<p>pinkearmuffs:
The last time I said why I didn’t like Williams I received a lot of personal attacks from people who felt the need to defend the school, so I’m not going to go into too much detail. However, I’ve just grown tired of being in the middle of nowhere, the social life is really weak (which most students admit - even those that really like the school), the surrounding town has virtually nothing to do, and too many students there (while highly intelligent) are either unaware of or simply don’t care what’s going on in the rest of the world.</p>
<p>Rabble rabble, rabble rabble.</p>
<p>Oh, I’m sorry, I was just rabble rousing because of your unfounded attacks on Williams. ;-)</p>
<p>williams07, would you say it would be the same case at other lacs like swarthmore and amherst? i am looking to transfer from berkeley to a smaller school, but not sure how small i would like it - midsized uni or lac? i feel like i’m getting lost at berkeley, it’s that huge, but i’m not sure if the cloistered campus at some lacs would be a problem or a benefit to me. it would feel strange to be so isolated, but at the same time, a close knit community can be really nice for an undergrad. can i find this same sense of community and togetherness at mid sized unis? as you can see, lol, i’m totally confused.</p>
<p>I would recommend visiting any school you’re looking at, if possible. I don’t think Williams is a bad school at all. I don’t really like it there, but the majority of students do. I didn’t look at Swarthmore, so I can’t really comment, although I know a couple students there who enjoy it. Amherst is a great college town and has quite a bit more going on than Williamstown. However, there were some other aspects of the campus I wasn’t crazy about.
I can’t recommend one school over another, because each has a different feel and each is right for a different person. I’ve talked to some people here at LSE that really don’t like it, for example.
What I can say is think about the following factors:
location (city/suburban/rural)
size
social life
academics (although if you’re looking at Swarthmore, Amherst, and Williams that’s not an issue)
students in general (what are they like at the school?)</p>
<p>I agree don’t generalize. I didn’t study that hard in high school, but got good test scores, and ended up at a perfectly good LAC. I did really, really well there and transferred after my freshman year to an Ivy in a more metropolitan atmosphere. I was much happier - the first school was a good school but too small for me. I never regretted the change and have been very involved in my school as an alum.</p>