<p>dchow08: the science profs at Swarthmore publish in leading journals at a postdoctoral level, therefore their student coinvestigators need the training, tools and facilities to do research at that level. It also helps that Swarthmore’s endowment is close to 1M/student (I believe 12th in the nation per capita including all universities). You’re also likely to be most productive where you are happiest, so I would stress the importance of “fit”: if you’d be happier at U. Chicago or Harvard, you won’t be shooting yourself in the foot.</p>