WASP? Is this a real thing, or recent construction?

[Anonymous]

Ok just looked up yield rates

Bowdoin: 53.8%
Williams: 44.4%

so this person is resorting to boldface lies now. how interesting

no idea how you would define "worse students" since Bowdoin is test-optional so whatever I'll leave it there

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

The williams alum in government are much more known, prominent, and important. Compare the notable alumni pages.

Just because the average class size is <20, doesn't mean the government program isn't overcrowded. I love how you skipped over the faculty struggling with the CS workload due to lack of faculty and just made the easy point. It's frustrating trying to discuss with commenters like this because they choose not to get the point and bulldoze over the most important details. The gap is enormous. Bowdoin has a much worse yield, worse admitted students, and worse endowment performance. I understand the defensiveness for an alma mater, but this is just the reality. I think if you want a career in government, Bowdoin is going to serve you...fine, for a low level position, but you aren't seeing alum go off into the big careers like Williams and Amherst alum.

What point did you even make? That CS department had a need to hire more faculty? This has been addressed..
https://www.bowdoin.edu/news/2025/03/announcing-the-hastings-initiative-for-ai-and-humanity.html

Bowdoin is going to serve you...fine, for a low level position, but you aren't seeing alum go off into the big careers like Williams and Amherst alum.

you've got to be kidding me... Lina Khan is literally, as we speak, working for Zohran Mamdani

I don’t really see how one compares the two. Lina khan is a legal theorist and academic, not a politician. It’s like trying to compare Janet Yellen with Greg Abbott.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Your incessant boosting demonstrates a level of insecurity that is unseemly as well as untrue. It also proves out that you aren’t associated with one of the schools part of the discussion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

I consider Williams, Amherst, Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar. Those are the students we get and often they excel as any other intern/full time hire. They have notable alumni across fields and are generally pretty successful. Trinity students tend to go off to these institutions with Williams, Amherst, Pomona, and Middlebury being particularly popular.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

This;

I’m on the other coast and now work on Sand Hill Rd. I know families with kids at Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Swat, etc. All families in the same bracket as mine which is mid-8’s to lower 9 figures. Everybody knows all of these schools and nobody considers one better than the others. One kid at Williams is still mad that she was rejected by Haverford.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

This;

I’m on the other coast and now work on Sand Hill Rd. I know families with kids at Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Swat, etc. All families in the same bracket as mine which is mid-8’s to lower 9 figures. Everybody knows all of these schools and nobody considers one better than the others. One kid at Williams is still mad that she was rejected by Haverford.

This didn't happen. People here pretending to be socialites is hilarious, because it is so performative.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

This;

I’m on the other coast and now work on Sand Hill Rd. I know families with kids at Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Swat, etc. All families in the same bracket as mine which is mid-8’s to lower 9 figures. Everybody knows all of these schools and nobody considers one better than the others. One kid at Williams is still mad that she was rejected by Haverford.

This didn't happen. People here pretending to be socialites is hilarious, because it is so performative.[/quote

Is it really performative to suggest that top LACs are full of kids from rich, elite families....

[Anonymous]

Haverford is gorgeous!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

This;

I’m on the other coast and now work on Sand Hill Rd. I know families with kids at Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Swat, etc. All families in the same bracket as mine which is mid-8’s to lower 9 figures. Everybody knows all of these schools and nobody considers one better than the others. One kid at Williams is still mad that she was rejected by Haverford.

This didn't happen. People here pretending to be socialites is hilarious, because it is so performative.

Is it really performative to suggest that top LACs are full of kids from rich, elite families....

They're filled with a diverse array of students of various backgrounds. This isn't the 90s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

This;

I’m on the other coast and now work on Sand Hill Rd. I know families with kids at Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Swat, etc. All families in the same bracket as mine which is mid-8’s to lower 9 figures. Everybody knows all of these schools and nobody considers one better than the others. One kid at Williams is still mad that she was rejected by Haverford.

This didn't happen. People here pretending to be socialites is hilarious, because it is so performative.

Sure did, she goes to school with my D and I’ve heard it more than once firsthand. I’m not close to socialite. I went to a public, made a pile in tech, and now invest in tech. I just happen to be a lot smarter and wealthier than you.

As I’ve said in other threads, I have a second kid at another one of these schools and she isn’t giving up anything in terms of education to the one at Williams.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

This;

I’m on the other coast and now work on Sand Hill Rd. I know families with kids at Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Swat, etc. All families in the same bracket as mine which is mid-8’s to lower 9 figures. Everybody knows all of these schools and nobody considers one better than the others. One kid at Williams is still mad that she was rejected by Haverford.

This didn't happen. People here pretending to be socialites is hilarious, because it is so performative.

Sure did, she goes to school with my D and I’ve heard it more than once firsthand. I’m not close to socialite. I went to a public, made a pile in tech, and now invest in tech. I just happen to be a lot smarter and wealthier than you.

As I’ve said in other threads, I have a second kid at another one of these schools and she isn’t giving up anything in terms of education to the one at Williams.

Way to throw away your entire point. I don't understand why LAC parents feel the entitlement and need to try to assure everyone their kid is making the smartest choice possible going to a tiny college in the middle of nowhere. Some people's insecurities will always show.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

This;

I’m on the other coast and now work on Sand Hill Rd. I know families with kids at Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Swat, etc. All families in the same bracket as mine which is mid-8’s to lower 9 figures. Everybody knows all of these schools and nobody considers one better than the others. One kid at Williams is still mad that she was rejected by Haverford.

