Brown vs. W&M (Monroe) for humanities?

[Anonymous]

Either school can set this kid up well for law school. Comes down to fit and finances. Nothing more.

[Anonymous]

It’s a common choice!

We loved the Monroe scholar event! My kid ended up choosing Brown- primarily wanted to get out of VA (in-state). Loves Providence. Brown is edgier than WM and the artsy vibe from RISD is cool, being near a city.

That said—$$$. WM is a great education for a helluva lot less $ in-state.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:W&M just because your DC could probably get a better gpa (much better?) at W&M which is basically all that matters for law school other than LSAT and work experience. That said, if Yale Law is her dream, go to Brown because they give a bump for Ivy+ schools.

Brown has tons of grade inflation!

And, you clearly have no experience there. Sure, kids can do S /NC to push them out of the box, and retake to replace an F (which I think is about good thing frankly), but courses are rigorous and not easy A. My kids from top DC are magnet are working hard. Others getting Bs and Cs

This is well documented.

https://www.browndailyherald.com/article/2022/04/brown-grade-inflation-continues-to-soar-data-shows
https://www.vox.com/xpress/2014/9/10/6132411/chart-grade-inflation-in-the-ivy-league-over-time
https://ripplematch.com/insights/the-top-15-universities-with-the-highest-average-gpas-4f4b544d

Didn’t read all articles, but not completely accurate. It is not true that you can’t earn a D or an F like one says. You absolutely can, the difference is that neither is passing and won’t show on external transcript so you can retake. The no +/- may help, but I think it tends to balance out in the end. My kid has lost an A by 1-2 points twice and it’s rough taking that to a 3.0. The S/NC some will take one class this way to explore with fear. Students headed to med, law, grad
don’t usually so it. My premed won’t do any. The classes are very rigorous, with open curriculum the student chose it so all are invested. Not disputing gpa’s are high, but some of the nitty gritty tends to get misrepresented.

There was a drive in recent years to lower the GPAs at Brown. Incoming classes feel it. It is very rigorous. Lots and lots of hours in the library. This year’s class saw far more Bs and below.

Agree, my stem kid is feeling it. They report their humanities friends are also overwhelmed. I’m sure the other person posting knows more than current students though. 🙄

I’ll be honest, my kid went to a top ranked high school top of the class, perfect score on SAT no prep. I was not expecting this, and they would have lightened load accordingly if they could go back in time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:W&M just because your DC could probably get a better gpa (much better?) at W&M which is basically all that matters for law school other than LSAT and work experience. That said, if Yale Law is her dream, go to Brown because they give a bump for Ivy+ schools.

Brown has tons of grade inflation!

And, you clearly have no experience there. Sure, kids can do S /NC to push them out of the box, and retake to replace an F (which I think is about good thing frankly), but courses are rigorous and not easy A. My kids from top DC are magnet are working hard. Others getting Bs and Cs

This is well documented.

https://www.browndailyherald.com/article/2022/04/brown-grade-inflation-continues-to-soar-data-shows
https://www.vox.com/xpress/2014/9/10/6132411/chart-grade-inflation-in-the-ivy-league-over-time
https://ripplematch.com/insights/the-top-15-universities-with-the-highest-average-gpas-4f4b544d

Didn’t read all articles, but not completely accurate. It is not true that you can’t earn a D or an F like one says. You absolutely can, the difference is that neither is passing and won’t show on external transcript so you can retake. The no +/- may help, but I think it tends to balance out in the end. My kid has lost an A by 1-2 points twice and it’s rough taking that to a 3.0. The S/NC some will take one class this way to explore with fear. Students headed to med, law, grad
don’t usually so it. My premed won’t do any. The classes are very rigorous, with open curriculum the student chose it so all are invested. Not disputing gpa’s are high, but some of the nitty gritty tends to get misrepresented.

There was a drive in recent years to lower the GPAs at Brown. Incoming classes feel it. It is very rigorous. Lots and lots of hours in the library. This year’s class saw far more Bs and below.

Agree, my stem kid is feeling it. They report their humanities friends are also overwhelmed. I’m sure the other person posting knows more than current students though. 🙄

I’ll be honest, my kid went to a top ranked high school top of the class, perfect score on SAT no prep. I was not expecting this, and they would have lightened load accordingly if they could go back in time.

I have a humanities kid. Very rigorous. In library all the time. 1 point away from an A in two spring courses (worse than if it want close). Also tough private, uw4, perfect ACT- no prep. Brown Herald had an article about grade deflation, the recent pulling away from handing out as many As.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not even close, Brown beats WM on recognition, prestige and academics. Students there are way more cerebral. Need to like city setting and there is a heavy dose of woke. Very different from sleepy WM which is a pretty dull place all in all.

Heavy dose of woke + humanities major= run the other way

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Either school can set this kid up well for law school. Comes down to fit and finances. Nothing more.

