<p>Reputations are hard to shake and Swarthmore has been carrying that “nerdy, socially awkward kids” one for a long time. Are there nerdy, socially awkward kids there? Sure, but don’t kid yourself, there are plenty of really, really bright “normal” kids, too, as well as a bunch of athletes about whom you wonder “how the h*ll were they accepted?” I think that the Admissions office has worked hard within the past decade to blunt that original image. </p>
<p>It’s no joke about the workload, though, so you must enter with your eyes wide open. Remember that Swarthmore is pass-fail the first semester for good reason. Most incoming students have not experienced a workload anything akin to this. My current Swarthmore student, a senior, (I also have one who graduated a while back) is an Honors major in a science field with a course major in a humanities field. This is not particularly unusual there as students combine all sorts of majors. He has done significant science research over the summer (expenses paid for by Swat) and is doing a whole research project this semester that directly relates to one of his science courses. But, I must tell you that he is really stressed out by how much he has going on. It’s not just the classwork. He is heavily involved in a couple of major extra-curricular activities. He had to drop a couple of the extracurriculars he started with freshman year because there just weren’t enough hours in the day. One he dropped after freshman year, and one after junior year.</p>
<p>As for the Jewish population on campus, it is fairly decent, but not that many kids are active participants. There is a nice, core group, though. (If you have more specific questions about that, I can probably answer them or get the answers.)</p>
<p>Vassar is actually quite strong in the sciences. But, the workload may be a bit less intense. Like Swat, it has a beautiful campus and a bunch of less mainstream kids. I wouldn’t worry about the prestige factor between these two schools. They are both terrific liberal arts colleges. One just happens to be somewhat more selective. Remember that if you do head for med school, you will be looking to achieve the highest GPA that you can.</p>
<p>Will this decision come down to finances? Are your parents willing to foot the bill for Swarthmore or Vassar?</p>