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<p>What made them rejoice in or regret their final choice of a school? </p>
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<p>I could go on for hours about how much my daughter loves Swarthmore. However, if I had to boil it down, I would say that the big reasons have been consistent since the first time she set foot on campus for a college tour: community and identity.</p>
<p>By community, I mean that the place is like a big, highly-functional family -- students, staff, professors, administrators. This theme has been apparent in every contact any of us have had with Swatties or staff and clearly evident in my daughter's freshman experience. Very friendly, very supportive, very concerned about each other's well-being. The strong sense of community pervades every aspect of the college, including the way the school is governed.</p>
<p>By identity, I mean that the college, and everyone associated with it, has a clear, proud, sense of the institution. They know what the school is and they like the way it is. This is a very strong thread in the admissions at the school, where the attitude is, "this is what we do, you should decide if you like it. If you do, great, you should come here. If you don't, that's fine, too." There is a very large emotional commitment to the school, something that we saw in the alumni who met with my daughter and something we have seen in my daughter's freshman class. </p>
<p>For example, my daughter described the candle ceremony at the freshman class' traditional gathering in the outdoor ampitheater. I could tell that she was getting a little choked up just talking about it.</p>