Williams, Barnard, or UChicago for English?

momrath
Wed, 28 Apr 2010 06:46:54 +0000

Karuli, I’m sorry that you didn’t have the opportunity to visit Williams. It’s a wonderful school but its rural environment is not a good fit for all.

Amherst is a lively small town with lots of students nearby. The college of Amherst is itself quite small but it draws on the town’s facilities and the other schools in the consortium.

Williamstown is a mountain village, surrounded by spectacular scenery. The town itself has everything you need, but perhaps not everything you want.

My son had only ever lived in big cities – New York, Hong Kong, Jakarta – but something about Williamstown spoke to him. He loved the access to nature and the insular, self-contained community of the college. He loved the clean air, the beautiful countryside and starry nights. He spent four very happy years at Williams and never regretted his decision.

He wasn’t involved in team sports, but he did a lot of outdoorsy activities. He managed to get to New York or Boston once a term for a “city fix.”

Is Williams right for you? Honestly, it’s impossible to say. I sense that it would be a very different environment from what you’re accustomed to, which may or may not be desirable for you.

You would get an extraordinarily good education, make excellent contacts for your life’s work and meet some wonderful people – students and professors. I’m sure you could say the same about Barnard and Chicago.

In answer to your questions: Williams has a very strong alumni network. Study abroad is common – for junior year or during Winter Study (January semester). My understanding is that the Williams at Oxford program is competitive but not excessively so. It depends on the year.