It’s come down to Bowdoin or Edinburgh. Very different, but D loves them both. Plans to study Politics, Philosophy, and Economics. Established degree at Edinburgh. Can create her own at Bowdoin. Very independent and lived overseas for 7 years, so not concerned about the self-motivation required to succeed in the UK. That said, would appreciate any parental opinions about Edinburgh, particularly your child’s academic and social experiences (also summer work and post-graduation opportunities). Have found a number of testimonials for Bowdoin…D worried that small size will be too comfortable and limit personal growth. Grad school probable. Future aspirations include World Bank, State Department, etc.
This is a significant difference. Does your daughter like the structure & content of this major at University of Edinburgh ?
Certainly a valid concern. However, the students at Bowdoin College tend to be intelligent, driven, hard workers which mitigates this concern to an extent. Study abroad for a semester or two is another way to deal with a small school environment.
With an eye on the world stage as a diplomat, Edinburgh seems to be the safer choice to gauge whether that fire stays lit.
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Wow, what a contrast! I don’t have a kid who is going to the UK (he looked at and visited St Andrews after an offer, but is going a different way). But I did look into all this quite a bit and talk to people who did have US kids go to the UK, so here are just a few thoughts.
As I am sure you are aware, the PPE course at Edinburgh attracts highly qualitied students from around the world, and is going to have very little hand-holding or feedback. Generally Edinburgh is a very large, international university (I think for undergrad it is around 18000 Scotland/UK, 12000 EU/Overseas), in a bustling international city, and the city is going to be a big part of the experience for most undergrads. Edinburgh has an excellent reputation in the US, and applying to US grad and professional schools will be fairly straightforward, but she would need to show a lot more initiative in terms of getting US summer internships and such (doable, it just won’t all be organized for her the way it would be at a top US college).
Bowdoin is about as far as you can get from that model! Obviously way smaller (like 1/15th the undergrads, let alone postgrads), about 93% US. The academics will involve a lot of interaction with professors, lots of support in all sorts of ways including internships, a far higher focus on campus activities, and so on.
It sounds to me like your daughter is more excited about the challenge and experience available at Edinburgh, so I would take that very seriously. In the end, my impression is a minority of US kids who went to UK schools did not really understand the system or the associated challenges, struggled, and some transferred back. But the ones who knew what they were getting into generally loved it and would not have traded it for a US college.
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She does like the structure at Edinburgh, though wishes there was a little more class selection flexibility in year two. So many electives that she wants to take!
Bowdoin appears to offers easier access to professors/substantive academic feedback, paid summer opportunities, and potential to develop good friends (everyone lives on campus, dining halls, etc.). Easy to minor in a language (unlike Edinburgh).
I am dealing with almost exact situation (small v Edinburgh). So I’ll be following for the same advice. We have a lot of research and I think taking the Edinburgh leap of faith knowing internships will be on us to plan. It’s scary. But it’s an amazing opportunity that seems to be better for undergraduate than graduate school. And I’m tired of everyone suggesting a year abroad. It’s not the same thing. Definitely looking for Americans going to Scotland!
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Yes, this is similar to what killed St Andrews eventually for my S24. Just not enough opportunity to explore things outside the course that admitted him.
So that is just a tradeoff she now has to make a decision about.
You certainly won’t be alone! Last I knew St Andrews was the easy #1 UK destination for US students, and Edinburgh was then an easy #2.
We went to a recent Edinburgh admitted student presentation. Lots of questions answered. It’s not the easiest structure but the academics are impressive.
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