LACs with the WORST locations

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Allegheny.

Seems like a good school, but the town is beyond sketchy.

Conn College’s town is not great either, but nearby Mystic is nice.

We're in town for a visit now. It...could be a lot worse! DD isn't ruling it out because the location.

There are a half dozen or so really nice beaches within a 15-minute drive if you know where to look. And check out Harkness state park on the waterfront — not a beach, so much, but truly stunning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

I've had kids at 2 different NESCAC schools, and I think they all have this issue. The schools are aware of it, and are trying to address it, starting with orientation and dorm assignments.

How about they get to the root of it and stop prioritizing athletes in admissions? Right.

Is the recruitment of athletes even at SLACs -- a relatively new thing in the life of these schools

[What? It's not a new thing for SLACs to recruit athletes. That's been around forever.]

-- a strategy to game the rankings?

[SLACs do not need to "game the rankings". They are what Jeff Seligo calls "sellers". They are selective. That's what the S in SLAC stands for.]

It def seems like the athlete/non-athlete divide has gotten much bigger at many SLACs, which seems really antithetical to their purported missions. It's too bad.

[Athleticism is not antithetical to the mission of any college. It's too bad you're still bitter because you were always picked last for grade school kickball.]

Sellers don’t need to game the rankings because they are selective? See, e.g., Columbia.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Allegheny.

Seems like a good school, but the town is beyond sketchy.

Conn College’s town is not great either, but nearby Mystic is nice.

We're in town for a visit now. It...could be a lot worse! DD isn't ruling it out because the location.

There are a half dozen or so really nice beaches within a 15-minute drive if you know where to look. And check out Harkness state park on the waterfront — not a beach, so much, but truly stunning.

Thanks for the recommendation!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

What does that mean?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

I've had kids at 2 different NESCAC schools, and I think they all have this issue. The schools are aware of it, and are trying to address it, starting with orientation and dorm assignments.

There isn't much the schools can do. When freshman playing sports are on campus and hanging out with each other a month before the rest of students arrive, orientation isn't going to disrupt that dynamic. You also have teams spending hours together which leads to freshman getting to know upperclassmen better than non-athletes and those upperclassmen then integrate their new teammates into the teams' social life which likely includes other athletes.

If schools really were concerned, they would drop all sports to the club level and just have open tryouts every year with no athletic admissions and no large professional coaching staffs

This is exactly what SLACs should do. Then no dumbing down academic standards for kids playing in games no one cares about or attends.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

What does that mean?

It’s called the “entry system.” Google is friendlier than the likes of me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

What does that mean?

Small groups who live together. It's meaningless when athletes are spending hours every day (not to mention travel time in season) with their teams

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

What does that mean?

Small groups who live together. It's meaningless when athletes are spending hours every day (not to mention travel time in season) with their teams

Agreed, that makes sense. Thanks. This is a primary reason we're hesitating about Williams or Amherst for ED.

[Anonymous]

Occidental college. They want you to think t is in LA but it is not

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

What does that mean?

Small groups who live together. It's meaningless when athletes are spending hours every day (not to mention travel time in season) with their teams

Agreed, that makes sense. Thanks. This is a primary reason we're hesitating about Williams or Amherst for ED.

Well, lots of Williams kids have friend groups from entry. So it means something. Amherst, on the other hand…yikes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

What does that mean?

Small groups who live together. It's meaningless when athletes are spending hours every day (not to mention travel time in season) with their teams

Agreed, that makes sense. Thanks. This is a primary reason we're hesitating about Williams or Amherst for ED.

Well, lots of Williams kids have friend groups from entry. So it means something. Amherst, on the other hand…yikes.

No way I would send my kid to Williams. He would go stir crazy there. Not keen on the smallness of Amherst either but at least they have 30000 college kids in the same neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

What does that mean?

It’s called the “entry system.” Google is friendlier than the likes of me.

How is this any different than other SLACs?

[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:Williams is the one that stands out to me. No way I'd go there over Amherst or Swarthmore growing up in an area like DC.

Friend of mine had a son who transferred from Williams because of this as well as the cliquishness of the other students.

such a weird vibe at Williams - only school of 10 my DC eliminated immediately after the visit - she said kids were odd

My outgoing, well-adjusted kid is ridiculously happy at Williams, just FYI. And I've met a bunch of their friends, none of whom are "odd."

There are many athletes at Williams. They tend to be pretty normal socially. I'm sure there is a quirky, brilliant subset of kids less adept at socializing given the impressive academics though. Our student tour guide happened to be quirky, brilliant, but also social.

Williams College reportedly has a distinct social divide between athletes and non-athletes.

The freshman entry system makes this divide much less severe than some other NESCACs.

What does that mean?

Small groups who live together. It's meaningless when athletes are spending hours every day (not to mention travel time in season) with their teams

Agreed, that makes sense. Thanks. This is a primary reason we're hesitating about Williams or Amherst for ED.

Well, lots of Williams kids have friend groups from entry. So it means something. Amherst, on the other hand…yikes.

No way I would send my kid to Williams. He would go stir crazy there. Not keen on the smallness of Amherst either but at least they have 30000 college kids in the same neighborhood.

Our student tour guide told us there is a huge divide between wealthy students and those of average means. He said that was his biggest issue socially. Probably overlapped with the athletics issue.

[Anonymous]

^^exacerbated by the small size and isolated location, no doubt.