supportivemom1

I understand both Amherst and Brown have an "open curriculum". How do you think they compare otherwise?

middsmith

Lord Kevin will chime in but I feel Amherst is a stronger school overall. The Brown girl from my HS is definitely not as smart as I am. =)

kwu

The title of this thread makes it seem as if it were an epic boxing match. I won't be the one to chime the bell that starts the fight. I'll leave that honor to you, Madam middsmith. The five Brown boys from my HS are definitely smarter than I am, but I don't see how that's relevant to the conversation at hand. =P

Common Data Sets:

https://cms.amherst.edu/media/view/4...ised%2BSSR.pdf

http://www.brown.edu/Administration/...n_CDS07_08.pdf

Amherst and Brown both provide a quality academic experience. Subjective factors, such as location, cost, student body size, social experience, depend entirely on the individual applicant. A personal visit will serve as a valuable asset before one makes the final decision.

supportivemom1

Then let me rephrase the question... How would you say the social atmosphere differs between the two? What kinds of people prefer one over the other? How about access to professors and educational "style"? I have no doubt they are both outstanding institutions -- I'm just trying to get a feel for where my son would be happiest, not trying to start a war.

kwu

Well, at Brown, there are a total of about 6,000 undergraduates and 1,800 graduate students. At Amherst there is a total of about 1,600 undergraduates.

Providence, Rhode Island, has been described by its adherents as a fairly metropolitan city. Amherst, Massachusetts, is your small New England town, though Amherst students also have Smith's Northhampton, given its participation in the Five College Consortium.

Speaking of which, Amherst students can take classes at UMass, Smith, Mt. Holyoke, and Hampshire, and take advantage of their social opportunities as well. An academic and social boon that Brown students do not have.

A good portion of Amherst's class consists of recruited athletes. Brown attracts wealthy foreigners and more artistic types. These may lead to pre-conceived stereotypes, and one can draw better conclusions by actually visiting the schools and sitting in on classes and events.

Brown is known as the liberal arts college of the Ivy League, whereas Amherst is a liberal arts college itself. Both are heavily focused on providing advising and encouraging intellectual growth. Academically--inside of the classroom, outside of the classroom--they aren't very different.

Catfish

Brown has a reputation of having a higher percentage of artsy liberal activist types than Amherst.

supportivemom1

Do you think students have as much access to professors, and are the professors as "into" teaching at Brown as at Amherst? Maybe I should post this thread on the Brown site, too, and see what people there have to say. Thanks for all the input, folks.

kwu

Amherst has a reputation for fostering an athletic culture: 75 enrolled students each year are recruited athletes.

Just leveling the playing field.

Since Brown is still a prestigious Ivy League university--where professors might be more pressured to publish and research to retain tenure--that harbors graduate students and offers graduate programs, I would say professors at Amherst are certainly more accessible. I don't think anyone can say that professors at one institution are more interested in teaching and their students than those at another.

Good luck, and do check back here when current students will have offered their opinions.

paying3tuitions

Amherst doesn't allow fraternities or sororities, while Brown does.

Last I looked at the data, 10% of Brown students belonged to fraternities. A portion of the Brown campus has fraternity buildings in a quad, making an on-campus physical presence that can't be overlooked. These house are pretty impressive, IMO.

KWU helpfully provided data sets in his post #3. There is some data there that help to compare aspects of each school that might help you see whether there's a fit for you S. For example, compare diversity statistics at both places to see if there's a meaningful difference there between the two institutions.

Look also for economic diversity, which is not reflected in the visible presence of people from many racial groups. President Tony Marx began his presidency at Amherst several years ago by restructuring financial aid packages to encourage more applications from students whose family income is middle-class. His observation was that, although most families in America are middle-class, only 14% of the campus at that time came from such families. Perhaps by now there are more students who fill in the middle between those on need-based scholarships and those whose families can pay in full. I don't know if that is also an initiative at Brown.

John F Kennedy, Jr. attended Brown. President John F. Kennedy spoke at Amherst College in front of the Robert Frost library. You can't go wrong either way.

I'd balance out that description of athletics by adding there are well-developed arts activities at Amherst, too, including: a vibrant Theater/Dance department, Kirby Theater for departmental and student productions; a Concert Choir that tours the world; an orchestra; numerous a-cappella singing groups. It might not be evident in the clothing/appearance of students whose EC's revolve around the arts, but the activity and involvement are strong in the arts.

Nadash

Do check out modestmelody's post in the Brown forum about its Open Curriculum.

dcircle

just some info

1. every professor at brown is required to teach undergrads, no matter how big of a deal they are. i got to write my undergrad thesis with a nobel laureate

2. brown is free for family's making less than $100K and only $5000 per year for those making $150K. as a result, it's extremely socioeconomically diverse

3. 11% of brown undergrads are international, adding to diversity

4. in my opinion, a robust research enterprise enhances your undergrad experience because you get to learn from people on the cutting edge of their field (whether it is sciences, humanities, arts, etc.)

5. brown has a very special culture that i would characterize as romantic and artsy. providence and RISD add a particular flair that provides a nice bridge between feeling like you are in a small city and a cosmopolitan center

icebreakers

honestly supportivemom1, unless your son is trying to decide what to apply for ED at this point, really just apply to both. I think it is soooo different deciding colleges after you are acutally holding the acceptance letters. You can't really go wrong with either school, I think it would come down to the visit and which one your son would like better.

kwu

Some high schools impose a strict limit on how many colleges one may apply to.
In my case, I made the decision to apply to Amherst instead of Brown.

kwu

In regard to some of the subjective factors I spoke about--

The Princeton Review The Best Colleges Ranking 2009:

Brown University:

#7 Best College Radio Station
#15 Best College Theater
#18 Birkenstock-Wearing, Tree-Hugging, Clove-Smoking Vegetarians
#2 Happiest Students
#19 Lots of Race/Class Interaction

Amherst College:

#15 School Runs Like Butter
#7 Students Most Dissatisfied With Financial Aid
#8 Best Value Private Colleges

Catfish

"#7 Students Most Dissatisfied With Financial Aid"

This makes absolutely no sense to me. I can only think that there was some glitch in the methodology or something. I'm a financial aid student and I am nothing but pleased with my FA, especially the fact that I will be graduating debt free.