<p>One thing that confuses me is that Duke would take you off their waitlist and then give you $15,000 more than Williams, which had already accepted you in the first place. Are you getting some sort of merit scholarship from Duke? I’ve never heard of a Williams student who is receiving less financial aid than they need. </p>
<p>I’m assuming then that you’re referring to 15k over 4 years (correct me if I’m wrong), in which case it is certainly worth calling the Williams financial aid office to see if they can match Duke’s offer, if you’re still interested. These numbers just don’t seem right to me. </p>
<p>Zonlicht, maybe EliKresses hasn’t experienced both schools, but I’m a pre-dental student at Williams and I know undergraduate science students at Duke. Though at least a semester-long research position at Duke is attainable for upper-class science majors, the goal of Williams research is not necessarily for the professors to make groundbreaking discoveries, but quite literally to educate students in working the labs and in producing work worthy of significant journals. That is exactly what pre-health students need, and the most they can really expect. Of course there is still the passion for the research itself, but the whole reason science professors choose Williams is because they have a passion for teaching undergraduates.</p>
<p>Engineering is a rather different game, but if Williamsorduke is quite intent on med school, the vocational aspects of an engineering degree won’t be necessary unless he/she chooses to go into biomedical engineering after med school. If the engineering is purely an intellectual interest, I think that would also be served by a math/physics/bio degree from a LAC. </p>
<p>I also come from a suburban area–the rural nature of Williamstown is not isolating for me at all. If you’re going to classes and labs in the day and doing all your work through the evening and night, when would you expect to leave campus anyway? All the stores, shops, and restaurants you need are within walking distance from any dorm in addition to a movie theater and one of the world’s finest art collections. You’re in the center of an idyllic farming town surrounded by beautiful mountains (amazing hiking!), but the culture surrounding the campus is more urbane and sophisticated than any suburb I’ve been in. If that’s still not enough, you can always hop into a Zipcar–North Adams is a city-like town (with a Walmart) just 10 minutes away, the city of Pittsfield is 25 minutes away (has a mall), and Albany, with the nearest large airport, is an hour away. There are also weekend shuttles to Boston and NYC, both less than 3 hours away. But I promise that there are so many fun things to do on campus, especially on the weekends, that you’ll never get a chance to be bored.</p>