UChicago vs. Swarthmore

College Search & Selection
1

I’m a senior who has just about narrowed my choice to these two colleges. For reference, I’m near the top of my class, a speech and debate kid, and I haven’t nailed down much in the way of a major yet. I’m looking at chem, journalism, econ, IR, history, middle eastern studies (the name’s different at both places, but you get the picture), and probably a little more.

I love both Swat and UChicago, albeit for slightly different reasons; does anyone have any opinions or advice on where they differ and which I should choose? Thanks!

2

RD decisions aren’t out yet for Swat, so how would you even know you have this choice? FYI, one of my kids was admitted to both 2 years ago, but picked a different school. If you do get into both, visit for accepted student days for both. My kid found that to be very revealing.

3

They’re both similar in some ways–intellectual, not pre-professional, no “jock” presence or Greek life–but they’re very, very different in ways that might be important to you. Do you want to live in an idyllic suburb or a very inner city neighborhood with the attendant crime but also proximity to big-city amenities, culture, and diversity? Do you want tiny classes? Do you want tons of course offerings, allowing genuine specialization or are you interested in the broader liberal arts?

It’s a win-win, and I definitely see why you’d narrow it down to those two (if you’re a fit for one, you’re probably a pretty good fit for the other). I hope you have this decision to make!

(Me? I went to Williams, so I’d choose Swat and try hard to take advantage of its [Oxford/Cambridge/Williams-style] [Honors Program tutorials](Honors Program :: Swarthmore College)…)

4

@marvin100, Swat DOES have Greek life, and there has been a fairly raucous debate in the last few years about whether they should remain on campus. I believe there was a widely publicized sexual assault case related to one of their frats a couple of years ago. Just go back and read the online student newspapers about it. They put it to a vote whether Greek life should continue, and it did pass and remains present at Swat. And U of Chicago certainly has jocks – my kid ended up in a dorm with a lot of athletes at her accepted student visit at U of C. Not Big 10 type athletics, of course, but there are jocks there.

5

Both great schools. Both “intellectual.” The urban vs. suburban issue is one issue. Size is another. I think Chicago has a core curriculum. Does Swarthmore? The Greek life, such as it is, at Swarthmore, is pretty minimal compared to other schools. And the kids we know who have gone to Chicago tend to be “student athletes” – smart kids with high grades and scores who play sports.

6

@intparent - sorry, my mistake. Perhaps I went a bit too far. Instead, I’ll just say that both schools are far less jock-oriented than most schools and have far less Greek and Greek-style social scenes than most schools.

7

@KelvinAndHobbes‌: Obviously, both are truly excellent schools. In my opinion, however, the primary difference is a superb LAC versus a superb National Research University. Accordingly, which environment – a “college” or a multi-school “university” – do you prefer? That important and pervasive cultural difference might be a reasonable basis for your decision.

8

^____ I echo @TopTier A choice between the two? What a great dilemma!

9

Uchicago also has frats. I think there’s a current thread on the uchicago forum about frat life.

10

See where you get in, see what you can afford and then re-post. You can’t go wrong with either choice.

11

I’m going to echo many posters and ask: have you already gotten into both? Otherwise, there’s not really much of a point asking the question…

But to answer, here are some differences between the two:

Swat is a lot smaller compared to UChicago (although both are very small relative to other places). If I recall correctly, Swat’s undergrad population is around 1500, whereas Chicago’s is around 5000.

While both schools are very rigorous academically, I think Swat is even more so. It is quite notorious for its extremely heavy workload, which could be a boon or a curse depending on who you are. If you really want to learn, and just learn, Swat is probably the environment that fits you better. If you want the more traditional “college experience”, with some free time, some time to join clubs/organizations/etc, Chicago is for you.

Swarthmore is part of the Tri-College Consortium, which allows you to cross register at Haverford and Bryn Mawr. If you want to explore that option, you might consider Swat over Chicago.

UChicago is an urban campus at the heart of the city, whereas Swat is really the deep 'burbs. So, again, depends what kind of person you are. I assume Chicago would get you more opportunities, city life, etc, but if you want the traditional, beautiful campus Swat is more like that.

All in all, they’re very different places. If you haven’t done so already, I would try to arrange a campus visit. If you can’t visit both, try visiting one, or even (again, if you haven’t done so) visit one suburban and one urban campus just to get the feel of the two. I’ve seen a lot of people who loved places like Swat on paper, visited, and realized they could never live there for four years (and vice-versa with Chicago)!

Also, for the majors you suggested, the two schools are pretty much equal. I would venture to say that Chicago’s chem department is slightly better than Swat’s? But I’m no expert.

Anyways, if you can afford to ask this question, you’ve either gotten in or you’re pretty damn confident about your chances of getting into both. So, let me just say that if you like both schools, you can’t go wrong at all. They’re both great and as long as you think they fit you, as long as you think they can both be places you can grow academically and personally, you’ll succeed.