I’ve been admitted to Williams, and while it’s definitely a top choice for me, I’ve also been admitted to Cornell, UPenn, Duke, and UVa (all arts and sciences).
What I am looking for is that I’ll be able to do well in the school and maintain a high GPA, as well as a school that has a high reputation for feeding into law school and grad school.
The other thing that I need to take into consideration is that for Williams I received an early admittance for an outstanding application (but no special scholarships or anything like that) whereas for Duke, Cornell, and UVa I was accepted to the scholars programs with special advising, special housing, priority class sign-ups, and even some scholarship/research grants. I just received a regular admittance from UPenn. I’d like to know if anybody knows how impactful these scholar programs will be during my undergraduate career, and if these will give me a boost on my way to law school.
If anybody has personal experience attending these schools, in particular as a scholar of these programs also, I would love to hear about your experiences.
TL;DR Best undergrad choice considering future law school (or general grad school) from WILLIAMS (with early admittance), CORNELL (Tanner Dean’s Scholar), DUKE (Provost Scholar), UPENN, and UVA (Echols Scholar).
All will give you a wonderful background that should help you succeed in law school, and all are well regarded by law schools. There are no “wrong” choices among this group of colleges. The question is, where will you thrive? Also, don’t undervalue the undergraduate learning experience as an end unto itself, not just a stepping stone to something else. When else will you have four years to just enjoy learning for learning’s sake, having conversations with brilliant people?
The research grants sound like an amazing opportunity that could help you learn a lot (and stand out later, as a law school applicant)
But the small classes and professor-student relationships and student-student relationships at Williams are very special indeed. (Williams alumna here!)
Look into the special privileges that come with the small programs you have been admitted to at the other schools; they may create a special ‘small school’ experience for you within a larger school.
Do you like small or large?
Rural, suburban or urban?
Fraternities/sororities or no fraternities/sororities?
Southern or northern?
Did you visit? Where do you see yourself?
How much difference will the cost of each make to you and your family?
Law schools will be impressed if you make the most of your undergraduate learning experience, at any of these schools. If finances matter, pick the best deal. If not, then pick a good “home” for the next four years.
Imagine choosing between two of the schools at a time and picking each one. Which school is the hardest to let go of most often? That is the one you like best.
If you are an early admit at Williams (plus a priority admit at those other schools), it means you are seen as one of the stronger candidates for the incoming class. Given that, you can pretty easily get into a top 10 law school, and honestly, probably a top 5 law school, without overly exerting yourself at Williams. If you score over 170 on the LSAT – and you can translate your SAT’s to a fair approximation of your likely LSAT range – and get over a 3.8 at Williams, you can write your ticket anywhere. Even with a 170 and around a 3.6, which is only a few notches above average and is very attainable without an undue amount of stress, you are a near lock for at least 1 or 2 top-5 schools. If your LSAT is in the mid-to-upper 160s, and you are an average Williams student (around a 3.4) you will still get into a top-15, at worst top-25, law school.
More importantly, Williams will do an incredible job preparing you for law school. Everyone I knew from top liberal arts schools at my law school absolutely crushed their first year – I feel like we had a big leg up since we were already accustomed to intensive reading and a very high volume of written work (improved via ample feedback from actual professors) along with discussion-based classes, again led by profs. I think you will be able to get accepted at a great law school if you perform reasonably well at any of the programs you have been admitted to. But Williams is the school that will best position you for success in law school and then as as an attorney.
All that being said, you can’t go wrong with your choice. Go where you will be happiest rather than focusing on grad school opportunities coming out of schools that are so closely matched in terms of reputation. If you are happy, you will thrive, and if you thrive, good things will follow.
Totally agree with @Ephman. First of all, you have incredible schools to choose from, and students from all these schools go on to do impressive things. I can only speak specifically to my alma mater, Williams. If you put together a solid record at Williams, you will get into a great law school. I had a GPA between 3.6-3.7 and got into Harvard, Yale and Stanford law schools. At least 6 people (off the top of my head, probably more, especially over time) from my class attended HLS in my law school class (out of a Williams class of 550), and a number of others ended up at Yale, Stanford, UVA, Columbia, NYU, Michigan, Northwestern law schools from my class, all of whom lived full college lives and none of whom sacrificed a social life. As @Ephman points out, there is little to no perceptible competitiveness at Williams. You can great a great education, be around amazing people, develop real relationships with brilliant professors and have a lot of fun while setting yourself up for success in law, medicine, business, academia, etc. without having to endure a toxic, cut-throat environment. Good luck wherever you go! You have earned admission at some superb schools.
Also, because Williams is small and all your classes and sections are with professors, the entire school is like an Echols Scholar program, etc. Every student has access to all resources of the school, and the college absolutely breaks its back to try to help students in innumerable ways. Research opportunities are plentiful and easy to set up. Just my two cents. The Oxford-style tutorials are an incredible option as well (two students, one professor).