<p>Dear Jaimie17,
I realize that you live far away from Swat, and may have not had a chance to visit. I think that if at all possible, Swarthmore is such an unusual place that a visit is really critical to see if the “fit” is correct. When we went for an information session with my son (just finished sophomore year) I was struck by what was said during that session. We had visited “all the usual suspects,” HYP, AW(S) and it was just different at the Swat info session. I just pulled out my little notebook where I wrote down things from our various college visits. The quote that struck me then was that Swarthmore is looking for “someone who is academically excited by the learning process.” I remember kicking my husband in the shin at that point because it described my S exactly. When he went for an overnight and attended classes, he was able to use those experiences to help him write his “Why Swat” essay. For instance, he wrote about the excitement of an Intro Astrophysics class that he sat in on fairly early in the morning, mentioning the professor by name. (He’s a political science & history dual major.) If you can’t visit before you have to write the “Why Swat” essay, follow the other leads you have been given on this site and read anything and everything you can find about the school. Best of luck to you and all the other “specs!”</p>