Kiddo is down to the wire on a decision between Williams and Davidson. They’re a T&F athlete, leaning toward law, public policy, govt. Feels like the Davidson kids are into partying and aren’t as academic (I told them this might have simply been the host, not indicative of everyone) as Williams, but worried about being on a team and not being super interested in partying-- feels they’d be sidelined a bit socially. Really prefers to be D1 but feels Williams students might be more their scene. Both schools seem to be amazingly resourced and completely student centered. Likes the town Davidson is in and it seems like there’s more to do-- Williams is very isolated.
I’d appreciate any input from people familiar with one or the other, especially from those familiar with the T&F programs at either. Thanks!
Both are great schools, so it really comes down to personal preference. I have never heard of Davidson being a party school – it’s a selective academic school. Not to say the social vibe might be different at Williams though.
In any case, which school/teammates/coach does he click more with? What part of the country do you live in? I think it’s a good idea to go to school in a different part of the country – that difference is also part of the education!
We’re on West Coast. And the impression about partying was kid’s take after the time spent with host-- lots of talk about going out on Friday nights partying. I tried to reassure that there were plenty of kids who weren’t into that, they’re worried the team is and they’ll be a bit of an outsider-- really wants a close knit team. Didn’t do a team visit with Williams-- only with coach last spring, so no idea what to expect on that front.
Is it at all possible to squeeze in a team visit at Williams before the ED deadline? These are the people your son will be spending a huge chunk of their time with the next four years. Would be good to know if the vibe is right before committing.
For what it is worth, I know a few Williams athletes and they are smart, hard working nice, kind kids. Two on track and two on crew team - hear nothing but positive feedback from them and their parents. Strong team friendships. I think Williams was upgrading track facilities - don’t quote me - if my memory is right does that impact practice or maybe done? Williams location can feel more isolating and a bit of an adjustment from West coast life/vibe - but all
are happy. Is a team Zoom call possible if not a visit ? Was the Davidson host a T&F athlete ?
That’s a good idea! They did talk to one team member and it went well. It was a couple of months ago, and we’ve been doing a lot of OVs and talking to coaches, etc, so we sort of forgot they liked the kid they talked to. Davidson host was T&F
There are partiers at every school. These are teenagers, young adults. He likely just caught one.
Davidson is relatively close to Charlotte and near Lake Norman so there’s that too. More opportunities for night life.
Ultimately their comfort matters.
They should get to Williams again and talk to students b4 EDing or at least reach out to the school and ask to speak to a student ambassador so they can talk to them about the social life.
I’m quite confident that for some kids it will include alcohol.
These are of course both fabulous schools. Davidson is in a suburb of Charlotte while Williams is more isolated. I would base my decision on whether that matters because they’re both great.
Of course alcohol will be involved, lol! I think they’re just concerned that as a team, they’re into partying, and they don’t want to feel like they don’t belong. They’re not even against partying, but they’re not interested in it being the main focus of their social life.
My kid is an athlete - some teams do party and some don’t - could be the culture of Davidson’s track team since the host brought it up. Worth talking to other team members, if a concern. Doesn’t mean my child doesn’t drink, but that doesn’t drive the culture (1 night a week vs multiple nights a week) and someone partying inappropriately would be frowned upon by all on their team. Last night was an annual team party and I imagine they are all moving slow today - but not something that happens most Sat nights.
Both good academic options obviously, congrats. I can’t speak to the current social dynamics on either team but a few thoughts:
I’d avoid the D1 vs D3 framing. On the West coast there’s a gap there and it’s a reasonable way to categorize programs. This isn’t the case on the East coast and especially the Northeast. Williams is deeper and stronger than many East coast D1s (probably including Davidson, at least on the men’s side).
In terms of competitive opportunities Williams will go to the same big indoor venues and meets in Boston and NY that everyone else competes at (BU, Armory, NB, Ocean Breeze, etc). Those meets have dozens of heats based on marks, and there’s no distinction between D1, D2, D3, unattached.
Williams is very cold in the winter. And it snows a lot there. They do travel for a few outdoor meets but trying to fit the outdoor season between the end of winter and the end of the academic year can make for a chilly and short season. This is true at every school in the Northeast and isn’t a big issue given the emphasis on the indoor season. Davidson would have fewer challenges with outdoor training and competition as training outdoors during the winter is no problem.
While I have no idea about the party scene on the Williams team, I do know it’s been a robust and participatory program for a long time. So there are a lot of teammates for training and socializing. Traditionally a really good and inclusive team culture. Pretty sure every type can find teammates with similar interests there. Davidson seems a bit more thin on numbers and I don’t know anything about team culture.
I’d see if the coach can connect your recruit with a few Williams team members for a quick FaceTime. And see if anyone from your region is running there.
Some rambling musings, perhaps something will resonate with your family.
The academics are a wash, really. Williams is slightly more prestigious, but in my opinion is kind of a fit school. Also in my opinion some kids pick Williams because it is always the #1 or #2 ranked LAC in the nation, and don’t pay as much attention to fit.
So, if your child loves Williams and it is an excellent fit, great, there you go. It is the uber New England experience, which could be great coming from the West. It is in a very small, rural town, which factors in to daily living (well, I suppose every college setting affects daily life!). There will be a decent amount of snow every winter.
My son, also an athletic recruit, was deciding between Williams and Washington and Lee; his decision had factors yours doesn’t (coach etc). But one thing I looked at was how happy the students were; how much they loved their time at the school etc. in order to compare the two schools (I used Niche and the like — imperfect, but one can get a general idea).
I am not really familiar with Davidson, which is why I’ve focused on Williams.
These are good points. When we were last on the Williams campus, it was -4 degrees! But it’s a great school, though remote. One s spent a summer program at Davidson. The surrounding town area was cute. But probably not a big deciding factor. Agree with the above that Williams is probably perceived as a somewhat stronger school, and many attending are from the NE, should that matter. Great choices, though. Congrats.
I’m not suggesting one should pick a school based on prestige - neither of mine did so in the end it’s up to the student but clearly Williams has a large edge (IMHO) with Davidson most known for Steph Curry. I take nothing from Davidson but it’s not a household name nationally.
Depending on major of interest and goals - if they are known - you might look at career outcomes to see if either better matches the students interests as a way of helping to make a decision.
For example, Williams appears to place almost exclusively in NYC and Boston. On their report, use the tabs on the left hand side. So to me it’s a huge national name but their placement shows otherwise.
Anyway just another angle that might possibly help in your decision making.
I’m from Boston, so they’ve spent a lot of time in that area (every summer). They’ve not done it in winter but they’ve heard my stories of shoveling out (and when they visited w/ my husband, they arrived in a snowstorm in April!) and has always wanted to go East for college.
Honestly, neither is Williams outside of certain circles. LACs are just like that. I don’t think there’s enough of a difference to really influence a decision. They seem so different to me that I would think the OP would have a clear favorite between the two.
My S24 is a freshman at Williams and he also looked at Davidson. He is a musician not an athlete. He is very happy at Williams. It is cold and isolated but he doesn’t mind either. The big edge that Williams has is that the career services is incredible, already including first years. However, the work load there is intense. Davidson was wonderful and is much more suburban and warm, but definitely less well know. They have a suburb alumni network that they talk a lot about.
Guess I am saying we found both schools excellent but very very different. S24 had a clear preference which made his choice.