Waterville is not a dump, by any reasonable measure. It isn't Brunswick but nor is it Lewiston. Nice town, good people, strip malls and wal marts, but not a dump.

And often counseling does not help. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2015/04/30/i-wish-i-had-never-told-my-brother-to-get-help-from-our-college-when-he-was-suicidal/?utm_term=.6f7a0922cb46

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid loves W&M and probably would feel stifled at Colby because of its location and size. One advantage of Colby though is that it's a private SLAC and from my experience with my other child at a private SLAC, they will be deeply invested in making sure your child succeeds. For a public college, though, W&M is very well-run, but it just doesn't have the extra resources (ie: tutoring, career counseling, alumni network) that a private SLAC has. It's a tough choice, OP. I think your DC will be able to decide after his overnight at Colby.

Not sure what you mean. I found the career services st William and Mary to be excellent, and the alumni network to be helpful. YMMV.

When we visited there they really made a big deal about the career services center and how many of the students used it. I remember commenting to spouse that was one of the things I liked about the school. i'd say this is one of its strengths, not a weakness.

They have to emphasize that now because of the number of suicides.

Colby grad here. Great education and network. But be very aware that long winters are LOOOOONG and make sure your child has a car - Colby is in the middle of nowhere.

FYI, the other schools my DS was admitted to are: Boston University, Skidmore, UMass-Amherst, Fordham, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Dickinson. They are all great schools and he is fortunate to have these options. He narrowed his list down to W & M and Colby.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colby hands down assuming DC is cool with the location, size and vibe. Much better reputation and a far more enjoyable overall collegiate experience assuming DC isn’t a typical NOVA grinder.

?? W&M's academic reputation is as good or better than Colby's.
Williamsburg better town by far than Waterville
And all the ratings have it among happiest student body (see Princeton Review rankings above).

Waterville is a dump and I have no horse in this race but ask anybody that has hiring authority in NYC this question and it’s Colby no questions asked. There is also a Nescac bump that W&M will never enjoy.

USNWR has W&M #7 for undergraduate teaching; Colby #20. Big difference

Anonymous wrote:Colby kids are smart. W&M kids are smart. Reputations at both are great. Cannot go wrong with attending either. This seems a purely 'fit' situation.

True, that

Has your son totally ruled out the other six schools he was admitted to? Would be curious what the other options are.

I know a professor from Colby who moved to another school because of the community - pretty blue collar and just couldn't find many like-minded folks. The winters were another motivating factor. That said, college is only four years. Many of the NE SLAC have that preppy UMC white feel - even relatively diverse Amherst.

I don't know much about W&M so can't comment on it.

Colby kids are smart. W&M kids are smart. Reputations at both are great. Cannot go wrong with attending either. This seems a purely 'fit' situation.

Anonymous wrote:Colby hands down assuming DC is cool with the location, size and vibe. Much better reputation and a far more enjoyable overall collegiate experience assuming DC isn’t a typical NOVA grinder.

?? W&M's academic reputation is as good or better than Colby's.
Williamsburg better town by far than Waterville
And all the ratings have it among happiest student body (see Princeton Review rankings above).

Colby hands down assuming DC is cool with the location, size and vibe. Much better reputation and a far more enjoyable overall collegiate experience assuming DC isn’t a typical NOVA grinder.

As a native of Wisconsin and and expert in cheese, I must agree that Colby is indeed a mediocre cheese.

New poster here. OP, if your son is doing an overnight at Colby, be sure he also does an overnight at W&M to get that experience at both places. An overnight can really sway a kid (as we saw with several families we knew) and your son should get the same time at one school as at the other.

I'd also advise him to be sure to spend time in the communities on both schools' doorsteps, so he knows about the towns' sizes, demographics, what's offered off campus, etc. And he really should consider the weather. I know that my DC has said DC doesn't want to look at schools in places with long, snowy winters as that has zero appeal to DC -- your son may love that. Or he may like snow but realize he doesn't want it for the majority of the year....

I don't have a dog in this fight re: either W&M or Colby, but he needs to think in terms of living four years in a row in either place.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the OP: It sounds as if you have a great son. I am sure that he will be happy with whatever he chooses.

As a W&M alumnus who has posted earlier in this thread, I have two more thoughts: W&M has more of a national reputation, where as Colby's is more regional. If your son wants to stay in the northeast after graduation, this won't matter. If he wants to move elsewhere, it might. Also, if he likes to ski, Colby would be a great choice due to its proximity to ski country.

I would disagree about the reputation — I hadn’t really heard of W&M and assumed it was a second tier public school until I moved to the east coast. I had heard of Colby, and knew it as a top 50 LAC.

I’m from the West Coast.

Obviously now I know I was wrong about W&M but just saying.

Nice try, but I’m callibg bs on this. The giveaway was that you knew it was a public school. Those who have hardly heard of it assume it’s a private school. Kind of like I thought Colby was just a mediocre type of cheese.