Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:20     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Williams is a very special place. Academics are top notch and I loved the campus when we toured. While there was plenty of charm, there were also very modern renovated and new buildings that were impressive (similar to Middlebury but unlike Amherst) and the nearby town was very charming and great place for pizza, vintage shopping, ice cream. My DS just fell in love. And tutorial classes can occur between only 2 students and 1 teacher which is an amazing resource to deepen your understanding. Probably the smallest student to teacher ratio for any LAC.

Of the SLACs we toured (Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Amherst, Carleton, 5Cs) Williams was my DS's favorite by a mile.


Tutorials are massively overblown if you’re already attending a liberal arts college. Often they’re in your major but not a topic of particular interest and there’s not really a need to only have 2 students. You aren’t getting anything meaningfully different by having 2 versus 4-8 students in a course which you can get in any liberal arts school.


ok Jan

Dare to make a point?
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:18     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Williams is a very special place. Academics are top notch and I loved the campus when we toured. While there was plenty of charm, there were also very modern renovated and new buildings that were impressive (similar to Middlebury but unlike Amherst) and the nearby town was very charming and great place for pizza, vintage shopping, ice cream. My DS just fell in love. And tutorial classes can occur between only 2 students and 1 teacher which is an amazing resource to deepen your understanding. Probably the smallest student to teacher ratio for any LAC.

Of the SLACs we toured (Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Amherst, Carleton, 5Cs) Williams was my DS's favorite by a mile.


Tutorials are massively overblown if you’re already attending a liberal arts college. Often they’re in your major but not a topic of particular interest and there’s not really a need to only have 2 students. You aren’t getting anything meaningfully different by having 2 versus 4-8 students in a course which you can get in any liberal arts school.


ok Jan
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:18     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Williams is a very special place. Academics are top notch and I loved the campus when we toured. While there was plenty of charm, there were also very modern renovated and new buildings that were impressive (similar to Middlebury but unlike Amherst) and the nearby town was very charming and great place for pizza, vintage shopping, ice cream. My DS just fell in love. And tutorial classes can occur between only 2 students and 1 teacher which is an amazing resource to deepen your understanding. Probably the smallest student to teacher ratio for any LAC.

Of the SLACs we toured (Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Amherst, Carleton, 5Cs) Williams was my DS's favorite by a mile.


Williams student-faculty ratio: 7:1
Pomona student-faculty ratio: 7:1
Amherst student faculty ratio: 7:1
Swarthmore student faculty ratio: 8:1
Mind you, this is with tutorials, so the average Williams class actually runs a bit larger


Bowdoin 9:1
Middlebury 9:1

At 7:1, the PP you were replying to was right, Williams DOES have the lowest student-faculty ratio. So what if Pomona and Amherst tie Williams. And Swat, Bowdoin, Midd are all even lower.
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:15     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:Williams is a very special place. Academics are top notch and I loved the campus when we toured. While there was plenty of charm, there were also very modern renovated and new buildings that were impressive (similar to Middlebury but unlike Amherst) and the nearby town was very charming and great place for pizza, vintage shopping, ice cream. My DS just fell in love. And tutorial classes can occur between only 2 students and 1 teacher which is an amazing resource to deepen your understanding. Probably the smallest student to teacher ratio for any LAC.

Of the SLACs we toured (Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Amherst, Carleton, 5Cs) Williams was my DS's favorite by a mile.


Williams student-faculty ratio: 7:1
Pomona student-faculty ratio: 7:1
Amherst student faculty ratio: 7:1
Swarthmore student faculty ratio: 8:1
Mind you, this is with tutorials, so the average Williams class actually runs a bit larger
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:12     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:Williams is a very special place. Academics are top notch and I loved the campus when we toured. While there was plenty of charm, there were also very modern renovated and new buildings that were impressive (similar to Middlebury but unlike Amherst) and the nearby town was very charming and great place for pizza, vintage shopping, ice cream. My DS just fell in love. And tutorial classes can occur between only 2 students and 1 teacher which is an amazing resource to deepen your understanding. Probably the smallest student to teacher ratio for any LAC.

