What's the appeal for Amherst?

[Anonymous]

We just went to Amherst College and UMass for a day. It's a beautiful, quiet place, with forest around, perfect for kids who are focused on studying. The town is nice, convenience stores and restaurants are within walking distance.

[Anonymous]

They themselves said few utilize the 5 College consortium, so that's a moot benefit.

When we toured Amherst ALL the guides said they took consortium classes and also went to UMass to eat.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Tiny, mediocre campus in a lackluster town. No academic highlights (like Williams tutorial, Swarthmore Honors, etc). Racial and socioeconomic diversity on paper, but every group sticks with themselves. Snobby, condescending students who think they're big shots.

This is exactly what my DS didn't like about Williams - that and the campus is even more remote than Amherst.

Any reason to think the every group sticks to themselves phenomenon is unique to these schools?

Self segregation is common, but what may set NESCAC apart is that the schools are so small that a high concentration of wealthy kids really sticks out. There are, I am sure, snobby rich kids at big state schools but other kids are less likely to notice them.

Our student tour guide said the thing he most disliked about Williams was the uncomfortable social dynamic with uber-wealthy kids, said the gap between them and the kids like himself on financial aid was massive. Small school in such a remote location intensifies, I'm sure. Amherst doesn't *feel* as small, and is less remote, but I can imagine a similar dynamic being an issue. Of course it was when I went to Harvard, too. As a PP said, it will be an issue at all the elite schools.

Friend of mine had a DS who transferred out of Williams because there was so much social cliquishness. Not just the uber-wealthy snobs, but also the athletes and the uber-woke crowd. A regular middle class suburban kid who isn't in one of these cliques can end up isolated. That plus there is nothing to do and nowhere to go off campus.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Tiny, mediocre campus in a lackluster town. No academic highlights (like Williams tutorial, Swarthmore Honors, etc). Racial and socioeconomic diversity on paper, but every group sticks with themselves. Snobby, condescending students who think they're big shots.

This is exactly what my DS didn't like about Williams - that and the campus is even more remote than Amherst.

Any reason to think the every group sticks to themselves phenomenon is unique to these schools?

Self segregation is common, but what may set NESCAC apart is that the schools are so small that a high concentration of wealthy kids really sticks out. There are, I am sure, snobby rich kids at big state schools but other kids are less likely to notice them.

Our student tour guide said the thing he most disliked about Williams was the uncomfortable social dynamic with uber-wealthy kids, said the gap between them and the kids like himself on financial aid was massive. Small school in such a remote location intensifies, I'm sure. Amherst doesn't *feel* as small, and is less remote, but I can imagine a similar dynamic being an issue. Of course it was when I went to Harvard, too. As a PP said, it will be an issue at all the elite schools.

Friend of mine had a DS who transferred out of Williams because there was so much social cliquishness. Not just the uber-wealthy snobs, but also the athletes and the uber-woke crowd. A regular middle class suburban kid who isn't in one of these cliques can end up isolated. That plus there is nothing to do and nowhere to go off campus.

Yet it still provides more than amherst, with no academic talent or importance. ROLL EPHS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wealthy people finding a degree for their privilege children

This is the target audience: wealthy people who are moderately unsuccessful and depressed.

[Anonymous]

My son had a GPA and SAT scores that would have made him competitive at any school. He was only interested in Swarthmore/Williams/Amherst, and was accepted to one of those in early decision. He had no interest in Ivy League schools.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:We were seriously interested in liberal arts colleges. I found their faculty in CS and STEM to be second rate (look at how many CS faculty they have).
I know research is not its main focus.. then what’s the difference from good private high schools?

You were seriously interested in LACs and you found Amherst lacking?

Bullshit.

ps I count 8 CS faculty. How many should a liberal arts college with less than 1,800 students have?

Out of 8 CS faculty, two of them are on leave. Amherst certainly can teach introductory CS classes, but what else can they teach? CS is quite broad, but Amherst simply doesn’t have enough faculty to teach advanced CS courses. You might be able to learn more from free online CS classes.
Amherst can be great for majors like English, Philosophy, maybe math.. they say you can take courses at uMass, then why do you pay high tuition if you are going to take classes at state school

Why would someone go to a SLAC for CS? Sounds like a poor fit.

What a funny thing to say when it’s the most popular major at every lac

[Anonymous]

My kid is going to be a freshman. They had lots of choices but Amherst landed on top. Diverse, less isolated than some peer schools (ie, Williams), beautiful campus (in our opinion), small classes, etc. I guess we thought there was a lot to love and hopefully my kid will. Fingers crossed as it is almost time!!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were seriously interested in liberal arts colleges. I found their faculty in CS and STEM to be second rate (look at how many CS faculty they have).
I know research is not its main focus.. then what’s the difference from good private high schools?

