<p>My best friend has been accepted to both UC Berkeley and Swarthmore and is absolutely torn between the two. I wanted to help her any way I can so I thought I'd ask some CCers for their advice (actually I'm getting paid for this....kidding). She's an international student (a Korean citizen), clever, witty, with no decided major, interested in both the arts and the sciences. She took AP Statistics, US Government & Politics, Econ (Macro & Micro), World History, Calculus BC, Chemistry, Psychology and Biology in high school, with satisfactory scores in all the subjects (as far as I know).
She's never been to the US before, though she speaks the language well enough, and she was the founder and editor of a school magazine about culture. She can sing (quite well), dance (quite well), play the violin and the piano (esp. the piano, she considered going to a music school during junior high but decided against it) and I know that she'd definitely like to participate in such activities in college. She's the kind of girl who enjoys partying and having fun, but she's also whip-smart and brutally honest. Yes, she knows that Berkeley and Swarthmore are radically different in terms of size and environment and she really should have made up her mind about what she really wanted when she was applying (everyone's been telling her this) but she hasn't had a chance to actually visit any of these schools (and she won't be able to in the near future either) and really get to know them, so she's hesitant about making a decision.</p>
<p>I'm actually shocked that someone else is deciding between these two schools, which I had narrowed my own search to. For your friend, the huge discrepancies between the east coast and west coast should be a large factor (with IMO the west coast being a lot friendlier for asians).<br>
I still think the students at Swarthmore are much smarter than Berkeley students, and Swarthmore would have granted me a much better education. However, thank god I chose Berkeley. This place has made up for all of that in quality of life.<br>
Show your friend some photos of Berkeley, and then some photos of Philadelphia.</p>
<p>I think the students are much smarter at Berkeley than at Swarthmore.</p>
<p>I would think that Swarthmore's student population is stronger on average than the Berkeley student population. No decided majors makes this harder. I really enjoy all that large universities has to offer, from grad students and amazing research to hundreds of student organizations and amazing athletics, not to mention the city of Berkeley is amazing. The one thing that turns me off about the LACs is that I don't think they offer as complete of a college experience. I don't think you get to experience as much in such a small environment. Then again you probably get more personal attention at Swarthmore. I suppose it's a trade-off and it comes down to what you value more in a college.</p>
<p>is she socially aware? One thing that Swat has over many schools is its focus social mission in addition to top-notch academics. One upside/downside to that focus, however, is that Swat (students and faculty) is not politically diverse....</p>
<p>To answer your question, it would really depend on what your friend is looking for most in a college. </p>
<p>The only thing glaring right now is that Berkeley would be less of a culture shock to your friend.</p>
<p>mama cass almost went to swarthmore</p>
<p>Funny, I just turned down a school very much like Swarthmore (I would go so far as to say it's West Coast equivalent) in favor of Berkeley. That said, I would not say Berkeley is necessarily "better" in all respects.</p>
<p>As far as academics are concerned, I think it's very hard to compare large public schools to small, liberal arts colleges. I personally favor the latter academically; it's hard to beat the small classes and personal attention that liberal arts colleges offer.</p>
<p>I chose Berkeley because it was the more economically sensible choice. But by virtue of it being relatively cheap, the student body is incredibly diverse, ethnically, socio-economically, etc. In this way, private schools cannot compare. (Many of my high school friends attend liberal arts colleges, and the one major complaint they all seem to share is how homogenous the student body is.)</p>
<p>Also, by virtue of being large, I would say there's more to do at any given time at Berkeley, although I'd argue that smaller colleges do a better job at fostering a sense of "intimacy" and "community."</p>
<p>Lastly, I would say Berkeley is easily more recognizable to the average American (not to mention internationally) than Swarthmore is. This may be unfair and this certainly isn't to say Swarthmore lacks prestige- because it certainly is prestigous among liberal arts colleges- but I would say the average American (and this would exclude the college-conscious CC crowd)knows very little about liberal arts colleges in general. (Indeed, I personally had never even heard of Amherst College until I read about it in college guide books.) That said, I would hope that institutional prestige is not a major factor in the decision making process.</p>
<p>Hope this helps.</p>