tangible opportunities to the student experience than a swarthmore/wesleyan/etc, yet it’s hard to feel overwhelmed even though it is larger than those schools. That balance makes it an ideal choice for me. </p>
<p>Also, since you mentioned International Studies and Poli Sci — I love the programs at Wash U. Once you get past the one or two massive lecture classes your freshman year in Poli Sci, there are literally almost a hundred small Poli Sci classes in so many niche subfields and I’ve enjoyed every one of my classes. International and Area Studies courses are essentially all pretty small, and [Latin American Studies](<a href=“http://latinamericanstudies.wustl.edu/programs”>http://latinamericanstudies.wustl.edu/programs</a>) is one of the 4 or 5 conentration areas to choose from. Also, if you come to Wash U, definitely take one of the [Focus</a> classes](<a href=“http://bulletin.wustl.edu/artsci/focus/#courses]Focus”>http://bulletin.wustl.edu/artsci/focus/#courses) or other freshman programs because a lot are geared towards international studies and/or politics.</p>
<p>Thanks for the great response! really helpful in getting a sense of what I’d be getting myself into with WashU.</p>
<p>I’m glad to hear that there are so many small classes - wondering if research opportunities would actually be better (more profs) or worse (more competition/grad school) at WashU than one of the LACs</p>
<p>it’s starting to sound like being further from home may be worth it for WashU and the money they’ve offered - not super sure yet though.</p>
<p>fredelina - for what it’s worth, I’ve never heard of someone who wants to do research at WashU not being able to… in any of the departments. The research a grad student would be doing would be very different. Plus, those along your line of potential study have a great opportunity if you want to do a senior thesis - lots of people go abroad junior year, gather data for a while, and then come back and finish it up.</p>