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VaDad- I wouldn't say William & Mary is comparable academically. A great school, yes, but Brown and Georgetown are considered top noth education internationally. Very few schools match up to that level.


You are woefully misinformed. W&M is renowned internationally and is consistently ranked with and at times above these schools. If you get into considerations of value, W&M blows them away. Something to think about in a sport that metes out scholarship money in percentages.
I agree with Midlo Dad. W&M is an outstanding public institution. From their top-ranked business program, to their strong history department, and mix of liberal arts, W&M caters to students as talented and bright as many Ivy League Institutions with a different environment (in the south-depending on perspective). However, between the baseball program W&M, Brown, and Georgetown, I would think that the fit (talent-wise in regards to baseball and academic environment) may matter more than the baseball program's strength in many cases.
Just to look at an attempt to compare the schools using some third party:

U.S. News & World Report's most recent college rankings list all of Brown, Georgetown and W&M among national universities (as opposed to, say, liberal arts colleges). They are ranked 16, 23 and 33, respectively.

A few "food for thought" items:

First, from 16 to 33 you are really splitting hairs, and in that narrow range, you would normally choose your school based on factors other than the rankings. The span between the high and low is even less significant if you follow these rankings from year to year. Due to the vagaries in the USNWR scoring system, schools move up and down every year. W&M was at # 24 just a few years ago. I'm not sure why it has dropped, but it's just as likely to go back up. (It's possible that last year's fracas with the former president may have brought some short-term negative.)

Another factor is that financial resources are a big part of the ranking. But, IMHO, the USNWR evaluations err in failing to consider the impact of having taxpayer backing. Public universities consistently rank lower than comparable private universities as a result. For example, if you were to claim that Duke was any better than, say, UVA, them would be fightin' words around these parts. But Duke is ranked # 10, UVA # 24. Of the 13 schools ranked between them, only one is public. Among public universities, UVA is tied for # 2 while W&M is # 6, the primary difference being due to W&M's being smaller and with a more limited curriculum.

Then there's something that W&M itself tries not to talk about because it causes a lot of discord, but the reality is that as a state university, W&M sets aside about 62% of its slots for Virginia kids. It is a wonderful opportunity for Virginia kids. But the competition for the remaining 38% is extremely keen. If you were to compare the W&M out-of-state cohort to the student bodies at Brown and Georgetown, I would wager that the W&M out-of-state group would blow them away.

And even out of state, W&M costs a whole lot less than the other two. Which is why it is consistently ranked among the top 5 institutions for higher ed value.

W&M also has an advantage over the other two in that its role in our nation's history makes it more prominent in national and international discussions. I haven't seen anyone take a poll, but if you asked international businesses to rank the schools, I would expect W&M to finish ahead of the other two.
Last edited by Midlo Dad
My niece, a top academic student, recently transferred from Georgetown to W&M. G- town is without question an excellent school but it seems a bit cold at heart. It's early but my niece loves W & M.

One college source may have summed it up best when it wrote about G-town: good school but don't go there only because it is the highest ranked school you got admitted to.

Brown might be a good choice if you think Obama is way too right wing.
Last edited by igball
familiar with Gtown. Have seen them play a few times. Have some very good players, but they play in a highly competitive Big East conference where they have been fair. Just rumor that they do not have as many baseball scholarships as they would like. Baseball field is off campus, but a nice field. As for the school, although located in a neigborhood, it is very close to the city and the school should be considered urban. Very highly regarded school in the Washington Metro Area.
PS Lacrosse is the main sport at Gtown.

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