Swarthmore College

I think everyone knows Swarthomre for its rigor. Though UChicago is known as the school where fun goes to die, Swarthmore is known for its rigorous honors program and intense academics. This may sound trite, but if you're not passionate about something, you'll have a hard time sitting down in the library every night to study because Swarthmore IS intense. Students who aren't don't find themselves gravitating strongly toward a subject may want to look elsewhere. Of course, that doesn't mean that Swarthmore isn't the place undecided students; it just means that academics really need to spark students.

The campus is beautiful, and though the small student body may create some awkward moments, not having to make an effort to see friends daily (because we run into them constantly) is very welcome in Swat's intense environment where students can easily lose sight of the social connections they really should maintain.

Campus Life and Social Life

The student body is small. While its small size does make the college more like a community, it can also incite claustrophobia for some students. But with new students coming in each year, the campus remains vibrant.

It seems as though many high school students doubt the true existence of decent social lives on campus; Swarthmore students DO KNOW how to have a good time. But like any academically demanding college/university, parties are usually restricted to Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. The school usually sponsors club-like parties on the weekends, and the fraternities hold various events weekly. On other days, parties are usually hard to find, but that's usually because most students are in the library studying.

The school's alcohol policy is relaxed but the college takes the safety of its students very seriously (though, like most colleges, the Health Center is sick, literally). Since the campus is private from the town of Swarthmore, police from the city of Swarthmore almost never wander onto campus.

Academics

The academics are great. Professors know their stuff, are usually at the top of their respective fields, and seem to care a great deal about their students. While some students take advantage of the sometimes unwarranted generosity of professors by requesting extensions on assignments they don't exactly need, the faculty understands the rigor of the school and compensates, for the most part, accordingly.

Since there are no TAs, the school has no recitation sections, where students at other universities (including the Ivies) review material with an instructor to make an otherwise large lecture achieve a small feel. Of course, Swarthmore has its fair share of large classes, but only in courses known for their large size (think Intro Psych, Bio, Chem, Astro). Otherwise, classes are very small.

Unfortunately, like other top colleges, the school has a few students that enjoy listening to their not-so-euphonious voices and unconsidered opinions.

Good / Bad departments:

I have heard the Chemistry department isn't so accommodating, but it may garner its bad reputation from its difficulty. The school also hasn't invested in the engineering department too recently, but the faculty are supposed to be fantastic. Though I could go on and on, I think a recent anecdote demonstrates professor quality well. In a recent hiring cycle for a professor position in the English department, supposedly more than 700 PhD applicants applied for one spot. The school really gets to pick and choose its faculty.

Student Body

While top colleges/universities are known for their fantastic academics and professors, they are not often known for the unparalleled social skills of their student bodies. I hate to feed the hackneyed cliche, but in all honesty most students are quirky in some fashion. But only a few students truly lack the social skills necessary to maintain the relationships most students fostered in high school.

Now that Swarthmore no longer has a football team, it's pretty clear that sports aren't exactly valued on campus. Only a few people attend games, but it's usually because they're studying, volunteering, or involved in other activities. Although classes are pretty demanding at Swat, students stretch the limits by nearly over-scheduling themselves by taking part in too many organizations, clubs, or activities. Knowing that students are involved in so many things is a pretty exciting concept, but it also leads to students spending more time developing their passions than socializing. But of course, this isn't exactly abnormal when compared with other top schools.

Among other things, Swarthmore has a very active hip hop dance crew unrelated to the Swat dance department that puts on wildly popular shows each semester. Sketch comedy, radio shows, and music also attract many students on campus.

In Closing…

Swarthmore is a beautiful school, and is really a great place to spend four years. All schools have their faults, and Swarthmore certainly is no different. The food isn't great, the endowment doesn't always seem like it's well spent, and the high levels of administration don't always seem responsive to the noble efforts of the student council. Additionally, it seems that the school has become comfortable with its high ranking (USNWR, grad school placement record, overall prestige, etc) and consequently doesn't always actively work to make student life everything it should be at one of America's finest colleges. Such a sentiment, of course, could come from the student body's unrealistic expectations; I don't really know.

Overall, however, the college offers fantastic academics, safety in suburbia but proximity to a paunchy metropolis :), interesting students, and the HUGE benefits of being at a private college. Swarthmore isn't an easy school, but for students in love with what they do, the work will be more exciting than stressful.

StudentsReview.com may feature some nasty reviews, but they're not exactly representative of the sentiment on campus as a whole.