Williams vs Princeton, please help

[Anonymous]

It doesn’t sound elitist. don’t worry about that. It just sounds ignorant.

[Anonymous]

Colby

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Educated people know Williams. It’s a nonissue.

Many don't. it's a good school, but the name recognition is not there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe see where she gets in first? And stop sharing where’s she applying - that will eliminate comments.

+1. They’re both great schools and both are hard to get into absent a hook like being very rich or a legacy or from Idaho. Write back when your kid gets in.

[Anonymous]

No one who can be admitted to either Williams or Princeton would ask such a silly question.

Looks like its Rollins in Orlando for your daughter!

[Anonymous]

OP, unless it's ED (and I don't know the ED dates for those schools), your question is unimportant. It's kind of hilarious. She wasn't gotten in anywhere -- there is no decision to make

[Anonymous]

Is this a rising senior and, if so, is the decision whether to apply SCEA to Princeton or ED to Williams?

The answer should be neither. ED at Williams gives no advantage (maybe even a disadvantage) because of all the athletes, Questbridge etc.

Applying to an SCEA school is near impossible without a major hook. I see none here. Don’t do it.

Definitely check out schools like Kenyon…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As a parent, all I want is the best for my daughter. She’s bright, articulate, and passionate about literature—an aspiring English major who lights up when she talks about Shakespeare, Toni Morrison, and George Eliot. I’m proud of her intellectual curiosity and her drive, and as college application season ramps up, I find myself facing a surprising dilemma: prestige versus fit.
Recently, she’s been talking a lot about Williams College. Her college counselor raves about it, calling it one of the best liberal arts colleges in the country. Small class sizes, amazing faculty attention, a rigorous academic environment—it checks all the boxes on paper. She loves the idea of a tight-knit academic community where she can really dig into her studies.
But here’s the thing that keeps nagging at me: no one I know has heard of Williams.
I don’t mean this to sound dismissive or elitist. I’ve done my research. I know that Williams consistently ranks at the top of liberal arts college lists, often ahead of places like Amherst. But when I bring it up to friends, colleagues, or even extended family, the reaction is almost always the same: “Where’s that?” or “Is that William and Mary?” or, worse, “Oh, is that a state school?”
It feels strange—and frankly a little frustrating—that such a highly ranked school doesn’t carry the same name recognition as, say, Princeton or Yale. In a world where connections matter, where first impressions are formed in seconds, I can’t help but wonder: Will people take her degree seriously if they’ve never heard of the school?
That brings me to the other option my daughter is considering: Princeton. She’s academically competitive enough to be a real contender there, and of course, the English department is world-renowned. If you tell someone you went to Princeton, you don’t need to explain. The name opens doors—whether you're applying for a job, a fellowship, or grad school. It’s just understood.
I’m torn. I don’t want to push her toward a decision based purely on prestige. I know that real learning happens when a student feels seen, challenged, and supported—and from everything we’ve heard, Williams offers that in spades. But I also can’t ignore the reality that in many circles, name recognition matters. She might thrive at Williams, but I worry she’ll have to constantly explain or defend her choice to people who simply don’t know better.

Princeton is not huge and it's in a sleepy town. Send her there.

[Anonymous]

My DC was admitted RD to Williams and almost picked it over an Ivy. It is a terrific college, probably a better undergraduate experience than any Ivy. It has amazing results in terms of grad school admissions (about an 85% admit rate into medical school) and extremely strong job outcomes.
You should visit Williams, the facilities are amazing, you will see the College President walking around campus. The town is small and very rural and that may put your DC off.

Both schools are extremely difficult to get into, Williams does have ED, Princeton only SCEA which doesn't offer much of a boost if any. I wouldn't worry now about telling people where she went to college, the bigger issue is getting into college let alone getting into two of the most rejective ones . . .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DC was admitted RD to Williams and almost picked it over an Ivy. It is a terrific college, probably a better undergraduate experience than any Ivy. It has amazing results in terms of grad school admissions (about an 85% admit rate into medical school) and extremely strong job outcomes.
You should visit Williams, the facilities are amazing, you will see the College President walking around campus. The town is small and very rural and that may put your DC off.

Both schools are extremely difficult to get into, Williams does have ED, Princeton only SCEA which doesn't offer much of a boost if any. I wouldn't worry now about telling people where she went to college, the bigger issue is getting into college let alone getting into two of the most rejective ones . . .

Such as? Everything we saw was pretty subpar.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC was admitted RD to Williams and almost picked it over an Ivy. It is a terrific college, probably a better undergraduate experience than any Ivy. It has amazing results in terms of grad school admissions (about an 85% admit rate into medical school) and extremely strong job outcomes.
You should visit Williams, the facilities are amazing, you will see the College President walking around campus. The town is small and very rural and that may put your DC off.

Both schools are extremely difficult to get into, Williams does have ED, Princeton only SCEA which doesn't offer much of a boost if any. I wouldn't worry now about telling people where she went to college, the bigger issue is getting into college let alone getting into two of the most rejective ones . . .

Such as? Everything we saw was pretty subpar.

Sawyer Library, the theaters, the science facilities which are accessible to undergrads because they aren't competing with grad students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC was admitted RD to Williams and almost picked it over an Ivy. It is a terrific college, probably a better undergraduate experience than any Ivy. It has amazing results in terms of grad school admissions (about an 85% admit rate into medical school) and extremely strong job outcomes.
You should visit Williams, the facilities are amazing, you will see the College President walking around campus. The town is small and very rural and that may put your DC off.

Both schools are extremely difficult to get into, Williams does have ED, Princeton only SCEA which doesn't offer much of a boost if any. I wouldn't worry now about telling people where she went to college, the bigger issue is getting into college let alone getting into two of the most rejective ones . . .

Such as? Everything we saw was pretty subpar.

Sawyer Library, the theaters, the science facilities which are accessible to undergrads because they aren't competing with grad students.

Swayer library is just a bunch of flashy windows and swivel chairs. Not impressed.
The theaters are nothing different than what I've seen at peers.
Science facilities are worse than WASP peers- particularly Amherst and Pomona. You either haven't been to many LACs or are easily pleased.

[Anonymous]

Williams theatre department only hosts 2 productions per year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DC was admitted RD to Williams and almost picked it over an Ivy. It is a terrific college, probably a better undergraduate experience than any Ivy. It has amazing results in terms of grad school admissions (about an 85% admit rate into medical school) and extremely strong job outcomes.
You should visit Williams, the facilities are amazing, you will see the College President walking around campus. The town is small and very rural and that may put your DC off.

Both schools are extremely difficult to get into, Williams does have ED, Princeton only SCEA which doesn't offer much of a boost if any. I wouldn't worry now about telling people where she went to college, the bigger issue is getting into college let alone getting into two of the most rejective ones . . .

Such as? Everything we saw was pretty subpar.

Sawyer Library, the theaters, the science facilities which are accessible to undergrads because they aren't competing with grad students.

Swayer library is just a bunch of flashy windows and swivel chairs. Not impressed.
The theaters are nothing different than what I've seen at peers.
Science facilities are worse than WASP peers- particularly Amherst and Pomona. You either haven't been to many LACs or are easily pleased.

You sound like someone whose kid got rejected from Williams. . . .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is LLM slop and you should be ashamed of yourself

This