What Does Williams Look For?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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What does Williams look for? Williams College labels five factors as “very important” to the process:

rigor of high school course load, class rank, GPA, recommendations, and character/personal qualities

.

What does it take to get into Williams?

To have the best shot of getting in, you should

aim for the 75th percentile, with a 1550 SAT or a 35 ACT

. You should also have a 4.07 GPA or higher. If your GPA is lower than this, you need to compensate with a higher SAT/ACT score.

Does Williams track demonstrated interest?

School Name State Reed College OR Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute NY Roanoke College VA Roger Williams University RI

Does Williams Give likely letters?

Similarly,

high-rated liberal arts colleges like Amherst, Williams, Smith, and Grinnell have also been known to send likely letters or early writes

. As mentioned, many likely letters and early writes come with an invitation to visit campus.

Does Williams admit by major?


Williams students choose among 33 academic majors

and 17 concentrations and special programs.

What does Williams look for in a student?

Williams views

GPA, class rank, and course rigor

as “very important” to admissions. A staggering 95% of Williams College's Class of 2025 graduated in the top tenth of their high school class. To submit a competitive application to Williams, you'll need exceptional grades in the most challenging coursework available.

What kind of student goes to Williams?

Williams students are typically

athletic and/or outdoorsy, competitive, confident, intelligent, and multi-talented

.

Is it harder to get into Williams or Amherst?

If you're looking at acceptance rate alone, then

Amherst College is more difficult to get into

. However, each college is looking to fill its incoming class with a variety of students with different strengths, backgrounds, etc.

How selective is Williams College?

Williams College admissions is most selective with an

acceptance rate of 15%

. Half the applicants admitted to Williams College have an SAT score between 1410 and 1560 or an ACT score of 33 and 35.

Is Williams College better than Harvard?

Steve Dykes/Getty Images

Williams College is the best college in America

, according to Forbes' annual Top Colleges ranking, which this year placed Harvard University at number seven.

Can you get rejected after getting a likely letter?


Likely letters do not guarantee admission

. They serve as indicators that the institutions that sent them are interested in admitting the recipients. Only a small percentage of competitive applicants receive likely letters. Early writes and acceptance letters, on the other hand, guarantee acceptance.

What time do Williams decisions come out?

School Regular Decision Notification Date Williams College

By April 1
William & Mary University March 26, 2022 Worcester Polytechnic University March 23, 2022 at 5pm EST Yale University March 31, 2022 at 7 pm ET (Ivy Day)

How common are likely letters?

With a little rough math, that suggests that

about one out of every six admitted students in the regular applicant pool received a likely letter

. So if you received a likely letter, congratulations. The school saw you as an exceptional applicant and really wants you to attend.

How liberal is Williams College?

Williams is often ranked as the #1 liberal arts college in the country (usually trading places with its top rival, Amherst). Classes are small, teachers are excellent, and students are enthusiastic in academics and athletics.

How prestigious is Williams?

Williams earns the

number 18 spot on the rankings by Forbes.com

. That's good enough to beat out some of the country's largest and most prestigious schools, including the University of California at Davis, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and even Ivy League school Brown University.

Is Williams College a party school?


There are definitely parties on the weekends

– some are school sponsored and some take place in dorms – but after a few weekends of homogeneous partying a lot of people choose to stay in with their friends.

Is Williams as good as Ivy League?

Is Williams College an Ivy League? Although Williams is not technically an Ivy League school,

it is consistently ranked higher than some Ivy League schools

(US News ranks universities and colleges separately but Forbes, which ranks them together, has ranked Williams at #18, above Ivy League Brown University at #26).

What are my chances in getting into Harvard?

5% (2020)

Is Amherst better than Williams?


Amherst is ranked first in the graduation and retention rank category

and has higher SAT/ACT scores from the 25th-75th percentiles than both Williams and Swarthmore. The top three schools all have a student-faculty ratio of 8:1. The College's position in this year's ranking did not seem to bother some students.

