<p>Our HS has NHS, and our middle school had NJHS, and we are in one of the white states — in more ways than one! 
(gee… did I say that??)</p>
<p>CT must have a pretty active state NHS. I don’t know if our high school actively participates, but I did find out that we have a [State</a> Conference](<a href=“http://www.casciac.org/pdfs/CANHSConferenceBrochure2009.pdf]State”>http://www.casciac.org/pdfs/CANHSConferenceBrochure2009.pdf) in May and it looks pretty interesting.</p>
<p>The CT conference does look interesting, archiemom. I especially like the generation-to-generation theme. I think a meeting like this one would get kids more involved in NHS and community service.</p>
<p>NHS - 3.7?! Our GPA requirement is 3.300. And we don’t deflate, either.</p>
<p>And QM, Goucher requires study abroad but not for an entire semester–their semester programs are rather lackluster, IMO, but they have a lot of short 4-week study abroads that count for the requirement and pad their numbers.</p>
<p>I visited Swarthmore and Haverford yesterday; detailed reports will be written up shortly and I’ll link to them.</p>
<p>Visit reports!</p>
<p>Swarthmore: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/visits/swarthmore-college/1136181.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/visits/swarthmore-college/1136181.html</a>
Haverford: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/visits/haverford-college/2654723.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/visits/haverford-college/2654723.html</a></p>
<p>Keilexandra - thanks so much for posting your college visit reports. We’re planning to visit Swarthmore in April, and if we can swing it timewise, maybe make a quick stop at Haverford as well. Very cute that Haverford’s bookstore has an in-house cat…lol. </p>
<p>About Swat and sports - not sure if that’s an issue for you, but just so you know, the few kids we know who go there are all involved in sports and they seem to be very happy there.</p>
<p>Thanks for the reports. How far apart are the two colleges? Did you have the feeling kids really do share classes and activities? Does Haverford feel really small? And if someone from Swarthmore takes a Havaerford class whose honor code is in effect? My son thought Bard was too small, but it doesn’t have the advantage of being part of a consortium. I don’t know if he should look at some of the smaller colleges that are parts of consortiums. </p>
<p>For example people say that Harvard and MIT can take classes at the other school, but I never met a single person who did so. The MIT catalogs weren’t lying around Harvard tempting you, and it was still a subway stop, or a long walk away.</p>
<p>As I said in the report, my tour guide played varsity soccer and was very happy with Swat. If you’re looking for school-wide support of the sports scene, though, I don’t think you’ll find that at Swarthmore.</p>
<p>Haverford and Bryn Mawr share a course catalog and coordinate offerings; the Bi-Co is very integrated, to the point where no one tracks the number of students from one college taking courses at the other because nearly 100% of students at A will take at least one class at B. The two campuses adjoin each other and would be an easy bike ride, or there are shuttles twice an hour. Swarthmore, which offers more of its own courses and is farther away geographically, tends to keep to itself. None of the Tri-Co makes much use of Penn except for obscure subjects (e.g. linguistics, foreign languages)</p>
<p>I should also add that I’ve decided to cross Haverford off the list because my friend’s father brought up a good point–the Honor Code can easily cross the line from politically correct to politically stifling. The huge emphasis on respect for others leads to a disinclination to express any remotely controversial issues, a problem that even the tour guide alluded to.</p>
<p>I live about 10 minutes from Haverford, and I’d agree with much of Keilexandra’s report. It’s in an old, leafy, inner-ring suburban area just outside of Philadelphia and is a pretty and well-maintained campus - it even has walking trails and a lovely arboretum. This whole area is a ‘bubble’ of sorts - it’s quite safe (there’s very little serious crime here…well, except for events like the Penn professor who murdered his wife!) and fairly upscale. Ergo, it could also be boring for some students, but the college is a short commuter train ride away from the city, so that’s nice for kids who like more hustle and bustle.</p>
<p>Sorry, Keil, I misunderstood what you meant about the sports at Swat. </p>
<p>I have another question for you - did Haverford seem much smaller than Swarthmore? I’ve heard that’s the case. Also, do you know if they have shuttles that go between Swathmore and the other Tri-Co schools? </p>
<p>I see exactly what your friend’s father means about the Honor Code. It’s definitely something to keep in mind. There’s also the issue of whether you’d be willing to report someone you’d witnessed violating the Honor Code. I haven’t read Haverford’s honor code, but I’ve heard that’s often a component of schools’ honor codes. That’s not always an easy decision, I’m sure.</p>
<p>Thanks for elaborating on K’s post, Booklady.</p>
<p>Haverford didn’t feel any different in size than Swarthmore, but I wasn’t that immersed in the student body nor was I looking closely at population (the size is not an issue for me, as I went to a small MS/HS and have been fine). I do think that Haverford’s community is probably more tight-knit than Swarthmore’s, simply because of the Honor Code (which does involve reporting any witnessed violations–“confrontation”). I like the ideal of Haverford’s Honor Code, but I’m not ready to commit to 4 years of college under it; so it’s not a good fit for me.</p>
<p>LIMom I have heard that Swat in April is absolutely breathtaking. If you take the tour at Hford be sure to count the number of times they bring up their honor code 
</p>
<p>No offense intended to any Hford parents. I think it is a wonderful campus and tried to get mine interested but their geographical limits don’t include anything East of San Antonio.</p>
<p>Keil - at least your mature enough to know that you’re not ready to commit to living with the honor code for 4 years</p>
<p>Historymom - I seriously doubt we’ll have time to sit through the info session at Haverford. If we get to see it at all, it’ll just be for a quick look around while we’re in the area. I think that both it and Swarthmore are probably too small for D, but I’d like her to check at least one of them out, just to see what she thinks.</p>
<p>I completely understand geographic limits as my D has imposed far stricter ones than yours girls’.</p>
<p>Parents are finally letting me visit the Midwest over spring break, albeit only Oberlin (Ohio is -barely- acceptable). I’ll also be checking out Pittsburgh and maybe Case Western. Room for one more school in place of Case. Ideas?</p>
<p><a href=“Western PA/Ohio visit planning - Parents Forum - College Confidential Forums”>Western PA/Ohio visit planning - Parents Forum - College Confidential Forums;
<p>Yes, there are Tri-Co shuttles. Bryn Mawr arrange schedules to factor in bus commutes. Swat has a bus that runs a bit less frequently, which probably reflects that fewer kids make the trip over there (or vice versa). </p>
<p>All three are close to trains that get them into the city.</p>
<p>IIRC, Haverford said that the shuttle to Swat runs approximately every 1 1/2 hours, versus every 1/2 hour to Bryn Mawr.</p>
<p>Thanks, CD and Keil. :)</p>
<p>Thank you guys. I was thinking about Goucher.</p>
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<p>I was going to suggest Kenyon, but then I noticed on your linked thread that it was suggested and you had ruled it out. </p>
<p>Actually D and I are going to be on a similar track, with a Pitt-Kenyon-IU Bloomington-Oberlin-Rochester tour during her break.</p>