Haverford vs. Barnard vs Smith

jennigarden
Mon, 10 Apr 2017 06:25:44 +0000

Thanks for all the good thoughts, everyone. It’s true, I think, that Barnard is the most well-known and prestigious of the three, but prestige is a much lower priority to my daughter than social and academic fit I think. And I think all three schools look like a decent academic fit. They all seem to have strong programs in the areas that are most interest her: studio art, art history, english and gender studies. Classes are mostly small and the students engaged. (Correct me if I’m wrong or you think there are significant differences in quality here.) Therefore, it seems to me that social fit will be the real issue. As she’s an introvert I think she’s counting on lots of campus activites and organizations to help her make friends - so that will be important. She mentions joining (or forming) a band, doing set design on a play, volunteering with a campus group, things like that. She wants a vibrant campus with lots going on - lectures, concerts, events. If Barnard is not as campus-centered, maybe that’s a problem?

The stats about Haverford are interesting - higher scores and GPAs are in some ways more revealing than acceptance rate (which in any case is, as you say, under 19% this year). Then again, high SAT’s don’t always mean interesting or engaged students - they sometimes mean kids that have been programmed since birth and have stopped taking risks. Which isn’t saying they aren’t an indicator - they are. But they are just one factor.

Hmm, the campus visits next week will be very revealing. Do you thing we should also visit our waitlist schools, Tufts and Vassar, to see if they should be high priority? I hear if you tell admissions they are your first choice you have a better chance of getting a spot. Or should we just focus on the schools my daughter is admitted to?