Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 14:08     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:Sell the rural LACs not named Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin. Midd, Colgate, Colby, and Hamilton are buying time.


You are delusional and generally stupid. Fools like you are just as bad as the idiots who believe that the Ivies are the be all and end all.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 13:48     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:If you’re over 80 that’s when one wants to slow down and locations of Colby, Midd, Hamilton and Colgate are fine. Think of Henry Fonda in the movie On Golden Pond. When your 18 most kids enjoy civilization and what a city offers or Southern schools with warm weather big time football as in Ole Miss. Davidson checks both boxes and in NE only Haverford, Holy Cross, Swarthmore/Haverford. With $4 billion plus endowment Williams will continue its dominance.


I enjoyed being in the middle of nowhere Williamstown. Many wealthy people live in the Berkshires for a reason, they’re gorgeous. Most people went to NY Boston or LA after college. I don’t know how 4 years of your life in a gorgeous rural town is exactly oppressing your youth- especially when you go home for extended times for breaks and internships.

Parents here love kvetching about any and everything. Most college kids can’t even afford the lifestyle of an urban college. It’s sad hearing responses from people who clearly didn’t grow after college.
m

I loved my time in Williamstown too. Since then, I’ve lived in several major metro areas and am now in the mid-size city. I don’t think I missed out on anything. That was probably the one time in my life when I could have the rural New England town experience.


Spot on. When my kid turned down Pomona (and CMC) and headed east your comment is exactly her sentiment "I likely won't get another chance for that type of experience for a long time if ever."
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 13:46     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:Nobody in the real world care about these teeny tiny schools. They're like elite boarding schools, I'm sure there is good learning and a small but mighty network of alums, but it really doesn't amount to much. The reality is most adults in the US and world has never heard of any of these tiny lacs.


+100
I have no doubt the OP started this thread as yet another attempt to keep these obscure schools in the conversation.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 13:45     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:Can’t imagine spending more than 4 hours at Colby, Colgate, Hamilton, or Midd. But their boosters will tell us there is a Walmart and a Panera 15 minutes away assuming it’s not snowing.


Sounds like you have a pretty limited outlook on life. You probably aren't the type who could into one of those schools so everybody wins in the end.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 13:33     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
stop trying to make fetch happen Gretchen....

Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 13:30     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:I get the feeling this thread generally consists of the Bowdoin booster (wtf is WASP-B?), Colby booster, the infamous Holy Cross booster, the Middlebury hater, the Middlebury booster, and the Williams booster talking amongst themselves while the rest of us sit here laughing at them. Embarrassing indeed.
Don't forget about the pack of Amherst haters.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 13:27     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
I get the feeling this thread generally consists of the Bowdoin booster (wtf is WASP-B?), Colby booster, the infamous Holy Cross booster, the Middlebury hater, the Middlebury booster, and the Williams booster talking amongst themselves while the rest of us sit here laughing at them. Embarrassing indeed.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 13:24     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Williams for a rural experience
Amherst for a college town experience
Swarthmore for a suburban experience
Pomona for a west coast experience
Barnard/Reed for the urban experience

You aren't better than others for choosing one over the other.


West coaster checking in! I'd hardly call Pomona or any of the 5Cs providing a true "west coast" experience. The 5Cs are firmly in what we call the "Inland empire". Nowhere near the coast or a city. Please don't think of it as being even within 30 minutes from a beach or major city. You need to fly into Ontario airport not LAX and it's easily 1-2 hrs (depending on how bad the traffic is) away from anything fun in LA. You're essentially just in an affluent suburb in the inland empire with a new-ish town area that's more interesting to professors and the parents of 5C students than teens or adults in their early 20s. There's no club, bar or music scene. The most laudable things about Claremont town is its farmer's market. It is very dull which is why the campus becomes a bubble for those students.

LA club culture sucks. If that's what you're going to the west coast for, reverse track and go to New York. Raves are in and great all around the area, usually closer to OC than LA or IE. Warehouse parties are all over right now. You can enjoy all of this if you're living in Claremont lol. It's not in the high desert.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 12:58     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Williams for a rural experience
Amherst for a college town experience
Swarthmore for a suburban experience
Pomona for a west coast experience
Barnard/Reed for the urban experience

You aren't better than others for choosing one over the other.


