If you thought your kid best suited for LAC did they end up at one?

[Anonymous]

That’s what I thought, OP. But mine wanted VT. I still don’t know if it was the best choice for them. I will say, the professors were always welcoming at office hours, sympathetic when a real health issue arose, and with rare exception were very « human » even in the sciences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just starting the college search, and my list has almost all SLACs for DD. I think she would do best in a smaller environment, and I think the liberal arts curriculum would best suit her.

Obviously, she will weigh in on this, but I’m curious if your DC indeed chose a SLAC if you thought that’s where they would end up.

What exactly would the profile of a kid suited for a SLAC look like ? What type of kid does well at a SLAC? Asking because neither of my kids are interested in exploring that possibility but I don’t know if they’d even be a good fit or we’d be missing out if we don’t explore further. Both DH and I are expats and didn’t go to college in the US.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes and yes (now at Williams). We encouraged her to look at a wide variety of schools - public/private, small/med/large, rural/urban/suburban, college/university. She loved many schools, of differing sizes, and in the end went with her gut, despite being accepted by what her counselor and peers thought were "better" schools.

Curious which larger schools appeal to a kid who also likes Williams and are considered “better” schools? We’re rising senior putting list together. Thanks.

I put "better" in quotes because it's absolutely subjective, but the other schools she got into were Pomona, Yale, and UChicago. She got into Chicago EA so trimmed her list down a lot for RD. My point was basically that the same kid can love very different schools.

Yale and Uchicago are objectively better schools. Williams is nice though, good job.

Williams is objectively better than UChicago for every major except Econ. Nice try, though.

Keep telling yourself that.

It's true. Top SLACs are better for basically anything undergrad.

[Anonymous]

I thought for sure my kids would want a SLAC like the one I attended but they wanted the large school experience. Couldn't be happier and having a fabulous time both academically and socially, so I'm happy for them and honestly, even a little regretful that I didn't have the opportunities they're having.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes and yes (now at Williams). We encouraged her to look at a wide variety of schools - public/private, small/med/large, rural/urban/suburban, college/university. She loved many schools, of differing sizes, and in the end went with her gut, despite being accepted by what her counselor and peers thought were "better" schools.

Curious which larger schools appeal to a kid who also likes Williams and are considered “better” schools? We’re rising senior putting list together. Thanks.

I put "better" in quotes because it's absolutely subjective, but the other schools she got into were Pomona, Yale, and UChicago. She got into Chicago EA so trimmed her list down a lot for RD. My point was basically that the same kid can love very different schools.

Yale and Uchicago are objectively better schools. Williams is nice though, good job.

Williams is objectively better than UChicago for every major except Econ. Nice try, though.

Uchicago is superior to Williams in Physics, Mathematics, History, Philosophy, Anthropology, public policy, political science, computer science, and economics. I actually think Williams would be better compared to Yale if you wanted to do boosting- Chicago is An academic powerhouse.

You’re high. Stupid as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes and yes (now at Williams). We encouraged her to look at a wide variety of schools - public/private, small/med/large, rural/urban/suburban, college/university. She loved many schools, of differing sizes, and in the end went with her gut, despite being accepted by what her counselor and peers thought were "better" schools.

Curious which larger schools appeal to a kid who also likes Williams and are considered “better” schools? We’re rising senior putting list together. Thanks.

I put "better" in quotes because it's absolutely subjective, but the other schools she got into were Pomona, Yale, and UChicago. She got into Chicago EA so trimmed her list down a lot for RD. My point was basically that the same kid can love very different schools.

This. Sure, a minority of kids *need* to be in a particular environment to thrive at college, but the smartest and most discerning students understand that what matters is the intellectual rigor of a given school, such that once a school hits a certain threshold, the choice, assuming finances aren't an issue, should be about fit. If what you're after is a liberal arts education, there is no wrong choice when it comes to deciding between Williams, Pomona, Yale and Chicago. People who think that Yale would be the obvious choice because it's an Ivy or that universities are superior to LACs just reveal their own lack of intelligence and critical thinking skills.

This feels true until you realize there’s a dearth of resources in certain programs and fields at Williams or Pomona compared to Yale or Uchicago. It’s just the reality of these tiny schools with departments of 10 faculty.

This how one demonstrates stupidity without coming right out and hanging a sign around their neck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes and yes (now at Williams). We encouraged her to look at a wide variety of schools - public/private, small/med/large, rural/urban/suburban, college/university. She loved many schools, of differing sizes, and in the end went with her gut, despite being accepted by what her counselor and peers thought were "better" schools.

Curious which larger schools appeal to a kid who also likes Williams and are considered “better” schools? We’re rising senior putting list together. Thanks.

