Given all the feedback, I am looking between the University of Richmond and Washington and Lee. Overall, what would be recommended considering the two schools?
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You have 2 awesome opportunities. I say this very seriously after looking through the offerings of both schools.
Since you want a recommendation, I would lean toward Richmond in your case. But it is truly a lean and not a super strong preference. The reason that I prefer Richmond is the PPEL major. It seems to be a perfect match for your interests. It is an interdisciplinary major with the components of Economics, Poli-Sci & Law that you are looking for. This is a relatively rare major, offered only in several dozen colleges in the US but one that is on the rise. It has its roots in a PPE major which was first offered at Oxford a century ago and was gradually picked up by other universities, in this country first by Harvard.
Having said that, for someone interested in policy, law, and public service, as you are, I found the minor in Poverty & Human Capability Studies to be really intriguing. I have not seen this anywhere before, although some form of it probably exists somewhere. Paired with a major in Economics or Poli-Sci, this could be a really dynamite combination.
I was impressed with both the internship opportunities and the funding support at both institutions to be really impressive. I encourage you to become familiar with opportunities at both schools, including the funding support. I’m nitpicking but I thought that Richmond had a little more breadth of university sponsored internships although W&L seemed to have more funding opportunities.
Deserving of special notice is the fact that Richmond takes advantage of its location in the state capital and sponsors a Virginia General Assembly Internship. To match this, W&L sponsors a 6-week Washington Term, which include placement in a Washington government or NGO institution, a course, and selected lectures. I lean toward the advantages of the Richmond assembly program because you can do it while you’re on campus and if you really want a semester in Washington, you can have that too as a number of such programs are offered for credit by institutions external to U of Richmond.
In summary, I repeat that these are two awesome opportunities. You can’t go wrong with either one. Although I lean toward Richmond, I encourage you to take advantage of accepted students days and see where you feel like you fit in better.
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I’d try to revisit both and then go with your preference.
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OP - My D is minoring in Poverty & Human Capability Studies. She just completed her Capstone and submitted her final paper. I’m happy to answer any questions if that is of interest.
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IIRC, tucked deep inside one of their replies. the OP said they visited both. My hunch is that they don’t live that far away, but I could be wrong.
Yes, W&L during Johnson Weekend and Richmond during the Scholar Preview Weekend. Both were great campuses, Richmond was a slightly nicer campus and the food was a bit better as well. Also, W&L is offering slightly more money as they are also paying ~5,000 dollars a year towards indirect expenses.
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At this point no one is going to come up with new info or insights. It really is up to you, OP, to pick the one you like best.
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I meant to say revisit if possible. For my S, the second visit, through the eyes of an accepted student, helped him clarify his final choice.
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Wow! Your daughter is doing a capstone in her minor?! I’m so impressed!
I personally have never seen a program quite like this one. It’s one thing to study poverty, but to pair it with “Human Capability” creates a whole different theme.
W&L seems to give immense support to this program with activities like “Hunger Fighters”, the Campus Kitchen, and others available right away in freshman year. And then several W&L sponsored summer internship programs, placing students in places where they can actually work in situations where people are trying to combat poverty like the Shepherd Poverty Program with over 120 different placements.
I am truly inspired to see a program like this. @DramaMama2021, your daughter sounds like an amazing person. I feel fortunate to be on the same planet with her and others like her who are willing to commit themselves to this work. 
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I’d pick Richmond because of the size. I like bigger schools, so decide what you want.
Smaller schools can’t offer every class every semester. Richmond also has D1 athletics and that can make for a fun Saturday afternoon.
(and ~$5000/yr extra is not a little bit of money, it’s a lot)
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In case this would benefit from clarification, it’s W&L that has offered this, not Richmond.
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It seems to be in your favor that Richmond and W&L are ranked similarly in U.S. News. This frees you to choose one or the other without further consideration of such a characteristic.
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Sorry for the last minute comment, but, generally speaking, which school has a better track of growth over the coming years? In essence, which school will offer me a higher ROI and develop into a more “prestigious” university?
If your investment is $0 (full ride), then ROI would be positive infinity from any school with a positive return.
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Growth in what way? Are you asking what departments or facilities or infrastructure is planning growth? Both of the scholarships offered by W&L and Richmond are fabulous opportunities. IMO it’s a matter of personal preference for you (plus a $20K additional component is a wonderful bonus).
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I guess what I mean is in terms of the academic and campus facilities and environment. As well as to how potential current investments each school is making will impact the overall success of these schools.
One of the first places to check would be the schools’ websites and the individual sites of the departments of interest to you. They usually like to talk about future plans and projects.
If you’re asking about campus facilities, W&L is doing a boatload of construction right now. We’re wrapping up construction of the new Williams school building, which is going to be a brand new structure. Afterwards, there’s a planned internal renovation of Huntley Hall which will take approximately a year. W&L is also wrapping up construction on our new health center, which will open for fall 202
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“We”? Lots of good information. Do you work for the university?
I’m a W&L student, the new Williams school is being built across the street from my dorm - I hear a lot of the construction.
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