W&M or Middlebury?

Colleges and Universities A-Z College of William and Mary
1

<p>Help! My S loves both William & Mary and Middlebury College, but he is having a terrible time deciding which to attend. He would like the most academically challenging school. For some reason he thinks Middlebury might be more challenging, but I think they are very similar. His possible major is international relations, but he would like to be involved in theater either as a double major or minor.</p>

<p>Does anyone have any thoughts for him as he has only about 4 days to make this decision.</p>

2

<p>Wow- what great choices! Both schools will equally challenge your son. W&M may have the best IR dept around (quote from Madeline Albright) and has a great Theater dept. Glenn Close is an alum. Middlebury is a great school as well. The major differences are winter weather, size, price. They are equal for academics. Your son will do great at either school as long as he is happy.</p>

3

<p>IR at W&M is absurdly good. I think we recently won a model UN competition or something. W&M is rated as being less difficult on another site (3.9 v. 4.3 out of 5) but I think both would challenge him. I honestly think the weather is going to be the largest difference. Consider the costs as well, graduating w/debt isn’t a great plan with the economy being the way it is.</p>

4

<p>yea… weather and surrounding area should be factored in. What about general campus vibe? Has he visited both?</p>

<p>If he went to W&M, he could study languages in the summer at Middlebury.</p>

<p>W&M has a very strong undergraduate IR program. Make sure you take into account this resource: [William</a> & Mary - The Washington Office](<a href=“http://www.wm.edu/offices/dcoffice/index.php]William”>http://www.wm.edu/offices/dcoffice/index.php) I did not participate, but have heard great things about the DC office.</p>

<p>Model UN won the world championships at least twice while I was in school. I think they came in 2nd this year. They do very, very well. So if your son is interested in that, it is another plus.</p>

5

<p>Here’s the article if you are interested: [William</a> & Mary - W&M students excel at World Model U.N. Conference](<a href=“http://www.wm.edu/news/stories/2010/wm-students-excel-at-world-model-u.n.-conference-123.php]William”>W&M students excel at World Model U.N. Conference | William & Mary)</p>

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<p>Yeah, W&M IR is one of the best. There are numerous paid research positions available, excellent professors, great resources (especially with the DC office), and amazing students (as you can see from the MUN competition). I’m looking forward to the speech by Ambassador Ryan Crocker tomorrow.</p>

7

<p>Two excellent choices. W&M proximity to DC helps to make our IR and Government departments among the best. W&M’s DC Office does a lot of outreach in DC to bring speakers to campus ranging from Christina Romer (Chair of Obama’s Economic Council) to current Chancellor Sandra Day O’Connor. Former speakers have included Henry Kissinger, Archbishop Tutu, ambassadors from all over the world, and former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan.</p>

<p>The W&M International Relations Club is huge and has been wildly successful in national and international Model U.N. Competitions. Additionally, our semester in DC program allows students to live and work in DC for 3 months while taking classes.</p>

<p>No matter which school he chooses he’ll have a great experience but we hope he chooses W&M.</p>

8

<p>Thank you for your helpful responses. He did decide to attend William & Mary is very excited about being a Monroe Scholar.</p>

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<p>Thank you for letting us know. Best of luck to him.</p>