Middlebury vs Williams

Corbett
Fri, 16 Oct 2009 01:05:49 +0000

He is planning premed/bio.

In general, Williams is significantly more science-focused, Midd more humanities-focused. For example, the respective biology dept. webpages list 22 biology staff at Williams (including 15 tenure-track profs) vs. 15 at Midd (including 9 active tenure-track professors). So Williams has a significantly larger biology program, even though Midd is about 20% larger overall.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that Williams is automatically better for a prospective science major, or that Midd is automatically better for humanities. However, Williams would probably offer more fellow biology majors, and a greater variety of biology courses and research opportunities, and this is one factor for a prospective bio major to consider. Midd would offer comparable advantages in other fields, such as foreign languages.



He also likes film.

Williamstown may not be an ideal choice for cinema fans. The town offers only a small one-screen theater that shows art films; there is no way to see a first-run movie, unless you have access to a vehicle. Middlebury is slightly more cosmopolitan; it has a theater with multiple screens that actually shows current releases.

Disclaimer: “cosmopolitan” is not a word that is routinely applied to the town of Middlebury, but it may be a justifiable usage in comparison to Williamstown.