Maybe also consider the current war on Ivies by the federal government. I’m not sure now is the time to start one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Either school can set this kid up well for law school. Comes down to fit and finances. Nothing more.

Maybe also consider the current war on Ivies by the federal government. I’m not sure now is the time to start one.

History is going to shine Harvard and others in a very favorable light. Standing up against an authoritarian govt

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Either school can set this kid up well for law school. Comes down to fit and finances. Nothing more.

Maybe also consider the current war on Ivies by the federal government. I’m not sure now is the time to start one.

History is going to shine Harvard and others in a very favorable light. Standing up against an authoritarian govt

True, but that doesn’t help the students who are there now trying to do research.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid graduated from Brown 4 years ago, breezed to a 4.0 double concentration (major) in the humanities. Was a little disappointed in how many rich, mediocre students there were but had 4-year access to top scholars in their field, had funded research opportunities, and got great recs that led to a phenomenal graduate program placement

Brown is one of the few Ivy League schools where top faculty engage full time with undergrads. The clout you get from a personalized Letter of Recommendation from a leading scholar combined with the research opportunities results in a very competitive grad school application that might be hard for a student from a public institution to match

Public has nothing to do with it. Is Michigan lesser than Elon? Didn't think so. Watch your mouth next time before spouting off.

DP. Wow, someone's triggered. True, private vs public has nothing to do with it, but Brown >>> W&M. That's just a fact.

Not sure that’s true. I used to think that, but a good friends kid just graduated from a top SLAC and the opportunities she had and personal effort put in by her professors and the school for her graduate school admissions was extraordinary, as were her results. His other kid is going to a top public school and has much lower grades despite being just as accomplished as his sister and busting his butt. My friend was completely surprised by this as well; he initially thought private school wasn’t worth the extra money over public, but has absolutely changed his mind. I see the same sorts of things with kids I interview as well. It seems to me that to do well at a well regarded public you need to be the absolute top of your class; to do well at a similar private you don’t need to stand out nearly as much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid graduated from Brown 4 years ago, breezed to a 4.0 double concentration (major) in the humanities. Was a little disappointed in how many rich, mediocre students there were but had 4-year access to top scholars in their field, had funded research opportunities, and got great recs that led to a phenomenal graduate program placement

Brown is one of the few Ivy League schools where top faculty engage full time with undergrads. The clout you get from a personalized Letter of Recommendation from a leading scholar combined with the research opportunities results in a very competitive grad school application that might be hard for a student from a public institution to match

Public has nothing to do with it. Is Michigan lesser than Elon? Didn't think so. Watch your mouth next time before spouting off.

DP. Wow, someone's triggered. True, private vs public has nothing to do with it, but Brown >>> W&M. That's just a fact.

Not sure that’s true. I used to think that, but a good friends kid just graduated from a top SLAC and the opportunities she had and personal effort put in by her professors and the school for her graduate school admissions was extraordinary, as were her results. His other kid is going to a top public school and has much lower grades despite being just as accomplished as his sister and busting his butt. My friend was completely surprised by this as well; he initially thought private school wasn’t worth the extra money over public, but has absolutely changed his mind. I see the same sorts of things with kids I interview as well. It seems to me that to do well at a well regarded public you need to be the absolute top of your class; to do well at a similar private you don’t need to stand out nearly as much.

Right...so Elon and Syracuse over Michigan and Berkeley?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid graduated from Brown 4 years ago, breezed to a 4.0 double concentration (major) in the humanities. Was a little disappointed in how many rich, mediocre students there were but had 4-year access to top scholars in their field, had funded research opportunities, and got great recs that led to a phenomenal graduate program placement

Brown is one of the few Ivy League schools where top faculty engage full time with undergrads. The clout you get from a personalized Letter of Recommendation from a leading scholar combined with the research opportunities results in a very competitive grad school application that might be hard for a student from a public institution to match

Public has nothing to do with it. Is Michigan lesser than Elon? Didn't think so. Watch your mouth next time before spouting off.

DP. Wow, someone's triggered. True, private vs public has nothing to do with it, but Brown >>> W&M. That's just a fact.

Not sure that’s true. I used to think that, but a good friends kid just graduated from a top SLAC and the opportunities she had and personal effort put in by her professors and the school for her graduate school admissions was extraordinary, as were her results. His other kid is going to a top public school and has much lower grades despite being just as accomplished as his sister and busting his butt. My friend was completely surprised by this as well; he initially thought private school wasn’t worth the extra money over public, but has absolutely changed his mind. I see the same sorts of things with kids I interview as well. It seems to me that to do well at a well regarded public you need to be the absolute top of your class; to do well at a similar private you don’t need to stand out nearly as much.

It’s not that simplistic. Every kid (barring a few legacy/athletic star) are the cream of the crop—-Tippy top best from their respective HS. Every single one. So they are all the top. It’s not true at large state schools—maybe top 20% so the need to be at the very top is more important at the larger public.

