WELLESLEY, Mass. — Senator Clinton is describing her opposition to the war in Iraq as an extension of Eugene McCarthy’s position in the 1960s movement against the war in Vietnam.

Mrs. Clinton’s comments came at an energy-charged rally yesterday at her alma mater, Wellesley College. Her visit, the ostensible purpose of which was to announce a new Web site aimed at younger voters, hillblazers.com, created palpable excitement on campus. Hundreds of students lined up amid Wellesley’s autumnal splendor for a chance to hear the speech of the 1969 graduate and then moved and bopped to the strands of Smash Mouth’s “I’m a Believer” and the Police’s “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic” as they awaited her appearance. A loud “wooo” had followed the exhortation of a male voice suggesting that attendees “get excited” as they entered. The friendly homecoming represented a sharp contrast from Tuesday’s MSNBC debate in Philadelphia, when Mrs. Clinton found herself under attack from Senator Obama and Senator Edwards. She credited the school with preparing her “to compete in the all boys club of presidential politics.”

In a personal speech, Mrs. Clinton made reference to her own biography, reminding students she was once a student at the college during a time of war. She drew a parallel between her candidacy and that of Senator McCarthy of Minnesota, whose strong showing in the New Hampshire primary prompted President Johnson to withdraw from the 1968 presidential race. “In the coming weeks, I need your help to make the calls and knock on the doors and talk to your friends and family. That’s what I did back in 1968 when a group of my dear friends and I jumped in a car…and would drive from Wellesley to Manchester, New Hampshire, stuffing envelopes and walking precincts for Eugene McCarthy,” Mrs. Clinton said. “He was running for president on a platform of ending the Vietnam War. I am running for president on part of a platform of ending the war in Iraq. And, most of all, I need your help on Election Day.”

She spoke of being rebuffed at an event for Harvard Law School by “Professor Paperchase” who told her “we don’t need any more women” and told how her mother convinced her to not to quit Wellesley. She recalled being Wellesley’s first student commencement speaker, noting that reading the transcript now sometimes made her “cringe” at the 1960s jargon, “coming to terms with our humanness” and “authentic reality.” She also cited a number of causes of interest to college students, including Darfur, the Burma crisis, AIDS in Africa and national civilian service.

Throughout her speech, she likened today’s times to those of her own college years. “We started that journey at a tumultuous time in our nation’s history. We were embroiled in a war that many of us opposed. Here at home, so many of our citizens were marginalized and denied their most basic rights. We were uneasy about our future, uncertain about America’s role in the world, and unwilling to trust a government that didn’t share our values,” she said. “Sounds kind of familiar, doesn’t it?”

Mrs. Clinton’s comments drew criticism from the campaigns of Republican presidential candidates Senator McCain and Governor Romney.

“I believe the first priority of any candidate for president should be to keep this country safe,” said Mr. McCain, in a statement released by his campaign. “When Senator Clinton and other candidates make a campaign promise of conceding defeat in Iraq, when we are at last making progress there, and ignore all the terrible consequences defeat would entail, they are making America’s security subordinate to their ambitions.”

“There is no question that Hillary Clinton would take this country down a sharp turn to the left,” said Mr. Romney’s spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom. “Her policies would weaken our economy, weaken our military and weaken our homeland defenses.”

Nevertheless, her words appeared to win over a crowd already inclined to like her. “I thought it was great. It really riled me up,” said a Wellesley sophomore, Julie Aguilera. “I think she can really do the things she talked about.”

Mrs. Clinton, who was scheduled to speak later in the day at the University of New Hampshire, is striving to capture the votes of young and highly educated voters, two groups present at Wellesley’s Alumnae Hall. “But college-educated and professional women…have been a greater puzzle for her,” wrote Ronald Brownstein in National Journal last week. In an University of Iowa poll Mr. Obama led Mrs. Clinton 41% to 19% among voters 18 to 44.

“This says to me she is going after younger voters who have gravitated to Barack Obama,” said Mary Anne Marsh, a Democratic strategist, of today’s event. “She’s not ceding any demographic to anybody, including Barack Obama,” she said comparing the effort to win over young voters to her efforts to compete for African American voters.

A common theme of the college age attendees at Wellesley was what her candidacy represented for the advancement of women. “Voting for Hillary is not just voting for a presidential candidate who is qualified. It’s voting for a woman who will be the commander-in-chief,” said Simi Oberoi. Standing with her was Amanda Faulkner, who wore a shirt distributed by Wellesley Students for Hillary with the words “glass ceilings were made to be broken” on it.

To most of the college-aged attendees, who were 12 years old when the Monica Lewinsky scandal broke, the Clinton administration was a vague television memory. Few present saw much significance in Mrs. Clinton’s achievements having come partly as a result of her husband being a president. “I think anything you can use to your advantage, you should,” said Gori Gadgil, adding, “it’s not the only thing she has going for her.”