Hoping for some insight to help DS, who is a self-proclaimed nerdy history kid, but slightly artsy too. He’s considering ED to Wesleyan and Tufts. Any thoughts on the strength of the History major at these schools? Tufts would be a bit more of a stretch, admissions-wise. He is concerned about Wes being too edgy. Smaller size might be more attractive, though, as he wants research opportunities and good faculty/student interaction. City vs. rural is not a factor. Vassar might also be in the mix. He’s also pretty athletic and will want strong intramural and club sports. Any thoughts?
If Vassar is in the mix, he would likely have an admissions advantage there since he is male. Lots of nerdy and artsy kids there. Hope you get a chance to visit the gorgeous campus. Good luck!
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For this aspect, as well as for strength in history, your son also may want to consider Williams, Hamilton, Bowdoin and Kenyon.
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Wesleyan can be whatever he wants it to be: edgy, sporty, nerdy, artsy. It’s all there, pretty much in close proximity. The rear of the main library is the best place from which to watch a Saturday afternoon football game and the arts complex is almost a second campus of its own. Wesleyan is one of those places where people pay less attention to the subject of the course and more to who’s teaching it. History is one of the bigger departments and from what I can gather, a fairly young one. So, there should be a large Venn diagram of personalities from which to choose:
History Department - Wesleyan University
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When we were researching both of these schools last year, I thought Wesleyan’s College of Social Studies was super cool for a history/poli sci type. College of Social Studies - Wesleyan University. It’s a mashup of History, Government, Political and Social Theory, and Economics. Tufts had something called Civic Studies, which I think was less history and more social activism, but perhaps in the same vein.
My daughter applied to both Wesleyan (waitlisted) and Tufts (rejected) in the RD round. I think an ED play is probably ideal for either, as more and more kids are admitted in ED rounds. We toured during COVID summer (2021) so we didn’t get a great vibe for either place. But I think either school could fit the bill. Tufts is in a more interesting location just outside of Boston–it’s well connected to the city and there’s just more happening. But Wes seems like it’s got enough to keep kids occupied.
Niche keeps a ranking of history programs that includes LACs – I recently found it because my daughter (who has been in college all of 3 weeks, mind you) just switched her major from political science to history. (She’s at UCLA, which does in fact rank highly for history.) I would post the link but apparently it’s not allowed!
I agree with the others that looking at Amherst, Williams, Kenyon, Bowdoin would also be a good idea.
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At that level of school, 100% the fit is going to matter most. If he really, really, really wants history, tell him to check out Canada, the UK and Ireland, where he can do all history all the time.
I am surprised that having visited both Tufts and Wes he doesn’t have a clear favorite, and wonder if the gaming benefits of applying ED might be outweighed by the disadvantage of not having the time to grow into the decision.
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Thanks for the insights - hadn’t considered the male advantage at Vassar!
CircuitRider, that’s interesting - Curious how you know it’s a younger department and do you think that impacts the quality of the faculty in any way?
While Amherst, Bowdoin and Williams would be top choices, they may just be too much of a risk for ED (strong SATs but about a 4.1 weighted GPA). Good, but not exceptional, ECs.
Well, Wesleyan and most of the better LACs hire right out of grad school. So, that shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. A permanent member of the staff can achieve tenure by the time they are in their mid-thirties. I think it gives them an edge in covering emerging areas of interest within the discipline. I was perusing the Faculty Profiles of the Wesleyan History department in order to answer your OP - and maybe it’s me - but I was just stunned by how young some of the faces looked and by how much scholarly work they have achieved already. And again, on a smaller campus, younger faculty give the undergraduates a pool of role-models they can relate to:
Faculty Listing, History Department - Wesleyan University
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If he’s interested in pursuing history at the graduate level, be sure to check out foreign language options in addition to the history offerings. Though courses in Middle Eastern history, Chinese history, medieval European history, etc. use texts in translation for undergraduate courses, incoming graduate students are expected to already know the requisite languages. Tufts and Wesleyan have a relatively similar roster of languages, but there are a few minor differences (e.g. Korean is available at Wesleyan but not Tufts).
The education departments are also worth a look if he’s at all interesting in teaching. Glancing over the websites, it seems that Tufts offers teaching certification through a 5 year BA/MAT program, whereas Wesleyan’s education department does not offer teaching certification. Of course, Wesleyan grads can pursue a master’s in teaching elsewhere.
Both are excellent schools. A couple of thoughts…
They serve the same types of students well, so it sounds like your S sees his tribe at both. Tufts is significantly larger, which means it is likely to offer more, including classes adjacent to history. As most students take 4 courses at a time, that only means more choice rather than more classes. But for students with particular areas of interest, this can be a differentiator. And if a student starts heading down a rather specialized rabbit hole, it is likely they will take classes with the same prof every semester. This will be true at any school, btw, and can be awesome if you like the prof and a great way to build a relationship. If you don’t like the prof, different story!
One thing you might do is review the requirements for graduation and for a history major (available online) at both, and make a 4 year schedule, including study abroad or anything else that you want to be part of the experience. This can highlight differences which may matter. The department pages tend to be a wealth of information.
I’d also say because of size and location that Wes may feel like a tighter community. Tufts students, particularly upperclassmen, tend to take advantage of what Boston has to offer, which allows students to develop lives a bit more independent of the school (albeit with school friends). This gives the place a different social feel. Note that this is not so much of a factor for freshmen and sophomores. This is a plus for students who want to expand their horizons beyond campus over 4 years, but it does have an impact on the energy and vitality of campus life for juniors and seniors.
I would not choose an ED strategy based on how best to game admissions but on where the program and overall environment feel like the best fit.
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Has your S looked at the history profs at all 3 schools, their backgrounds and research? Has he also looked at the major requirements, and all the classes in the dept (noting how often each is offered)?
Tufts has greater distribution requirements than Wesleyan. Tufts students must demonstrate foreign language mastery thru 3rd semester (can test out) plus take another 3 classes in FL and/or culture. Two writing classes, one world civ class, and two classes in each of 6 subject areas round out the requirements. That’s out of 32 classes (generally), and there is less of an option to double count classes across distribution areas as compared to some other schools.
Wesleyan has no FL requirement, and requires 9 courses (completed in 2 stages) in each of 3 broad subject areas (sci/math, social and behavioral sciences, and arts and humanities).
Lastly you mentioned your S is interested in club and intramural sports. Look to see if there are club sport offerings that he likes. Tufts is more likely to field stronger club teams, simply because there are more students.
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U.S. Colleges with notably flexible curricula (e.g., Grinnell, Brown, Hamilton, Amherst) allow (mostly) for this as well.
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The OP may want to view Niche’s methods, which substantially bias its ranking toward large schools and depend on “Niche users.”
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Thanks, everyone!
If you would like to say, did your son make an ED choice, @Historymom2?
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