<p>Very cool, Denlah! Even if you’ve already made up your mind, take the other colleges up on their visit offers. You’ll get to see some beautiful parts of the country. Of course, I’m pulling for Williams, but Princeton – and Pomona and Swarthmore – are pretty steep competition.</p>
<p>As for Grinnell and Kenyon, yes, it sounds like “Tufts syndrome” gone awry. Their loss, actually. If your were charmed by Kenyon’s campus, I think you’ll find Williams’ magical too. My advice would be choose an LAC for undergrad, Princeton for grad school. </p>
<p>OP: You should identify what kind of writer you hope to become. What formats? What delivery systems? What content expertise? What career? Etc. Consider this while understanding the market for all kinds of writers is shifting dramatically. This reflection/research is critical because schools have specialties in all kinds of different writing-related programs and you should try to target programs that closely match your goals. Just looking for “strong writing programs” is not enough, IMHO. Follow the excellent leads shared above by Juillet. When Juillet speaks, listen! </p>
<p>Edit: Oopsie. Looks like I responded to the early (2013) side of this thread. Oh, well. Congrats!!</p>
<p>Thanks @dyiu13! That’s good advice at any stage in my journey as a writer. Yet the college search stage seems to have come to a rather wonderful close.</p>
<p>I agree, Momrath, that liberal arts colleges provide the superior undergraduate experience for most students. Even after Penn’s heavy recruitment pitches led me to love the opportunities of a university, I still felt like a small college would be the better choice. In fact, what I liked most about Penn was the Kelly Writer House, whose atmosphere brought to Penn what I felt universities were lacking. But it still was not the same. I do believe that Williams, Swarthmore, or Pomona one would have had a very real shot of wooing me away from Penn.</p>
<p>But Princeton’s different. Their enrollment is tiny for an Ivy, and they have twice as many undergraduates as graduate students. Their commitment to their undergrads is so great that we will have library preference over grad students–not something you’ll find at Penn or any other Ivy. Plus, Princeton has the highest per-student endowment of any school in America, so they have so many resources to funnel us. I feel unworthy when I think about it. I have no doubt that Princeton has an awesome grad school, but really, it’s an even better place for undergraduates. For all the same reasons that I believe liberal arts colleges offer a better education than universities, I believe that Princeton is the perfect place for me. It has the best of both worlds.</p>
<p>Princeton is a wonderful school. The only negative that I would raise is the influence of the eating clubs on the social atmosphere. They’ve made great strides in making them more egalitarian, but it’s still an expensive concept that carries some elitist baggage. When you get your financial package ask about coverage for eating club membership. </p>
<p>I hope you’ll get to visit Williams, but if your mind’s made up on Princeton, I’ll just say congratulations!</p>
<p>Princeton is a pretty unique place. I’ve seen no uni (LACs excepted) that inspires an alumni group as devoted. Speaks volumes to undergrad experience there. Congrats. </p>
<p>“I have to agree with those who miss the connection of college with creative writing success. That seems to be portrayed more in movies than in real life.”</p>
<p>I recalled this thread a while ago, when I came across the following. This case was indeed portrayed in the movies:
The germ of the creation of Good Will Hunting</p>
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