How would you rank NESCACS academically?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

hamilton is just sooo mid

no one’s first choice entering the college process. yeah kids ed there after reality sets in

bottom of the nescac in my DC’s friend group - never really comes up with Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin, Tufts, Wes and Colby

Hamilton is far above Midd or Colby. My DC’s friends - who applied to top SLACs including Hamilton, Williams, Bowdoin - would not consider Wes (faded popularity, too many artsy/loner types ) or Colby (depressed town/students not as smart but college has famed rankings). And all those kids but one thought Tufts seemed like it was looking for an identity.

The super-nerdy kids I know (not meant pejoratively) looking for top academics are applying to Bowdoin, Williams, Swarthmore, and Hamilton plus Ivies and schools like JHU, Duke, and MIT. Not Colby, Wes, Midd.

Add Amherst, and switch Middlebury for Hamilton, and that works

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Fiske Guide To Colleges 2023 edition academic ratings:

Amherst, Williams, Bowdoin, & Wesleyan = 5

Tufts, Hamilton,Middlebury, Colby, & Bates = 4.5

Conn College & Trinity College = 4

Based on prestige & academics:

Williams & Amherst

Bowdoin & Middlebury

Hamilton, Wesleyan, & Tufts

Colby

Bates

Trinity College & Conn College

I think Bowdoin is a clear step above Middlebury academically even though on paper they are sort of similar schools. Not to mention that Bowdoin's endowment per student (around $1M per student) is third after Wiliams ($1.45) and Amherst ($1.29), and the fourth school is Hamilton at less than $500k per kid. That's a big gap that has an effect over time.

Note that the "six college" liberal arts schools that do admissions stuff together are Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin, Swarthmore, Pomona, and Carleton. That's one way Willams and Amherst kind of shows which schools it thinks are its reasonable peers. I think Middlebury is sort of doing its own thing now, especially with admitted 80% of its class via ED.

Hamilton has a lot of money and is trying to use that to move up, but its location and campus is going to be a challenge for it. But a lot of kids are really happy when they go there. Wes is unique and the top of its class is impressive but it isn't that hard to get in comparatively. Tufts is not really NESCAC in feel but is probably the school below Bowdoin now.

All of the differences are small and a kid that is happy and does well at a "lower-ranked" school will likely do better post-college than a kid at a "higher-ranked" school who is unhappy and doesn't do well.

Williams
Amherst
Bowdoin
Tufts
Middlebury
Hamilton
Wesleyan
Colby
Bates
Trinity or Conn College

A+ both on this list and supporting points. Bravo.

Regarding Hamilton location --I was just there w/ my junior. While the town of Clinton is down a steep hill and extremely limited, (though very quaint and a great cider mill and gelato place) I will say the campus itself is very pretty. Lots of old traditional building with new buildings nicely incorporated. It's totally flat and the size is nice--very walkable but lots of green space. Campus buildings are all renovated and well maintained. Lots of dining options for a small school including a coffee cafe place, a pub, a diner as well as two main dining halls. What I was most suprised about is Utica is about 15 min away. Clearly, not a destination city but several upscale restaurants including a delicious farm to table restaurant with a great atmosphere that is moving to a larger space in the near future. There are many hotels, most are on the new side including a very nice Homewood suites only 10 min from campus. So my point is that yes, Hamilton has some location challenges but there are all the amenities that one needs. Also, it's any easy drive as right off rt 90 so no backroads.

utica is the armpit of the rust belt - Hamilton location is the worst in the Nescac

check out lewiston

[Anonymous]

only kids in DCUM who care about these schools are the athletes who aren’t good enough to be recruited by ivy league schools. Nescacs full of ivy reject athletes. Leads to weird dynamics on campus when 1/3 are athletes

[Anonymous]

Hamilton graduate here. There has been a lot of effort in increasing the profile and academic caliber of the school. Will it ever be Williams? No, but it has strong liberal arts foundation that will prepare students for the next stage of life and beyond.

