Hamilton College

[Anonymous]

Actually very few top SLACs have public policy majors. looked into this for DC, Pomona and Hamilton were the only ones I came across. It is more common in universities.

[Anonymous]

I have one family member who went to school there and another who worked there. Both loved it.

But it is isolated in a freezing part of the county with a ton of snow. And the sky is always grey. That’s why I, personally, would not want any school in that part of NY for my kids.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Hamilton is within six miles of typical suburban stuff. I hope people commenting on the area are sufficiently familiar with it to be reliable sources of information. However, as far as I can tell, some came in through a rural route (or the nearest Thruway exit) and have judged the area from a limited perspective.

Six miles is far though when you don’t have a car.

Hamilton operates a Jitney service, which runs hourly to suburban areas and weekly into the city of Utica:

The Jitney - The Jitney - Hamilton College https://share.google/iSYZXCDMXmwDl1xAf

Utica is super depressed and the fact that they call it the jitney (as in reference to the Hamptons jitney) could be an issue for some.

I wonder if anyone other than you would make an association between the Hamilton Jitney and the Hampton Jitney. The term jitney, for a form of transportation, predates both of these uses by a wide margin.

[Anonymous]

Nope, it was factual. My youngest of three is a junior at a top 5 NE boarding school that my older kids also attended. Whenever an athlete isn’t recruited as they had hoped, Hamilton swoops in and takes them at the last minute. Whenever someone was on med leave, suspended, or has some other large hole in their academic record, they inevitably end up at Hamilton (or Tufts). And whenever the speaker cancels last minute for a college office presentation, the dean of admission for Hamilton always gets subbed in.

I know nothing about the school and I’m sure there are great people there. But the way they pander to our school is quite noteworthy and very real.

This is beyond obvious.

[Anonymous]

Forget Hamilton- way way too remote.

[Anonymous]

In terms of an overarching social atmosphere at Hamilton, the students there appear to be especially friendly based on survey information from the Princeton Review:

https://share.google/28t0OOe4jMClEuv2i

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Actually very few top SLACs have public policy majors. looked into this for DC, Pomona and Hamilton were the only ones I came across. It is more common in universities.

Among LACs, this site placed Pomona and Hamilton first and second nationally for the study of public policy:

2025 Best Colleges for Public Policy - College Transitions https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/best-colleges-for-public-policy/

[Anonymous]

It is an excellent school. The students are smart but not full of themselves. The curriculum is very open/unstructured, which many treasure. The community has a friendly vibe, and outdoor activities are popular. We preferred it to Colgate.

Both are very cold in the winter. And the walk to campus is uphill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing that struck us on the tour is that they provide 2 advisors from day one: one for academics, one for helping to develop professional goals. That could be a good thing or too pre-professional, depending on your point of view. They also are one of the few undergrads with a policy major (Pomona is another).

Huh? Almost every school my kids applied to had a policy (public and/or international policy) Major. Both kids are doing it an Ivy.

Sure they are 😂

[Anonymous]

How is their record for medical school placement compare to their peers (Bucknell, Colby)?

[Anonymous]

This DCUM topic offers an extensive discussion of medical school placement from liberal arts colleges:

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1303512.page

By one source posted, Hamilton places among the top dozen LACs by this outcome.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:LOL Hamilton is no Stanford. It's probably the weakest of the half dozen or so LACs tied for 13th in US News

Yet if you talked to them you’d find that the students are largely indistinguishable.

Sure. Keep telling yourself that.

The sad part is that you somehow believe that they are different when they most definitely are not. Hamilton in the top half of the NESCAC academically and for the top 5 the academic profiles are virtually identical except for the tails. Many of the students in these schools were shooting for the Ivies but didn't win the lottery, they are completely indistinguishable for the typical student at any Ivy league school which also makes them no different than a typical Stanford student.

Philosophically I want to believe this but I know a couple recent Hamilton grads and this is not the case for them. Have you met kids at Stanford recently? They're insanely accomplished.

I am Bay Area and I know lots of Stanford kids. My neighbor goes there, a close friends daughter went there, and our school sends several every year. All smart talented kids but nothing exceptional about any of them. One kid had a very neat EC because he worked in the kitchen of a Michelin 3 star for years but that’s it. Another is legacy but the family isn’t wealthy.

Cooking in a Michelin 3 star restaurant for years in high school isn’t exceptional?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is an excellent school. The students are smart but not full of themselves. The curriculum is very open/unstructured, which many treasure. The community has a friendly vibe, and outdoor activities are popular. We preferred it to Colgate.

Both are very cold in the winter. And the walk to campus is uphill.

No one walks up the hill to campus. Sophomores may live in a dorm that is a little downhill. The drive to campus is not one students regularly walk because there are other ways of getting downtown and not a lot of need to go downtown. The campus events are enough.

[Anonymous]

Hamilton is an excellent institution. As said above, it is remote, and the weather is less than desirable. Like all SLACs, your DC will burn through everything you can do at the school socially in the first two years and will probably need to do a study abroad to keep their sanity. Otherwise, it has great connections, Phd placement, and job placement in NYC and Boston.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:LOL Hamilton is no Stanford. It's probably the weakest of the half dozen or so LACs tied for 13th in US News

Yet if you talked to them you’d find that the students are largely indistinguishable.

Sure. Keep telling yourself that.

The sad part is that you somehow believe that they are different when they most definitely are not. Hamilton in the top half of the NESCAC academically and for the top 5 the academic profiles are virtually identical except for the tails. Many of the students in these schools were shooting for the Ivies but didn't win the lottery, they are completely indistinguishable for the typical student at any Ivy league school which also makes them no different than a typical Stanford student.

Philosophically I want to believe this but I know a couple recent Hamilton grads and this is not the case for them. Have you met kids at Stanford recently? They're insanely accomplished.

I am Bay Area and I know lots of Stanford kids. My neighbor goes there, a close friends daughter went there, and our school sends several every year. All smart talented kids but nothing exceptional about any of them. One kid had a very neat EC because he worked in the kitchen of a Michelin 3 star for years but that’s it. Another is legacy but the family isn’t wealthy.

If you don't think working in a Michelin 3 star restaurant is anything exceptional, you'd be incredibly disappointed with Hamilton kids.