<p>I can tell you why our D is not applying to Swarthmore. I’m disappointed Swat didn’t make the short list but I completely understand and support her reasons.</p>
<p>We visited Swarthmore twice. She fell in love with everything about the school. Sadly, the school’s reputation for being an intense courseload was often repeated during the campus tour, the information session and subsequent research. Swarthmore has a reputation for being a very intense place. And that’s great for some but not for my D. She’s a senior this year and had seven solids and four APs her junior year. She has taken a challenging courseload her senior year too. And while she is doing all of this to get into a great school, it’s not appealing to hear that what you did in high school, the football games you didn’t go to, the social life others had that you didn’t, will be repeated if you come to our college. We’ve never heard or read anywhere stories about life outside of the classroom. Swarthmore is always framed as a place to learn, study, learn, study inside or outside of the classroom.</p>
<p>Maybe that’s appealing to some but the messaging doesn’t resonate with some students (and parents) who are watching their kids sacrifice so much in high school to pick a school they will enjoy.</p>
<p>my two cents.</p>