The new president is trying to push Hamilton into the Bowdoin/Middlebury tier, but that is probably not realistic. However it has surpassed Colby and Colgate, two of its' closest competitors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Fiske Guide To Colleges 2023 edition academic ratings:

Amherst, Williams, Bowdoin, & Wesleyan = 5

Tufts, Hamilton,Middlebury, Colby, & Bates = 4.5

Conn College & Trinity College = 4

Based on prestige & academics:

Williams & Amherst

Bowdoin & Middlebury

Hamilton, Wesleyan, & Tufts

Colby

Bates

Trinity College & Conn College

I think Bowdoin is a clear step above Middlebury academically even though on paper they are sort of similar schools. Not to mention that Bowdoin's endowment per student (around $1M per student) is third after Wiliams ($1.45) and Amherst ($1.29), and the fourth school is Hamilton at less than $500k per kid. That's a big gap that has an effect over time.

Note that the "six college" liberal arts schools that do admissions stuff together are Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin, Swarthmore, Pomona, and Carleton. That's one way Willams and Amherst kind of shows which schools it thinks are its reasonable peers. I think Middlebury is sort of doing its own thing now, especially with admitted 80% of its class via ED.

Hamilton has a lot of money and is trying to use that to move up, but its location and campus is going to be a challenge for it. But a lot of kids are really happy when they go there. Wes is unique and the top of its class is impressive but it isn't that hard to get in comparatively. Tufts is not really NESCAC in feel but is probably the school below Bowdoin now.

All of the differences are small and a kid that is happy and does well at a "lower-ranked" school will likely do better post-college than a kid at a "higher-ranked" school who is unhappy and doesn't do well.

Williams
Amherst
Bowdoin
Tufts
Middlebury
Hamilton
Wesleyan
Colby
Bates
Trinity or Conn College

A+ both on this list and supporting points. Bravo.

Regarding Hamilton location --I was just there w/ my junior. While the town of Clinton is down a steep hill and extremely limited, (though very quaint and a great cider mill and gelato place) I will say the campus itself is very pretty. Lots of old traditional building with new buildings nicely incorporated. It's totally flat and the size is nice--very walkable but lots of green space. Campus buildings are all renovated and well maintained. Lots of dining options for a small school including a coffee cafe place, a pub, a diner as well as two main dining halls. What I was most suprised about is Utica is about 15 min away. Clearly, not a destination city but several upscale restaurants including a delicious farm to table restaurant with a great atmosphere that is moving to a larger space in the near future. There are many hotels, most are on the new side including a very nice Homewood suites only 10 min from campus. So my point is that yes, Hamilton has some location challenges but there are all the amenities that one needs. Also, it's any easy drive as right off rt 90 so no backroads.

utica is the armpit of the rust belt - Hamilton location is the worst in the Nescac

check out lewiston

Hartford? Has that poster even been to Trinity?

[Anonymous]

Hamilton is the SLAC version of Lehigh -

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hamilton graduate here. There has been a lot of effort in increasing the profile and academic caliber of the school. Will it ever be Williams? No, but it has strong liberal arts foundation that will prepare students for the next stage of life and beyond.

The new president is trying to push Hamilton into the Bowdoin/Middlebury tier, but that is probably not realistic. However it has surpassed Colby and Colgate, two of its' closest competitors.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Fiske Guide To Colleges 2023 edition academic ratings:

Amherst, Williams, Bowdoin, & Wesleyan = 5

Tufts, Hamilton,Middlebury, Colby, & Bates = 4.5

Conn College & Trinity College = 4

Based on prestige & academics:

Williams & Amherst

Bowdoin & Middlebury

Hamilton, Wesleyan, & Tufts

Colby

Bates

Trinity College & Conn College

I think Bowdoin is a clear step above Middlebury academically even though on paper they are sort of similar schools. Not to mention that Bowdoin's endowment per student (around $1M per student) is third after Wiliams ($1.45) and Amherst ($1.29), and the fourth school is Hamilton at less than $500k per kid. That's a big gap that has an effect over time.