Of the SLACs we toured (Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Amherst, Carleton, 5Cs) Williams was my DS's favorite by a mile.


Tutorials are massively overblown if you’re already attending a liberal arts college. Often they’re in your major but not a topic of particular interest and there’s not really a need to only have 2 students. You aren’t getting anything meaningfully different by having 2 versus 4-8 students in a course which you can get in any liberal arts school.
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:08     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Williams is a very special place. Academics are top notch and I loved the campus when we toured. While there was plenty of charm, there were also very modern renovated and new buildings that were impressive (similar to Middlebury but unlike Amherst) and the nearby town was very charming and great place for pizza, vintage shopping, ice cream. My DS just fell in love. And tutorial classes can occur between only 2 students and 1 teacher which is an amazing resource to deepen your understanding. Probably the smallest student to teacher ratio for any LAC.

Of the SLACs we toured (Williams, Midd, Bowdoin, Amherst, Carleton, 5Cs) Williams was my DS's favorite by a mile.

Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:07     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Most insufferable alumni. I swear the near Ivies are the worst.
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:03     Subject: The Williams Prestige
I don’t really see a difference between Williams, Pomona, Swarthmore, or Amherst. They’re both good at their niche and have great outcomes. Don’t see the purpose in hairsplitting about institutions that hardly educate anyone
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 20:00     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What famous people have gone to Williams? I can think of a senator and a CNN anchor, and that’s about it. And neither of them are _that_ famous, all things considered.


Lina Khan - FTC chair, 2021-2025

She’s pretty unpopular and really doesn’t do much today.


The question was "what famous people have gone to Williams?", not "which popular people have gone to Williams and what are they doing today?"

But if that had been the question, the answer would be that since leaving office only 9 months ago, she has been a law professor at Columbia and establishing a research center.

Why do so many people here insist on wearing their low intelligence like a badge of honor?

Ah Columbia! Known for its popular academics
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 19:52     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:The top 5 SLACS are very tough admits, with acceptance rates in the single digits. But if I remember correctly, Williams had the highest acceptance rate of the five this past cycle. Sorry, OP, but that does not suggest "clear number 1" separate from the others.




Good point. Since OP had a special interest in trashing Pomona, let’s see: Pomona 6.9% vs. Williams 8.5% acceptance rates for Class ‘29.
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 19:30     Subject: The Williams Prestige
The top 5 SLACS are very tough admits, with acceptance rates in the single digits. But if I remember correctly, Williams had the highest acceptance rate of the five this past cycle. Sorry, OP, but that does not suggest "clear number 1" separate from the others.
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 19:25     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:Yes.

But it’s still a LAC, unfortunately.

lol
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 19:18     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:Interest in Williams has declined significantly at DC's magnet in recent years, I think because of the location. Amherst is the most popular application by far (more than twice as many as the next), then Swarthmore. Williams and Pomona about the same after that, Bowdoin last.



The location is a real consideration. It's spectacular fall and spring, but very remote. The winters are long and gray. A kid who is happy being in a small bubble will be content. Many won't like it, and there seems to be a general trend toward big schools in more desirable locations these days.
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 17:25     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What famous people have gone to Williams? I can think of a senator and a CNN anchor, and that’s about it. And neither of them are _that_ famous, all things considered.


Lina Khan - FTC chair, 2021-2025

She’s pretty unpopular and really doesn’t do much today.


The question was "what famous people have gone to Williams?", not "which popular people have gone to Williams and what are they doing today?"

But if that had been the question, the answer would be that since leaving office only 9 months ago, she has been a law professor at Columbia and establishing a research center.

Why do so many people here insist on wearing their low intelligence like a badge of honor?
Anonymous
Post 10/31/2025 17:09     Subject: The Williams Prestige
Interest in Williams has declined significantly at DC's magnet in recent years, I think because of the location. Amherst is the most popular application by far (more than twice as many as the next), then Swarthmore. Williams and Pomona about the same after that, Bowdoin last.