This didn't happen. People here pretending to be socialites is hilarious, because it is so performative.

Sure did, she goes to school with my D and I’ve heard it more than once firsthand. I’m not close to socialite. I went to a public, made a pile in tech, and now invest in tech. I just happen to be a lot smarter and wealthier than you.

As I’ve said in other threads, I have a second kid at another one of these schools and she isn’t giving up anything in terms of education to the one at Williams.

Way to throw away your entire point. I don't understand why LAC parents feel the entitlement and need to try to assure everyone their kid is making the smartest choice possible going to a tiny college in the middle of nowhere. Some people's insecurities will always show.

I think that you are confused. I actually know a bit about these schools and it’s pretty obvious that you are just talking out your ass. Trust me, none of us are insecure about where we send our children to college because we can send them anywhere without regard to cost or what others think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does bowdoin have/is doing that ranks it near Williams or Amherst? It seems really stagnant and uninteresting.

Academics on par overall between the three, but Bowdoin has particular strength in:

Government (largest department, with strong connections on Capitol Hill)
Sciences (esp. Environmental and Oceanographic Sciences)
Soon: Computer Science/AI (Reed Hastings donated to fund a new program and expand faculty)

Not to mention reputation for highest QoL (facilities, forms, food) and student happiness which I think is the major reason why Bowdoin has been rising & winning cross-admits against W/A of late

Far from stagnant tbh

I don’t see how Bowdoin leads this. Other than Mamdani, there really haven’t been many Bowdoin alum in government (at the high level). Especially compared to Williams and Amherst. It has a pretty small computer science department. It’s nice that it spends a lot on making the experience good, but academically it appears very mediocre.

Very confused what you mean by mediocre. I don’t think any of these schools are mediocre on an absolute or even relative basis.

Other than Mamdani and Pearson who graduated this century, there are numerous govt officials in Bowdoin’s history including ambassadors, senators, even POTUS. George Mitchell is one. The late Ed Lee was another.

Alumni list aside, the fact is that Bowdoin’s most popular major is Government and for that reason it does have a lot of student interest and success in that field. Your original comment was “near” so I don’t even have to make an argument for superiority here.

It has student interest, but you're just describing an overcrowded major. Here confirms my suspicions that CS is overcrowded: https://bowdoinorient.com/2024/12/06/as-student-enrollment-trends-and-liberal-arts-values-collide-faculty-disagree-over-how-to-respond/. Williams has a lot of current very important alumni in government: Lina Khan, Wahidullah Waissi, Philip Wilcox, Steven Fagin, Victoria Coates, Elsie Kanza, Don Beyer, and there's many more recent alum who have made world history (Notably Reza Pahlavi). I really don't think Bowdoin is anywhere near comparable to Williams in anything other than environmental science.

So you are saying that Bowdoin is mediocre in Government because it is too popular a major? Overcrowded, when the average class size is <20? Curious. And those names of yours seem comparable to what Bowdoin has produced. Not going to get into a whole bake-off here on lists but I'll also give you Lawrence Lindsey, Christopher Hill, Thomas Pickering, and you can do your research for more. But if you really want to continue going through life believing Bowdoin is far inferior to Williams despite all available evidence showing otherwise, be my guest. This is a pretty pointless argument. Nobody is disagreeing that Williams is still the #1/2 LAC. But that gap is not enormous and contrary to remaining "stagnant", by admission stats, endowment AUM, and any other measure it's clear that Bowdoin has even closed some of the gap over the past ten years, which is exactly the opposite of stagnation.

Re the CS point: CS is getting (overly) popular at every school. And as the article states, the school is responding to increased demand by hiring more faculty...

I think you must be a parent and a particularly obsessed one at that. Cannot possibly be a Williams grad yourself - those I know are far more gracious and all of us who went to top-end LACs know our schools are very comparable.

Meh. There's a real prestige drop after Amherst. I've met many Ephs and Mammoths in my career, but I really don't think of Bowdoin as particularly prestigious. Maybe that's "elitist" or whatever word this forum uses for opinions they dislike, but the reality is that Williams and Amherst alum dominate industry, government, and academia better than Bowdoin and most other LACs (I give a nod to Swarthmore, Pomona, Wellesley, Wesleyan, and Vassar)

Not that I think you're elitist, but I'd really like to know from what vantage point you are casting this judgment. Because I am in the periphery of some of the most elite circles on this planet (work in NYC high finance, know billionaire families socially) and I have never heard this view expressed. Indeed, the people sending their children to Trinity, Dalton, et al. all know W/A are the highest-ranked, but still very much respect LACs beyond those two schools.

This;

I’m on the other coast and now work on Sand Hill Rd. I know families with kids at Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Swat, etc. All families in the same bracket as mine which is mid-8’s to lower 9 figures. Everybody knows all of these schools and nobody considers one better than the others. One kid at Williams is still mad that she was rejected by Haverford.

I don’t know anyone in SV who addressed their work as “sand hill road.” People here really pretend like they’re in the know when they’re cosplayers, at best.