<p>I posted this in College search and the Williams forum but I also wanted to post it here. Thanks</p>
<p>I was accepted EA to Chicago and I also just found out I am in at Williams as well. These are my top two choices and I need some help in deciding between them. Here is a little background:</p>
<p>I am a recruited athlete at both schools. I was able to visit UChicago over the past fall break but I will probably not be able to visit Williams. I really love the city of Chicago and the campus of U of C. My best friend is going to U of C. I really felt good at Chicago. But I do not probably fit into their normal student profile. Instead of being the hardcore student, I was more of the ditch class with friends and pull out As on the test thus end up with an A in the class. I am fine with studying and homework at a moderate level but I will prolly not be able to cope to with hours upon hours at U of C. If it as rigorous as everyone makes it out to be than I will prolly have a hard and stressful time at Chicago, which I expect with being in college but not to the drastic point that a Chicago student feels. But I love the intellectual feel of the school and the life of the mind. The bad part of Chicago is also that their financial aid package has me and my family paying 23k while Williams has us at around 10k. </p>
<p>I really love Williamss location along with their strong athletic programs. I feel that I would do really well at Williams both athletically and academically but I fear how small the school is. My high school has 1,000 more students than Williams. Does Williams sometimes feel too small?</p>
<p>How is life at a LAC different than a University? </p>
<p>My major would be Poly Sci and both schools, how do the schools match up in regard to their Poly Sci program?</p>
<p>Honestly, you should pick the school that is the most comfortable to you. Where do you think you can flourish, Williams or UChi?</p>
<p>Another thing, can your family afford to pay the 23k as opposed to the 10k?
If I were in your situation, I’d probably be picking Williams just b/c I know it would be really tough for my family to pay 13k extra per year. </p>
<p>What you can be sure of is both schools are ‘intellectual’ and if you want to learn and enjoy your time in college, you will do so regardless of where you are.</p>
<p>If it comes down to being a question of finances, make sure you call UChicago finaid and tell them that you’d choose UChicago but Williams gave you a better package. They might be willing to reconsider; either way there’s nothing to lose.</p>
<p>My father has said that he wants the best education for me and he will make it happen no matter what even if it means a large loan. But I really do not want to burden him or my family with an additional 13k in expenses. My parents are rather old (nearing 50) and I dont want them to be in pain to pay more for my school. I really loved the feel at Chicago and how many resources I would have at my disposal, but I believe that it may be simply to stressful and rigorous for me. I really love the idea of just talking about what I learn outside of the classroom and Chicago’s students do this often.</p>
<p>What will help you make a choice? Would another visit at each campus help you? Email a prof in the respective departments? Contact your athletic team and talk with those students? Athletes tend to have a somewhat different college life than the non-varsity types. You will spend loads of time with your teammates.</p>
<p>Are these your 2 top choices? Is there a third likely acceptance that is larger than Williams and more affordable than Chicago?</p>
<p>And yes, I’m a parent and 50 is not old !!! It’s the new 40 ;-)</p>
<p>You should add on the fact that you’d like to discuss things you’ve learned outside the classroom in the Williams board and see what they have to say about that.</p>
<p>No it is just between Chicago and Williams. I only applied to schools that I was being recruitied at, so I have received work of my acceptances from everywhere a little earlier than most applicants. </p>
<p>That is really what I would like to do glasses, but I have found that they are so busy they dont give the most detailed response. </p>
<p>Why do you say that peonyandocean? Do most Williams student NOT discuss what they learn outside of the classroom?</p>
<p>Well, I say it because you mentioned it’s something you liked about Chicago, and since you’re trying to decide between Williams and Chicago it seems natural that you’d mention it in the Williams board as well, just to see what people have to say about that. </p>
<p>Also, I said that because I honestly have no idea how students at Williams interact and whether or not they discuss things learned outside of the classroom. Asking them about that would be better than asking us.</p>
<p>Hm. I’ve visited Williams…it’s a gorgeous little town with a nice campus–it definitely wasn’t my favorite campus, though it was cute. But, despite the fact that I loved Williams on paper (especially the tutorial thing!) I didn’t end up applying. Mostly, this was because of the student body.</p>
<p>Just some background on me: I like hiking, biking, etc., but I’m a self-proclaimed dork, not very athletic or into partying, and I grew up in a small, rural town so I’m looking for some diversity in regards to everything from culture to the way people dress in my college experience. Williams, unfortunately, didn’t really seem to offer that. All of the students seemed to dress the same–everyone was either in spandex or the signature Williams purple. The few people who were even vaguely “alternative”–i.e. not preppy or athletic–stood out sharply. What with you being an athlete, I imagine you wouldn’t mind the spandex and all; but I found the student body was simply too homogeneous for me. </p>
<p>If you haven’t visited, I would definitely try; I know it can be difficult if you live far away, but visiting campus really affected my perception of the school. Of course, I came into it with my own biases and it was only the snapshot of one day. So my advice? Go see for yourself, if at all possible.</p>
