Expert: Todd Johnson - 4/1/2009

Question
Okay, I'm a senior in high school and am about to make my college decision.  I am on the waitlist at Harvard and Columbia and will go to those schools if (and that's a big if) if get offered a place there.  However, I can't figure out which school I should have reserve a place for me...I've been accepted to Carleton, Lewis and Clark, Bryn Mawr, and Boston University, plus a couple of other schools that I'm not considering as much.  I want to go somewhere with a pretty large campus and a pretty large (around 8.000 or so) enrollment, and am looking for a school near or in a major U. S. city.  Also, my parents average contribution for financial aid is more than all of these schools cost, and I really haven't gotten any great scholarships from any, so my parents will be paying for the whole thing.  I'm looking more into liberal arts but I don't want to be tied down in too liberal artsy a school in case I want to go more math or science oriented.  I know that this is a pretty big list of things I want in a college and I may not be able to find everything in one school, but do any of these aforementioned universities sound like they have more to offer me than the others? I know that ultimately I must decide where to go, but what would your recommendation be?  Thank you so much, anything is helpful at this point

Answer
Brianne,

Congratulations on getting accepted into some great colleges. Of the schools you have been accepted to Carleton is the strongest academically and also strongest in the sciences. Placement into grad schools after Carleton is similar to Harvard and generally better than Columbia. If you are premed, there was a study several years ago that showed that Carleton had the second highest MCAT scores in the country behind only Cal Tech.  Bryn Mawr also has a good reputation academically and in the sciences. Lewis and Clark and Boston University, while good schools, are not on the same level as the other two.

However, Carleton and Bryn Mawr are not as large as you say you would like. They are both near major metro areas. Although Carleton is a little further from Minneapolis, there are daily buses that go there from Carleton.  I don't know if you have been to these campuses, but Carleton is about 900 acreas including their arboretum while Bryn Mawr is a much smaller physical campus in a suburban area.  

Bryn Mawr does have a strong relationship with Haverford and a less strong one with Swarthmore and UPenn.

Personally, based on academics, I would narrow it down to Carleton and Bryn Mawr. That being said, they are two very different schools and I would be surprised if one person liked both. I would strongly suggest that you visit both schools to see which might fit your personality best.

I hope that helps.