Are Williams students happy?

Overall, despite the fact that Williams can be a stressful environment at times, many students, including myself, absolutely love Williams, and

the vast majority are at least happy to be there

. Williams' reputation for academic excellence is certainly well deserved.

Is Williams College Worth the money?

Williams College, a perennial top scorer on the Forbes ranking of America's Top Colleges, comes in at

No. 3 for Best Value Colleges worth the price of admission

. It sits at No. 26 on the overall Best Value Colleges list.

Why is Williams better than Amherst?


Williams is more remote and arguably has better access to nature

. Amherst on the other hand is close to Northampton, a lively arts town, and is surrounded by other colleges. Both are amazing options, so you really can't go wrong.

What percent of Williams is athletes?

Athletics. Approximately

35%

of all students participate in intercollegiate sports (33% at the varsity level). There are 32 varsity intercollegiate teams (16 men's and 16 women's), 5 junior varsity teams, 24 club teams, and a large intramural program.

Is it harder to get into Boston College or Boston University?

While the two schools have similar acceptance rates, median numbers, and tuition rates,

Boston University has significantly more undergraduate major options and a lower acceptance rate

.

Is Williams College a little ivy?


Among the Little Ivies are the “Little Three”, a term used by Amherst College, Wesleyan University and Williams College

, and “Maine Big Three”, a term used by Colby College, Bates College and Bowdoin College. The term is inspired by the “Big Three” Ivy League athletic rivalry between Harvard, Princeton, and Yale.

Is Williams an elite college?

The intensive instruction is one of the offerings that gives Williams,

one of America's most elite colleges

, its top-notch reputation.

What college has the highest acceptance rate?

Located in North Dakota's capital city,

Bismarck State College

tops the list of colleges with the highest acceptance rates.

What is the #1 ranked college in America?

QS World University Rankings 2023: Top 100 US Universities Rank University 1

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
2 Stanford University 3 Harvard University

Is Williams harder to get into than Harvard?

Which school is easier to get into? If you're looking at acceptance rate alone, then

Harvard University is more difficult to get into

.

What makes Williams College special?

In addition to all the things that make liberal arts colleges the global gold standard—

small classes, attentive faculty, close-knit community

—Williams offers unique opportunities like our renowned tutorial and research programs. Choose among 65 areas of study across the humanities, natural sciences and social sciences.

How do colleges decide who to send mail to?

In the early stages of the admission process (sophomore and early junior years), colleges are just looking to initiate student interest within

target groups

. Admissions offices purchase contact information for students in particular groups who score between particular ranges on national standardized tests.

What schools do Likely letters?

While most universities don't announce that they send likely letters,

all Ivy League schools, including Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and University of Pennsylvania

, send likely letters. Other prestigious liberal arts colleges and colleges like Duke, Stanford, and University of Chicago also send likely letters.

Does a likely letter guarantee admission?

While “likely letters”

do not guarantee admission to schools

, they are a good indication that students will be accepted to a particular school. This is, of course, as long as students keep being ideal students (i.e. keeping their grades up, not getting arrested).

How many people are on the Williams College Waitlist?

How many students are on the waiting list and how many are admitted? The total number of students on the waiting list each year ranges

between 500 and 650

. In the past five years, 25 students on average have been admitted from the waiting list.

What is the average GPA for Williams College?

The average GPA at Williams College is

4.07

. This makes Williams College Extremely Competitive for GPAs.

Is Williams need-blind?

For international students seeking financial assistance, Williams offers one of the most generous and comprehensive financial aid programs in the U.S. Although

Williams isn't need-blind for international applicants

, nearly 66 percent of international students receive financial aid from the college, with aid awards …

Carlos Perez
Author
Carlos Perez
Carlos Perez is an education expert and teacher with over 20 years of experience working with youth. He holds a degree in education and has taught in both public and private schools, as well as in community-based organizations. Carlos is passionate about empowering young people and helping them reach their full potential through education and mentorship.