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Swarthmore College - Academics - Academics - College ProwlerCollege Prowler5.00

Academics

A+
Where does this grade come from?View all Academics rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

Comparable Schools' Academics Grades:

Quick Stats

Student-Faculty Ratio 8:1
Full-Time Student Population 1,510
Part-Time Student Population 15
Full-Time Instructional Faculty 197
Part-Time Instructional Faculty 40
Total FT Faculty 189
Faculty with Terminal Degree 99%
Average Faculty Salary $103,080
Full-Time Retention Rate 94%
Graduation Rate 93%
Programs/Majors Offered 71
Average Course Load 4 courses
Academic/Career Counseling? Yes
Remedial Services? No
Class Sizes
  • Fewer than 20 students: 76%
  • 20 to 49 students: 22%
  • 50 or more students: 2%

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

After a semester or two here, it becomes quite evident even to the most phenomenal prodigies that Swarthmore is among the most academically elite colleges in the country. It is not at all uncommon to see a student slumped over a textbook in the library at 1 in the morning or slurring his words in a seminar due to lack of sleep. But this hard work pays off, and many Swarthmore students are published in prestigious academic journals before their junior year! It is certainly no understatement that the experience of jumping into an academic pool like Swarthmore’s can be overwhelming—the school is swarming with passionate, freakishly intelligent students who love to show off their brains.

That said, the academic competition here is hardly “cutthroat.” This might be because of the pass/fail first semester or the general apathy toward the overall grading system, but as the admissions brochures say, “It’s not about competing to learn what has already been learned, it’s about creating new knowledge.” Creating new knowledge can be especially painful in Swarthmore’s classroom experience. At a larger state school, it might be possible to successfully hide behind your notebook in a 300-person lecture room. Here, it’s about looking your professor directly in the face as he or she sits at the other end of your table with five other students and explaining what you learned from last night’s readings. Be prepared to learn in a different way in each class, see the world through new eyes, and, yes, create new knowledge. Rarely does grade inflation occur, and you’ll often see students wearing T-shirts that read: “Anywhere else, it would’ve been an A.”

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Swarthmore Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Academics at Swarthmore College

xv46

Music '10

4.6
A

Difficult but Not Impossible

There is a wide array of course options, although there is a push on campus to provide even greater course diversity. The workload is difficult, but it largely depends on you and how much you're willing to invest in it, especially regarding how many extracurriculars you're going to join. Professors are very available, and there are numerous resources for students, including a student in every residence hall trained in answering questions about academics (a SAM, or student academic mentor).

Dec 22, 2010

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Academics at Swarthmore College

rubyredsire

Psychology '14

5.0
A+

Psychobiology Needed in My Life: the Great Academics of Swat

The introduction programs to psychology and biology are awesome. I must admit, though, Biology 001 is kind of intense and is a wake-up call for all high school overachievers. If you want it, you should go after it because all professors here at Swarthmore work hard (you know they put in major time!) to make sure you end up knowledgeable and really have the ability to THINK. This is a school about processes, so if you're not trying to go in-depth, academics at Swarthmore are not for you! Languages are intensive; they clearly let you know that. Everyone here works, and they all work hard, no matter what major.

Nov 04, 2010

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Academics at Swarthmore College

imole

Mechanical Engineering '14

5.0
A+

Very Demanding and Engaging

The professors are awesome and sometimes they expect a whole lot from you. This can be overwhelming, but most Swarthmore students enjoy it because that is the reason we applied in the first place. It is a common occurrence to correct textbook solutions and answers during problem sessions. Professors do not strictly abide by their office hours because they are available even outside these hours. In all, Swarthmore is a perfect setting for the academically inclined mind.

Nov 02, 2010

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User rating for Swarthmore College - Academics is 4.6 out of 5 based on 21 user reviews.

Photos of Swarthmore College's Academics

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Swarthmore College - Entrance to Swarthmore CollegeEntrance to Swarthmore College
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Entrance to Swarthmore College
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Swarthmore College - Science CenterScience Center
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Science Center Study lounge inside the Science Center.
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Trotter Hall
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Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate your school’s professors on the following topics

Rate your school’s academic environment on the following topics

Facts

Instructional Programs Occupational: No
Academic: Yes
Continuing Professional: No
Recreational/Avocational: No
Adult Basic Remedial: No
Secondary (High School): No
Special Credit Opportunities Advanced Placement (AP) Credits: Yes
Dual Credit: No
Life Experience Credits: No
AP Test Score Requirements Possible credit for scores of 4 or 5
IB Test Score Requirements Possible credit for scores of 6 or 7
Degrees Awarded Bachelor's degree
Most Popular Majors
  • Biology and Biological Sciences: 6%
  • Economics and Econometrics: 6%
  • Political Science and Government, General: 5%
  • Psychology: 4%
Graduation Requirements
  • Foreign languages
  • Humanities
  • Sciences (biological or physical)
  • Social science
Special Study Options
  • Study abroad
  • Teacher certification (below the postsecondary level)
Other Academic Offerings
  • Accelerated program
  • Cross-registration
  • Double major
  • Exchange student program (domestic)
  • Honors program
  • Independent study
  • Internships
  • Student-designed major
Best Places to Study
  • The Amphitheatre (weather-permitting)
  • Cornell Library
  • McCabe Library
  • Parrish Beach (weather-permitting)
  • Parrish parlors
  • Underhill Library
Did You Know?
  • Swarthmore students can cross-register for classes and use the library facilities at Bryn Mawr College, Haverford College, and the University of Pennsylvania.
  • At Swarthmore, no classes are taught by teaching assistants (TAs).
  • The academic advisers are top-notch here. Because of the College's small size, each adviser only has a handful of students to keep track of and many times they offer great and very personal advice about what courses to take and how to approach certain aspects of a student's academic life at Swarthmore. On the same topic, if you decide to become, for example, an engineering major, your adviser will be an engineering professor.
  • Thirty-five percent of Swarthmore students participate in a unique honors program. Based on Oxford University's honor system, the program requires students to participate in very small seminar-style classes sometimes consisting of no more than two or three students per course. At the end of their senior year, students in the honors program participate in External Examinations. Culminating the student's studies at Swarthmore, the External Examinations committee brings in experts in the student's field of study who orally examine the student on their subject.
  • To ease the jump into a pit of academic fury, students take classes on a pass/fail basis during their first semester at Swarthmore. Students receive their first official letter grades in the second semester of their freshman year. Also, after the first semester, students are permitted to take up to four classes on a pass/fail basis during the rest of their time at Swarthmore. In addition to that, students can wait up to nine weeks before deciding whether or not to withdraw from a course or to take a course pass/fail.

Become a Contributing Author Learn more »

Most Recent Student Author View all

Name
Sudarshan Gopaladesikan
Hometown
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Major
Math and Engineering

College Prowler is seeking talented student authors to assist with writing and updating the College Prowler guides to their schools. This is a great opportunity for a student to gain experience and tremendous exposure, utilize new media techniques, and share advice with high school students about what life is really like at your college.

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How do we get our information? Find out here or report an error here. The statistics on our site are from the National Center for Education Statistics IPEDS database.
We update this information twice annually, most recently in May 2012, but it may not be the most recent information available for a particular school.
For additional information we encourage you to visit school websites or contact the schools directly.