Before you're absolutely tired of these in April-- X vs. Z (for me)

Parents Forum
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I’m not assuming any malicious intent (other than the fact that she wanted to get a fellow student arrested).</p>

<p>I think she did a poor job of analyzing her options and pursuing the matter to the proper people on campus. I think the frustrating thing about the whole situation is that the whole reason to go to Swarthmore over State U. is that the people who run the place are concerned about the students and are there to deal with problems. By not going to Myrt or Bob Gross, she took the whole problem out of the hands of the people who are most experienced and in the best position to deal with the problem.</p>

<p>She took it upon herself to pursue a course of action that, with the benefit of a dean’s experience and wisdom, may not have been the ideal approach. For example, getting the kid thrown in jail may have short-circuited conversations that the Dean was already having with the kid and/or his parents. I doubt very much that having the Swarthmore police and dog squad raiding a dorm on a Saturday night is something that the Dean or the college community perceives as a good thing.</p>

<p>Surveys and accreditation reviews by administrators from other colleges have found that the single most unusual thing about Swarthmore is the incredibly high level of confidence students and faculty have in the administration to make the right decisions. The President of Oberlin wrote in the most recent accreditation report:</p>

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<p>It is sad that, for whatever reason, a freshman did not share the same view, or even give them a chance. To me, any residential life issue at Swarthmore that warrants calling the police to get a student arrested certainly warrants talking to Bob Gross, first. </p>

<p>Suppose, it were your brother who had gone off the deep end in college. Would you prefer that someone pick up the phone and make a call that would give him a criminal record and cost your family $10k, $20k, or whatever? Or would you hope that someone at least gave an experienced dean at his college a chance to help your brother in a more positive way? I would hope that an 18-year old student would at least seek the advice of an experienced dean before single-handedly deciding on a course of action. In effect, this student decided to do the Dean’s job herself. </p>

<p>I am quite certain that this wouldn’t have been the first such situation Dean Gross had dealt with in his career. It’s the kind of situation that college deans deal with all the time. The good ones look for positive outcomes.</p>

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<p>Somewhere around the first page, this whole thread pretended to act as if it cared about the college choice of a specific college-hopeful when everyone knows (without acting as if they know) that little to nothing said has anything to do with whether WW will go to Washington & Lee, Dartmouth or heaven and hell. Willy is a proxy for the hidden-agendas of most of those posting. </p>

<p>To my knowledge, there has never been an 8 page discussion over an X versus Y choice of schools. I’m appalled by the disingenuousness of most of these posts. It’s a true shame and sham. To think we (actual college students), may end up this way someday. Uhhgg!</p>

<p>Willy says he is liberal, if what I have read about Washington & Lee is true he’s a very gutsy guy to apply there. In his situation the obvious choice might be Swarthmore or Brown, but who would ever guess Washington & Lee (or Brigham Young, for that matter), you’d have to have a great deal of confidence IMHO. Go for it WW!</p>

<p>If however, you end up coming to Dartmouth, as you know, you will have a more diverse population (including me) than W&L. But to be diverse is not a qualitative thing; it is no more than a quantitative thing–that is, without any real content, beyond there being different things, so what? Different is not a value, it has no content and is more likely to be a bad difference than a good one if entropy has anything to do with it. </p>

<p>I’m assuming you are looking for something beyond the quantitative and towards the qualitative and you have found that very thing in W&L…and perhaps Dartmouth; that is why they are your final two choices: I’m down with you.</p>

<p>I can’t speak for you, but this is the process I went through. I also considered Swat and Harvard (Brown) and for a time W&L. Ultimately, I felt Dartmouth represented the qualitative diversity I was looking for. Certainly there were more quantitatively diverse schools than Dartmouth, but I felt I would be exposed to a wider variety of intellectual views at Dartmouth than I would be at say, Swarthmore or Brown (both great schools I would have been happy to attend) or W&L.</p>

<p>All these statistics and facts and web sites are ultimately numbing and ideological in their final consequences. You don’t have to surround yourself with likeminded people to be yourself, sometimes being yourself means stepping away from the choir.</p>

<p>Good Luck!</p>

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<p>I hate to put this back at the top, but I feel horrible not thanking people who have offered me such kind words.</p>

<p>Fountainsiren <3. You and the other Dartmouth CC kids (as well as the fact that there are two CC mothers who are willing to insist that their daughters date me) are a tangible plus to going to Dartmouth.</p>

<p>Cangel, I missed your posts as I lurked on the board for the last month or so. Thanks a lot for everything. Marite and Ariesathena, thanks for the words too. Same goes for Achat. Sybbie’s correct. My financial aid from Dartmouth was jaw-dropping, so I might be back to where I started.</p>

<p>I suppose there isn’t much of a better place to talk the decision out (if only to myself), so why not-- I let Harvard flatter me for a couple of days as I began to entertain the thought of going there. I have to admit, it’s still extremely appealing to be a part of such an esteemed group, but it doesn’t give me the same spark that D/W&L do. I’ve really made no progress in the choice between those two, though (although I try to every night before I sleep).</p>

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<p>ww - Have you visited Harvard and the other schools yet? I have not followed your admissions adventures as closely as some others here. It would be good to attend the program for admitted students, if possible, if you have not yet had the opportunity to stay overnight and get a good feel for what the schools are like. My son faced a similar decision to yours three years ago, and the visits were invaluable to him in making his final choice.</p>

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<p>Willywonka,
First, congratulations. </p>

<p>Second, use this test: Picture yourself 4 years from now. Dream a little. What type of person would you like to be (and I’m not talking about a career but what type of person in terms of your intellectual, personal values, social relationships, etc.)</p>

<p>Now, which school has more of the type of students most like your ideal vision of yourself?</p>

<p>Pick that one.</p>

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<p>Dart-muth, Dart-muth <em>chants</em>.
WW, if you turn down Harvard you will have a permanent place on this forum (ala Evil Robot) explaining why and what happens when someone turns Harvard down! Especially if you turn it down for a non-Ivy LAC in the South - imagine, an independent thinker!</p>

<p>Seriously, good luck, you have a tough decision, but keep this in mind - regardless of what your final call is, you will get an excellent education and have a super time - congratulations!</p>