You were seriously interested in LACs and you found Amherst lacking?

Bullshit.

ps I count 8 CS faculty. How many should a liberal arts college with less than 1,800 students have?

Out of 8 CS faculty, two of them are on leave. Amherst certainly can teach introductory CS classes, but what else can they teach? CS is quite broad, but Amherst simply doesn’t have enough faculty to teach advanced CS courses. You might be able to learn more from free online CS classes.
Amherst can be great for majors like English, Philosophy, maybe math.. they say you can take courses at uMass, then why do you pay high tuition if you are going to take classes at state school

Why would someone go to a SLAC for CS? Sounds like a poor fit.

What a funny thing to say when it’s the most popular major at every lac

CS is the most popular major at LAC? Hardly, maybe Econ, especially if you are male

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were seriously interested in liberal arts colleges. I found their faculty in CS and STEM to be second rate (look at how many CS faculty they have).
I know research is not its main focus.. then what’s the difference from good private high schools?

You were seriously interested in LACs and you found Amherst lacking?

Bullshit.

ps I count 8 CS faculty. How many should a liberal arts college with less than 1,800 students have?

Out of 8 CS faculty, two of them are on leave. Amherst certainly can teach introductory CS classes, but what else can they teach? CS is quite broad, but Amherst simply doesn’t have enough faculty to teach advanced CS courses. You might be able to learn more from free online CS classes.
Amherst can be great for majors like English, Philosophy, maybe math.. they say you can take courses at uMass, then why do you pay high tuition if you are going to take classes at state school

Why would someone go to a SLAC for CS? Sounds like a poor fit.

What a funny thing to say when it’s the most popular major at every lac

CS is the most popular major at LAC? Hardly, maybe Econ, especially if you are male

It is always in the top 3, not sure where the "hardly" is coming from

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We were seriously interested in liberal arts colleges. I found their faculty in CS and STEM to be second rate (look at how many CS faculty they have).
I know research is not its main focus.. then what’s the difference from good private high schools?

You were seriously interested in LACs and you found Amherst lacking?

Bullshit.

ps I count 8 CS faculty. How many should a liberal arts college with less than 1,800 students have?

Out of 8 CS faculty, two of them are on leave. Amherst certainly can teach introductory CS classes, but what else can they teach? CS is quite broad, but Amherst simply doesn’t have enough faculty to teach advanced CS courses. You might be able to learn more from free online CS classes.
Amherst can be great for majors like English, Philosophy, maybe math.. they say you can take courses at uMass, then why do you pay high tuition if you are going to take classes at state school

Why would someone go to a SLAC for CS? Sounds like a poor fit.

What a funny thing to say when it’s the most popular major at every lac

CS is the most popular major at LAC? Hardly, maybe Econ, especially if you are male

It is always in the top 3, not sure where the "hardly" is coming from

Some people are just clueless about LACs. They've all moved towards Quantitative Econ, Math/Stats, and CS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid is going to be a freshman. They had lots of choices but Amherst landed on top. Diverse, less isolated than some peer schools (ie, Williams), beautiful campus (in our opinion), small classes, etc. I guess we thought there was a lot to love and hopefully my kid will. Fingers crossed as it is almost time!!!!

+1 loved Amherst tour! Many stars from our private school went there: it is basically an Ivy, as is Williams and Swat

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid is going to be a freshman. They had lots of choices but Amherst landed on top. Diverse, less isolated than some peer schools (ie, Williams), beautiful campus (in our opinion), small classes, etc. I guess we thought there was a lot to love and hopefully my kid will. Fingers crossed as it is almost time!!!!

+1 loved Amherst tour! Many stars from our private school went there: it is basically an Ivy, as is Williams and Swat

I wouldn't put it at ivy status. It's solid, but Williams, Swat, Wellesley, Pomona all have way more ivy level academics and offerings better than Amherst.

[Anonymous]

do any kids ever say or broadcast, “I chose Princeton over Williams, or Dartmouth over Amherst?” well I’ll tell you the answer - no, never. Kids who chose Ivies were never really struggling between that Ivy and a SLAC, it’s only the reverse. And that’s an absolutely critical distinction which explains why SLACs are inferior on a macro scale

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: do any kids ever say or broadcast, “I chose Princeton over Williams, or Dartmouth over Amherst?” well I’ll tell you the answer - no, never. Kids who chose Ivies were never really struggling between that Ivy and a SLAC, it’s only the reverse. And that’s an absolutely critical distinction which explains why SLACs are inferior on a macro scale

Sure, but like...why does that matter on the objective. Kids like being validated, and saying you went to Princeton gives you that validation.