mensa160

What's the deal on these? I know UVa is bigger, and Wm&A is a liberal arts, but which do people like more? And which is harder?

cavalier302

Both are excellent schools academically, but picking between the two should be up to personal preference. Obviously, for me, UVA was the right choice (I didn't even apply to W&M.) UVA is a medium sized university that offers a great social scene and world-class academics. It has almost unanimously happy students, and the highest graduation rate of any public school in the nation (92%). W&M is an excellent small university that has a reputation for rigorous academics and a rather drab social scene. If I were you, I'd visit both and talk to students. Think about where you'd like to spend the waning years of your youth and then decide.

hoosfun

Though I don't go to W&M, the small sample of students I know there are definitely less enthusiastic about it compared to my fellow wahoos with regards to the University.

As for toughness, I think this is the best way to characterize it:
There is no EASY way to get your way through W&M. It's a tough school, and its departments are uniformly resistant to grade inflation.

The same is not true for U.Va... there are certainly ways (which some people choose) to get through here quite easily. But it's really a matter of how much you want to challenge yourself, because there are certainly abundant opportunities for academic challenge and rigor.

redbeard

I agree completely with hoosfun. I've known grads from both schools. The W&M alumni talk about the tough academic courses and all the tricks they had to use to survive. The UVa alumni had more, different stories to tell. Some were challenged, some partied.

My oldest son is at UVa, and, to hear him tell it, I think he would agree with hoosfun's characterization: there's challenges there if you want to take them on. And, he has friends who never seem to study.

W&M is a more pure academic experience. If you really love learning, and other things are a distraction, then you would be comfortable there. But, my son was surprised to discover that, as you get older and more focused, it can be nice to blow off a little steam every now and then...