West coaster checking in! I'd hardly call Pomona or any of the 5Cs providing a true "west coast" experience. The 5Cs are firmly in what we call the "Inland empire". Nowhere near the coast or a city. Please don't think of it as being even within 30 minutes from a beach or major city. You need to fly into Ontario airport not LAX and it's easily 1-2 hrs (depending on how bad the traffic is) away from anything fun in LA. You're essentially just in an affluent suburb in the inland empire with a new-ish town area that's more interesting to professors and the parents of 5C students than teens or adults in their early 20s. There's no club, bar or music scene. The most laudable things about Claremont town is its farmer's market. It is very dull which is why the campus becomes a bubble for those students.

Not to be offensive, but are you white?
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 12:57     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Sell the rural LACs not named Williams, Amherst, Bowdoin. Midd, Colgate, Colby, and Hamilton are buying time.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 12:56     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Williams for a rural experience
Amherst for a college town experience
Swarthmore for a suburban experience
Pomona for a west coast experience
Barnard/Reed for the urban experience

You aren't better than others for choosing one over the other.


West coaster checking in! I'd hardly call Pomona or any of the 5Cs providing a true "west coast" experience. The 5Cs are firmly in what we call the "Inland empire". Nowhere near the coast or a city. Please don't think of it as being even within 30 minutes from a beach or major city. You need to fly into Ontario airport not LAX and it's easily 1-2 hrs (depending on how bad the traffic is) away from anything fun in LA. You're essentially just in an affluent suburb in the inland empire with a new-ish town area that's more interesting to professors and the parents of 5C students than teens or adults in their early 20s. There's no club, bar or music scene. The most laudable things about Claremont town is its farmer's market. It is very dull which is why the campus becomes a bubble for those students.

Most people in LA don't live next to the beach. This is the most "I live in West LA" take ever. Students go out to LA all the time and there's a ton of stuff to explore because it is SoCal. The college gives a ton of funding for students to go enjoy the beaches, go hiking, and experience LA. It happens to also be in a safe, suburban community in LA county. If you're allergic to driving, just go on ahead and move to the bay. Seniors going out to clubs and bars on the weekly, and the student government even sponsors clubbing trips. It's almost like...idk, maybe you just felt the need to hear your own voice!
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 12:44     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:Williams for a rural experience
Amherst for a college town experience
Swarthmore for a suburban experience
Pomona for a west coast experience
Barnard/Reed for the urban experience

You aren't better than others for choosing one over the other.


West coaster checking in! I'd hardly call Pomona or any of the 5Cs providing a true "west coast" experience. The 5Cs are firmly in what we call the "Inland empire". Nowhere near the coast or a city. Please don't think of it as being even within 30 minutes from a beach or major city. You need to fly into Ontario airport not LAX and it's easily 1-2 hrs (depending on how bad the traffic is) away from anything fun in LA. You're essentially just in an affluent suburb in the inland empire with a new-ish town area that's more interesting to professors and the parents of 5C students than teens or adults in their early 20s. There's no club, bar or music scene. The most laudable things about Claremont town is its farmer's market. It is very dull which is why the campus becomes a bubble for those students.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 12:39     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
they aren't, they aren't, they aren't
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 12:33     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:When I was choosing what college to attend, I spoke to someone from my high school who was studying at a rural LAC at the time. One of the questions I asked her was, "Do you ever wish you went to a more urban school?" Her response was to the effect of "I know I'll probably live in a city for many years after I graduate, so I don't mind getting to try something different." I ultimately attended said school and had a great time there, and I fully agree with her remark.

+1, I think an underrated point is that, if you weren't raised in a rural environment, college is literally the easiest time to try it out. After college, you'll likely need to establish your career in a city. Then, it becomes difficult going rural when you have kids, and when you get older, you have your network you don't want to leave behind in your current city. Living somewhere rural really gave me a lot more holistic view on how people in this country live, and it made me receptive to opposing viewpoints.
Anonymous
Post 01/08/2026 12:27     Subject: Why are WASP so elite?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Williams for a rural experience
Amherst for a college town experience
Swarthmore for a suburban experience
Pomona for a west coast experience
Barnard/Reed for the urban experience

You aren't better than others for choosing one over the other.


you also aren't at a worse off for choosing one over a R1 university. I think this is the sticking point.

No one made that point, so I don't see why it needs to be stated. It seems research university parents feel the need to make everyone know they chose a research university and they feel the need to assert that they're better than LACs when it isn't asked for and isn't necessary. I'd love to see parents let an LAC thread actually be about LACs.