<p>Williams is a lovely LAC. In my generation, it was where the decently smart preppy jocks went, although even then it had some real intellectuals and art-bohemians, too. It has upgraded its student body a lot, and – although I think it still has plenty of preppy jocks, and the kids I know there are . . . very smart preppy jocks – I am certain that it is a great learning environment where students are engaged in what they do, including what they are learning and thinking about.</p>
<p>Williamstown is really small and really isolated. Lovely. The College has a nice art museum, and MassMoCA is a great addition nearby. It has a famous summer stock theater in the summer. But it is NOT Chicago, not even remotely equivalent. Williams and the University of Chicago are not dissimilar in intellectual vitality, but are barely in the same dimension as to location, environment, and of course the presence of graduate and professional students and a major hospital and several major museums, etc. There is waaaaay more stuff going on. Now, you might prefer the secluded rural atmosphere and know-everyone intimacy of Williams, and your professors (many fewer of them) being there just for you, not balancing you off against publications or grad students. But you really can’t be indifferent between them – there’s too much difference.</p>
<p>Also, Williams is now, and has always been, a work-hard/party-hard place (in part because the options for self-amusement while sober are limited). Chicago is hardly a party-free zone, but really it’s not the same. Again, you can prefer one or the other style, but you can’t say you don’t care about the difference.</p>
<p>I am Iraqi, my dad was born in Baghdad. I always love finding out about other Arab applicants, because my high school has prolly 4-5 Arab kids. And seeing how my entire family is still in Iraq, I never got the chance to really fully connect with my Iraqi culture. What country are you from? </p>
<p>Thanks for the great post JHS. I kind of love the idea of taking night hikes and just being around nature. I absolutely love that idea. In regard to academic prestige, do you think Chicago tops Williams? Thanks</p>
<p>I will be doing Track and Field and Football. I love the Chicago coach, he is a great person. We have been in contact since my junior year and we have really developed a great relationship so far. Williams has a better athletic program but that really isnt coming into a factor because I chose in the start of my college search to only go for academic based schools because I dont plan on going to the Olympics or the NFL.</p>
<p>Hey, my friend is going to Williams for football. Cool.
Sorry, useless comment here. (Visit Williams!! I personally didn’t apply to any small LAC in the middle of nowhere because I spent the last 4 years in the middle of nowhere at boarding school and wanted something bigger, like Chicago)</p>
<p>I just thought to add two more factors that may matter to you, although you probably know them already:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Chicago the city has a significant Arab population. I don’t know how many Arab students Chicago the University has, but even if it’s the same percentage as Williams (and I would be willing to bet it’s higher), spread over 5,000 undergrads and 9,000 grad students that’s a lot more different people than they were spread over Williams’ 2,500 total students. Both will have more than your high school, but Chicago will have a lot more, and more in the surrounding community, too.</p></li>
<li><p>Williams is a sportsy place; that has always been part of its identity. A huge percentage of the students participate in intercollegiate sports – maybe as high as half, and certainly not a lot less. Being an athlete there is normative and gives you status, and I think support for the teams is a big part of college life. (Again, sometimes there not being a whole lot of other choices.) Chicago has athletes, and spectators, too, but sports just isn’t as big a deal there, and athletes other than superstars may be seen as a oddities, not the epitome of what human beings should be.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Machiavelli - First off, congratulations! These are two Outstanding schools, and you should certainly take a moment to pat yourself on the back. </p>
<p>Now, in terms of financial aid, I would really, really strongly recommend calling the FA office. Make sure you can get a time to talk to a FA officer for at least a few minutes, and approach the ensuing conversation as a simple discussion of possibilities. This sounds trite, but be sure to be friendly and maintain a positive tone during the conversation. This helps. Tell the officer how much you love Chicago, and how excited you are about what Chicago offers. After the FA office has all of your information, just inquire about any wiggle room on the FA offer. Maybe they can’t match Williams offer, but what if they can whittle it down to 14k a year? Be open-ended in the negotiation. Could they whittle it down to say, 12-14k a year, and perhaps offer you guaranteed student-work deals during the year or the summer, where you can make a couple thousand to go toward your tuition? Express how much you want this situation to work, and just see how they respond. </p>
<p>See what they say. If the office is still obstinate, talk to your coach. Tell him how much you love chicago, football at chicago, and how much you want to attend. See if he can help you out in any way. A lot of the coaches at Chicago are great, and they’ll really go to bat for their players. Make sure all interested parties know your desires and the fact that you have this other offer, but love Chicago. </p>
<p>Who knows what’ll happen? Try this, see if there’s any wiggle room, and, if there is, it changes the scope of your initial question (Williams or Chicago at 13k more a year?) a bit.</p>