My son has the opportunity to continue his athletic career at Swarthmore and is stressed with the looming deadline to answer the coach. He has passed the pre-read so if he accepts he is in. We are from the west coast, and know very few people who attend a LAC let alone one so far away. He is concerned he will miss out on clubs and meeting people that he might at a larger school. I hate that he has just a few days to decide without knowing what his other options could be, but any help anyone can give us on the culture of the school and how you found friends would be great. Thanks.
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You may also want to post/tag (not sure how it works) under athletic recruits. Lots of knowledgeable parents with student athletes and maybe even know of someone at Swarthmore.
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D18 was a Swat athlete. Your son will have no problem meeting others and being social beyond the team (if he wants). I think it’s easier to be more involved than at a larger school, as there aren’t so many people doing things. The school is very open and accomodating. My daughter sang with the choir for 4 years and was involved in a few other things on campus.
Post-graduation, my D sees former Swat classmates every month or so in various and sundry places…none of them are athletes…all friends from her freshman dorm or classes.
The one thing that I would be concerned about is your statement that “he’s as good as in”. He is still going to have to apply, and if you learn anything about coaches and LAC’s it’s that they don’t carry nearly as much weight as you think. At Swat…the one exception right now might be (maybe) men’s basketball…Landry probably has the pull to do that. Even if it is BB…be careful.
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I was curious to know if your son enrolled?
Yes he did and he loves it!
Do you mind sharing a little more about your son’s experience at Swarthmore? I am an admitted student considering whether I should commit to the school.
I think the atmosphere of students committed to academics and long-range goals is outstanding. The centrality to Philly is great, and the personal interaction and accessibility of faculty/ professors blows me away (my older two went to much larger universities). He loves knowing most of the people as he travels across campus, and has formed a terrific group of friends. The only thing he is not a fan of is the food, but my oldest hated the food at his school, too and my middle only eats Chik fil A at his large university which is terribly unhealthy, so I think that’s a problem in many places. Good luck!
Thank you so much for sharing the insights. I also heard similar concerns about the food, and the fact that they only have one dining hall. Not sure how your son feels about that. I’m assuming it’s slightly inconvenient? I’ve always heard about the academic rigorousness of the school, but I recently learned that it’s also pretty competitive and a lot of students seem to be stressed out and not able to enjoy their undergrad experience. Would you say that only represents a partial view?
That’s hard. My son thrives on challenging himself and I think that pushes him. But it is definitely not a relaxed atmosphere . . . but kids party and have fun, I think its a good balance - but all in the eye of the beholder.
As the parent of a recent grad, I found Swat students to be no more stressed than at other schools. My description of Swat students is focused, or curious. They work a lot, but they seem to enjoy it more than many other students. We hosted several for weekends and holidays, and they were often working. Not because they were stressed, but because when they had some time they wanted to get back into work. I watched one student do calligraphy for an entire Thanksgiving weekend. He was having a blast…doing work for a class.
As for the food, there are other on-campus and off-campus options that “round out” the options. You won’t go hungry…and the new dining hall is nice.
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I’m happy to hear that Swat students are able to find genuine joy and fun from hard work. That’s also what I look forward to in college. Are you familiar with the extent of the suburban experience at Swat? I know that it’s close to Philly, but I wonder how often students would actually head into the city?
Obviously, it depends on your friend group…but I’m going to suggest that going to Philly happens less than you probably think. I’d say a few times per semester. I think that’s a good thing…for good reasons. I also had a student at Haverford, and I would guess it’s the same at both.
We live in the area, and they both had friends at Penn who they visited occasionally. One, in particular, went to parties at Penn. It’s easy to get into town.
The reality is that they had a lot going on “on campus”. Both of these schools have very limited restrictions on drinking. Unlike other schools where the Public Safety officers crack down on drinking, at the Tri-Co schools the focus is on responsible partying and staying safe. If you have someone overdo it, you don’t call 911…you call public safety. That level of openness and support makes it very easy to gather with friends and relax/hang out on campus. When you turn 21, you’re ready to get off campus a bit more and visit bars in Philly.
Obviously…concerts are also a big draw. Most of the time they aren’t too close to the train, so a group will Uber in and out. $10/each or so with 3 or 4. Super easy.
Our Swattie did take a class on Philly architecture (it was a Bryn Mawr class), and loved going into Philly weekly to see buildings, and do research.
If you go to Swat, you’ll be in Philly enough to know it’s there… but not enough for it to feel like you know all of the city when you graduate.
Both of our grads now live in Philly, as do a shocking number of their friends from college. Kids from California, Texas, and even Europe have all migrated into the city and are working or going to grad school in Philly.
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Thanks so much for your comments. We had a wonderful tour yesterday but my son did have some questions about the social life so it is good to hear other perspectives. We ate in the new dining hall and found the food good. We were concerned based on niche ratings but we all enjoyed it.
The food was hit or miss for our daughter. Some of that had to do with the number of options, and I believe the new dining hall has addressed some of the layout limitations. Pasta night and her ability to “McGiver” meals are what I remember most… not really too much complaining.
As for social life, here’s the thing that stood out to me: the school takes a very “hands-off” approach to alcohol.
You can’t be annoying/loud, but there was no concern of “being caught” drinking because it just wasn’t something that public safety did. It’s that way at all 3 Tri-Co schools. There used to be “frats”, which were buildings (near the tennis courts… very cool stone and slate) used by groups for parties. No greek life on campus.
There was also something called Pub Night (every Thursday)… in the really cool / large space atop Tarble Hall. They had some sort of process with colored wristbands for drinking, but once inside there was nothing to stop anyone from drinking the beer they provided on-site (not sure who…but there was a keg or two and the kids hung out until it was gone). This shocked our daughter the first time. There is also Worthstock in the spring, which is sort of the last big party before finals.
I think the way Swat handled alcohol worked really well. Most of the drinking was in small groups, on campus, without things getting out of hand. The kids work really hard, and allowing them to blow off steam and socialize as adults made the “party” scene a lot less interesting to them. Our daughter has friends who were then very much into the craft beer scene, and it was more about variety than volume. FWIW…these kids had really good taste and proved useful in getting me some “hard to find” beers over the last 2 years they were there.
The majority of the social life is small groups…6 to 12. If you play a sport, the groups might be a bit larger. Kids move between and among several groups without social pressures, and the groups will merge and split based on what’s going on. As they get older or for special events (ie concerts)…they will head to Philly. Occasionally, they’ll also head over to Haverford/Bryn Mawr.
The students are also very supportive of each other. Our daughter played a sport and sang in the choir…and her friends were always there when we’d attend something. They keep busy when they aren’t studying.
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S21 is a sophomore at Swat and from what I hear meal options and quality have significantly improved since the new hall opened last fall.
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