[Anonymous]

^ u see that in acceptance rate of 33% vs -5% (and test required at brown too). The mean student is much higher %

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:W&M just because your DC could probably get a better gpa (much better?) at W&M which is basically all that matters for law school other than LSAT and work experience. That said, if Yale Law is her dream, go to Brown because they give a bump for Ivy+ schools.

Brown has tons of grade inflation!

And, you clearly have no experience there. Sure, kids can do S /NC to push them out of the box, and retake to replace an F (which I think is about good thing frankly), but courses are rigorous and not easy A. My kids from top DC are magnet are working hard. Others getting Bs and Cs

This is well documented.

https://www.browndailyherald.com/article/2022/04/brown-grade-inflation-continues-to-soar-data-shows
https://www.vox.com/xpress/2014/9/10/6132411/chart-grade-inflation-in-the-ivy-league-over-time
https://ripplematch.com/insights/the-top-15-universities-with-the-highest-average-gpas-4f4b544d

Didn’t read all articles, but not completely accurate. It is not true that you can’t earn a D or an F like one says. You absolutely can, the difference is that neither is passing and won’t show on external transcript so you can retake. The no +/- may help, but I think it tends to balance out in the end. My kid has lost an A by 1-2 points twice and it’s rough taking that to a 3.0. The S/NC some will take one class this way to explore with fear. Students headed to med, law, grad
don’t usually so it. My premed won’t do any. The classes are very rigorous, with open curriculum the student chose it so all are invested. Not disputing gpa’s are high, but some of the nitty gritty tends to get misrepresented.

There was a drive in recent years to lower the GPAs at Brown. Incoming classes feel it. It is very rigorous. Lots and lots of hours in the library. This year’s class saw far more Bs and below.

Agree, my stem kid is feeling it. They report their humanities friends are also overwhelmed. I’m sure the other person posting knows more than current students though. 🙄

I’ll be honest, my kid went to a top ranked high school top of the class, perfect score on SAT no prep. I was not expecting this, and they would have lightened load accordingly if they could go back in time.

I have a humanities kid. Very rigorous. In library all the time. 1 point away from an A in two spring courses (worse than if it want close). Also tough private, uw4, perfect ACT- no prep. Brown Herald had an article about grade deflation, the recent pulling away from handing out as many As.

The last I saw was about grade INFLATION and too many As.

https://www.browndailyherald.com/article/2024/12/is-brown-giving-out-too-many-as-professors-discuss-grading-practices-grade-inflation

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:W&M just because your DC could probably get a better gpa (much better?) at W&M which is basically all that matters for law school other than LSAT and work experience. That said, if Yale Law is her dream, go to Brown because they give a bump for Ivy+ schools.

Brown has tons of grade inflation!

And, you clearly have no experience there. Sure, kids can do S /NC to push them out of the box, and retake to replace an F (which I think is about good thing frankly), but courses are rigorous and not easy A. My kids from top DC are magnet are working hard. Others getting Bs and Cs

This is well documented.

https://www.browndailyherald.com/article/2022/04/brown-grade-inflation-continues-to-soar-data-shows
https://www.vox.com/xpress/2014/9/10/6132411/chart-grade-inflation-in-the-ivy-league-over-time
https://ripplematch.com/insights/the-top-15-universities-with-the-highest-average-gpas-4f4b544d

Didn’t read all articles, but not completely accurate. It is not true that you can’t earn a D or an F like one says. You absolutely can, the difference is that neither is passing and won’t show on external transcript so you can retake. The no +/- may help, but I think it tends to balance out in the end. My kid has lost an A by 1-2 points twice and it’s rough taking that to a 3.0. The S/NC some will take one class this way to explore with fear. Students headed to med, law, grad
don’t usually so it. My premed won’t do any. The classes are very rigorous, with open curriculum the student chose it so all are invested. Not disputing gpa’s are high, but some of the nitty gritty tends to get misrepresented.

There was a drive in recent years to lower the GPAs at Brown. Incoming classes feel it. It is very rigorous. Lots and lots of hours in the library. This year’s class saw far more Bs and below.

Agree, my stem kid is feeling it. They report their humanities friends are also overwhelmed. I’m sure the other person posting knows more than current students though. 🙄

I’ll be honest, my kid went to a top ranked high school top of the class, perfect score on SAT no prep. I was not expecting this, and they would have lightened load accordingly if they could go back in time.

I have a humanities kid. Very rigorous. In library all the time. 1 point away from an A in two spring courses (worse than if it want close). Also tough private, uw4, perfect ACT- no prep. Brown Herald had an article about grade deflation, the recent pulling away from handing out as many As.

The last I saw was about grade INFLATION and too many As.

https://www.browndailyherald.com/article/2024/12/is-brown-giving-out-too-many-as-professors-discuss-grading-practices-grade-inflation

Brown is open curriculum. You can avoid subjects you think may be difficult for you or take pass/fail.

[Anonymous]

Brown