Note that the "six college" liberal arts schools that do admissions stuff together are Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin, Swarthmore, Pomona, and Carleton. That's one way Willams and Amherst kind of shows which schools it thinks are its reasonable peers. I think Middlebury is sort of doing its own thing now, especially with admitted 80% of its class via ED.

Hamilton has a lot of money and is trying to use that to move up, but its location and campus is going to be a challenge for it. But a lot of kids are really happy when they go there. Wes is unique and the top of its class is impressive but it isn't that hard to get in comparatively. Tufts is not really NESCAC in feel but is probably the school below Bowdoin now.

All of the differences are small and a kid that is happy and does well at a "lower-ranked" school will likely do better post-college than a kid at a "higher-ranked" school who is unhappy and doesn't do well.

Williams
Amherst
Bowdoin
Tufts
Middlebury
Hamilton
Wesleyan
Colby
Bates
Trinity or Conn College

A+ both on this list and supporting points. Bravo.

Regarding Hamilton location --I was just there w/ my junior. While the town of Clinton is down a steep hill and extremely limited, (though very quaint and a great cider mill and gelato place) I will say the campus itself is very pretty. Lots of old traditional building with new buildings nicely incorporated. It's totally flat and the size is nice--very walkable but lots of green space. Campus buildings are all renovated and well maintained. Lots of dining options for a small school including a coffee cafe place, a pub, a diner as well as two main dining halls. What I was most suprised about is Utica is about 15 min away. Clearly, not a destination city but several upscale restaurants including a delicious farm to table restaurant with a great atmosphere that is moving to a larger space in the near future. There are many hotels, most are on the new side including a very nice Homewood suites only 10 min from campus. So my point is that yes, Hamilton has some location challenges but there are all the amenities that one needs. Also, it's any easy drive as right off rt 90 so no backroads.

utica is the armpit of the rust belt - Hamilton location is the worst in the Nescac

check out lewiston

Agree.

Lewiston, Maine (Bates College) is terrible. Very depressing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hamilton graduate here. There has been a lot of effort in increasing the profile and academic caliber of the school. Will it ever be Williams? No, but it has strong liberal arts foundation that will prepare students for the next stage of life and beyond.

The new president is trying to push Hamilton into the Bowdoin/Middlebury tier, but that is probably not realistic. However it has surpassed Colby and Colgate, two of its' closest competitors.

Hamilton is great. If you prefer Bowdoin or Middlebury, those are fantastic schools. but would be silly to choose any of them for a reason purely of this ranking system or that ranking system. At that point...you should visit and dig deeper than the ranking systems to make the best choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hamilton is the SLAC version of Lehigh -

nope. do some research

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hamilton is the SLAC version of Lehigh -

acceptance rates quite different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hamilton graduate here. There has been a lot of effort in increasing the profile and academic caliber of the school. Will it ever be Williams? No, but it has strong liberal arts foundation that will prepare students for the next stage of life and beyond.

Which ultimately is what matters. All these schools are great; all will set up a student very well for work and/or grad school. Some will have better fits for particular students.

Of course Williams is fantastic. But those of you acting like Connecticut College isn't also a good LAC really need to recalibrate.

(*I have no connection to Conn College, other than knowing a few bright/successful grads.)

[Anonymous]

How do these LACs compare to national universities? Is Williams HYPSM level? Are Bowdoin and Middlebury comperable to Duke and Northwestern? Or are they lower

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do these LACs compare to national universities? Is Williams HYPSM level? Are Bowdoin and Middlebury comperable to Duke and Northwestern? Or are they lower

Williams and Amherst are MAYBE around the lower T10s. Likely worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do these LACs compare to national universities? Is Williams HYPSM level? Are Bowdoin and Middlebury comperable to Duke and Northwestern? Or are they lower

In what way do you want to compare them? Lots of professors send their kids to LACs because they feel like they'll get a better educational experience than at a larger university.