Swarthmore, Brown, Pomona, or Amherst?

dramatica
Sun, 19 Oct 2008 12:06:47 +0000

Shibbolethette,

I have a daughter who is a freshman at Swarthmore and a son who graduated from Brown two years ago. My son loved Brown and had a very positive experience there. I think that Brown is an incredible school and you cannot go wrong there. Having said that, I must say that Swarthmore is incredible too, but more so.

I have been involved in academia for over 22 years, both as an administrator and a professor and the school does not cease to amaze me in the level of care and dedication to its students. The school just simply goes the extra mile in so many areas that it makes for a superb environment.

There is no doubt that the curriculum is important when choosing a college. However, the student body is just as important, if not more so, and here is one area where Swarthmore excels. My daughter just spent a week at home for Fall break and she confirmed everything that I had learned about the school from colleagues, books and posters here.

When my daughter left for Swarthmore last August, she was worried about the reputation the school has for intense academics and the “stress” factor so widely reported. My daughter works hard, but also likes to have “silly” fun. She feared that everyone might be too serious. Her father and I kept reassuring her that she would find like minded students, but she was not totally convinced. She did choose to attend Swarthmore because she knew that academically it was a perfect fit and ultimately figured that if she was not socially happy, she could always transfer. After 2 months there, she is thrilled with her decision because she simply loves the friends that she has made and is having a great time. Her description of the students mirrors much of what has been stated here: everyone is SMART and NICE and a good number of them have a great sense of humor and take time to be silly but are also socially conscious.

Stress Factor - Thus far, she has not felt stressed. She has some friends who are stressed, but she has been quick to explain that although those friends are obsessive compulsive and would feel stressed anywhere, they still take time to relax and have fun. In comparing Swarthmore with Brown, it is interesting to note that it seems that there are many more parties going on every week at Swarthmore than there ever were at Brown when my son was there. (One of her close friends who started at Brown this year has not yet gone to any parties.) This is probably a function of the fact that Swarthmore makes money available to fund parties. My daughter feels that the “serious” student image is perpetuated by the school’s policy not to have parties when prospects are visiting. So she made it a point to share with students who visited during Discovery Weekend how wrong her perception had been prior to attending.

Brown wins hands down in terms of “college town” or city feeling. Thayer Street, which borders the school, is filled with stores and restaurants that cater to Brown and RISD students. Providence’s downtown is just down the hill and over the river. Swarthmore does not have anything within walking distance that matches the feel of Thayer Street but going into Philly is easy. My daughter’s friends have been going into Philly almost every week. So it is possible to get away. She has not been able to join them because of extracurricular commitments that take much of her “non-scheduled” time. However, she says that there is so much going on the campus itself that the school’s isolation has not bothered her. In fact, she loves the pastoral, peacefulness of the campus, even though she is a city girl and loves city life.

One last point that is small, but indicative of how sensitive the school is to students’ needs. Whenever my son went back and forth on breaks, he either had to take a taxi from the airport to Brown ($$$) or an airport shuttle that stopped all around the city and dropped him off far from his dorm ($). Swarthmore has its own vans that go back and forth between the airport and the school every hour during the breaks. The shuttles are not only convenient but free of charge. Again, nothing major but nice touch, just like free printing and various other services. Brown did not make much available to students. Interesteddad is correct about the endowment issue.

Academically either school is outstanding. You need to visit and then weigh the feel vis a vis everything else that you have learned about each school.

I have not commented on the other two schools because I have no “first hand” knowledge. My daughter applied to Pomona but not to Amherst. She picked Swarthmore over Pomona because it seemed like a better fit academically and was easier to get back and forth (Florida). However, in terms of academics all four are tops!