I put "better" in quotes because it's absolutely subjective, but the other schools she got into were Pomona, Yale, and UChicago. She got into Chicago EA so trimmed her list down a lot for RD. My point was basically that the same kid can love very different schools.

Yale and Uchicago are objectively better schools. Williams is nice though, good job.

Williams is objectively better than UChicago for every major except Econ. Nice try, though.

Uchicago is superior to Williams in Physics, Mathematics, History, Philosophy, Anthropology, public policy, political science, computer science, and economics. I actually think Williams would be better compared to Yale if you wanted to do boosting- Chicago is An academic powerhouse.

You’re high. Stupid as well.

These are the fields Uchicago is known for. I can’t believe someone genuinely thinks Williams has an edge in any of these areas of study.

[Anonymous]

A year ago my kid thought for sure they wanted a SLAC and was ok with being hours away from home. They committed to a larger school with a LA focus, close to home. Apply to a variety of schools! They will change their minds and preferences after a year!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just starting the college search, and my list has almost all SLACs for DD. I think she would do best in a smaller environment, and I think the liberal arts curriculum would best suit her.

Obviously, she will weigh in on this, but I’m curious if your DC indeed chose a SLAC if you thought that’s where they would end up.

What exactly would the profile of a kid suited for a SLAC look like ? What type of kid does well at a SLAC? Asking because neither of my kids are interested in exploring that possibility but I don’t know if they’d even be a good fit or we’d be missing out if we don’t explore further. Both DH and I are expats and didn’t go to college in the US.

My daughter was interested in SLACs early on - she wanted small classes, close relationships with her professors, and the campus "bubble" effect appealed to her. As a NYC kid, the idea of spending her undergrad years in a small community, where most of the social life, activities, etc., happened on campus, was very enticing. My other kid is the exact opposite - wouldn't even tour SLACs, wanted a bigger school, the ability to be a bit more anonymous. The thing about my dd's SLAC is, you really cannot hide - the classes are small, discussion based, she has had more than one professor invite the entire class over to dinner at the end of a semester. You will constantly run into people you know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just starting the college search, and my list has almost all SLACs for DD. I think she would do best in a smaller environment, and I think the liberal arts curriculum would best suit her.

Obviously, she will weigh in on this, but I’m curious if your DC indeed chose a SLAC if you thought that’s where they would end up.

Very similar here. Liked campus that felt well defined with a strong nature vibe. Wanted 4 years of campus, strong sense of community and campus based social scene. Likes parties with friends but not a club / rave type. At admit day really liked that people seemed to know / recognize one another everywhere. Really wanted a student body that liked learning for learning’s sake. Has an idea of probable major, and is definitely mathy vs creative in terms of field but is not set on that and has a wide range of interests - having 2 years to explore academics before needing to declare is huge. Small classes and connection with professors a huge draw.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just starting the college search, and my list has almost all SLACs for DD. I think she would do best in a smaller environment, and I think the liberal arts curriculum would best suit her.

Obviously, she will weigh in on this, but I’m curious if your DC indeed chose a SLAC if you thought that’s where they would end up.

What exactly would the profile of a kid suited for a SLAC look like ? What type of kid does well at a SLAC? Asking because neither of my kids are interested in exploring that possibility but I don’t know if they’d even be a good fit or we’d be missing out if we don’t explore further. Both DH and I are expats and didn’t go to college in the US.

My daughter was interested in SLACs early on - she wanted small classes, close relationships with her professors, and the campus "bubble" effect appealed to her. As a NYC kid, the idea of spending her undergrad years in a small community, where most of the social life, activities, etc., happened on campus, was very enticing. My other kid is the exact opposite - wouldn't even tour SLACs, wanted a bigger school, the ability to be a bit more anonymous. The thing about my dd's SLAC is, you really cannot hide - the classes are small, discussion based, she has had more than one professor invite the entire class over to dinner at the end of a semester. You will constantly run into people you know.

Very similar here. Liked campus that felt well defined with a strong nature vibe. Wanted 4 years of campus, strong sense of community and campus based social scene. Likes parties with friends but not a club / rave type. At admit day really liked that people seemed to know / recognize one another everywhere. Really wanted a student body that liked learning for learning’s sake. Has an idea of probable major, and is definitely mathy vs creative in terms of field but is not set on that and has a wide range of interests - having 2 years to explore academics before needing to declare is huge. Small classes and connection with professors a huge draw.

[Anonymous]

No, I thought my older DS was destined for a LAC, and he applied to several and got in, but after he re-toured following acceptances, he realized he needed a bigger (but not huge) community.

He ended up enrolling at Tufts and two years later (he just finished his sophomore year at Tufts), he's so happy he did! He's loved his experience at Tufts and all's well that ends well.

Now onto DS #2 ...