<p>I just returned from SOC and enjoyed it for the most part. I just had a college-life, living in the dorm type of shock going...I think I recovered, but I couldn't help noticing one thing. The campus is beautiful, but it was VERY quiet and sort of lonely. I guess because it's huge with a small student body, it makes sense. Plus, it's a studious place. But is that usually the common tenor of the place or what...?</p>
<p>I totally agree with you. I went to SOC yesterday. The school is VERY beautiful, and it was kind of cold out there because of the rain. I like the environment and the student body a lot, but it was just too quiet and probably lonely.</p>
<p>I would agree with you there. The campus is set up as a nice park and while you will find people sledding in the winter or playing frisbee in warm weather, there isn’t an outdoor or indoor center to the place. The campus center doesn’t get casual traffic either. Thinking about it, the nearest thing to a true crossway would be the sage lounge area of the science center.</p>
<p>I will say, though, that up through a certain hour, it’s very rare to meet no one on night walk across campus.</p>
<p>Yes, I agree with that sentiment as well. However, I have noticed – like WendyMouse – that as soon as the weather warms up and it’s a nice sunny day outside, lots of girls are outside playing frisbee, sunbathing, etc, and likewise, when it’s snowing there is sledding/traying, snowmen building, etc. I think that because most of the time the weather is kind of blah, and during SOC it was rather rainy/wet, that most people tend to stay indoors…</p>
<p>I agree. I just got back from SOC yesterday and the day before that, the weather was beautiful…for a little while, anyway. I wandered around the campus and after a while, I went to the campus center and randomly asked a girl why no one was outside. She told me that it was mostly because it was so cold and everyone was used to staying inside…probably didn’t notice the good weather (which is probably because they were used to it changing so quickly…like it did about ten minutes after I went inside). </p>
<p>Still, though… I just wonder if Wellesley can still be considered a “fun” place to anyone who goes there? Not party-town, but has activities and such of some sort?</p>
<p>It’s true that Wellesley doesn’t have a bustling campus. People do go outside when the weather is nice though; a decent number of people were out on the (residential, not academic) quad this afternoon. It was pretty rainy this week, which doesn’t make for good sitting-out-on-the-grass conditions even if the sun comes out for awhile. Also, SOC always falls during a really busy time academics-wise–I know both years during SOC I’ve had a midterm to study for.</p>
<p>yes, my hostess told me about exams. And it was a little nippy…I just wonder if there is some sort of liveliness. I don’t want it to have that lonely atmosphere when (if, but most probably) when I go. It might be a matter of settling in…?</p>
<p>Sounds like Wellesley is as exciting as a convent.</p>
<p>lol, i think it’s hardly a convent. When I went into the Wang Center at noon, there was a lot of bustling, actually. I just meant outside on campus, as one is walking to and from class, the everyday…And I think it’s a good sign when things are quiet during exam time, as they should be, I just want to know what extent this is true for big-picture campus life…</p>
<p>I really do think that the quiet atmosphere on campus is a function of the weather. I have friends at schools in California who talk about hanging out outside all the time- but when it’s 20 degrees outside and snowing, sitting around outside Tower Court is perhaps not the most attractive option. But in the spring, the minute the sun starts shining I feel like the place really comes alive. There are plenty of people outside playing games or just soaking up the sun, or taking boats out on the lake. And don’t be fooled- just because people aren’t outside as much during the winter doesn’t mean that people aren’t hanging out in our cozy common rooms watching the snow fall! I have never ever felt lonely at Wellesley! And it most definitely isn’t a convent ;)</p>
<p>Got a message from my daughter, “Mom, could you put some sunscreen in the package that you are going to send me?” The “nuns” are sunbathing 
Just a few month ago, they were traying on the Severence hill. Apparently, today the temperatures shot up to the low 80’s. Nice… I, OTOH, have to bring my eggplant and tomatoes inside tonight. No sunbathing over here in my neck of the woods for a while.</p>
<p>Wellesley is not a convent.</p>
<p>The all-women aspect kills a lot of the taboos about sexually related stuff. When the topic of sex comes up in one-on-one casual conversation among friends from coed schools, I’ve found that they have lamented the lack of education and frank discussion among their peers. It’s a rather amazing irony, but very true.</p>
<p>Bunsenburner – check it out. </p>
<p><a href=“http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/rba0017l.jpg[/url]”>http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/rba0017l.jpg</a></p>
![http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/rba0017l.jpg[/url]](http://www.cartoonstock.com/lowres/rba0017l.jpg%5B/url%5D){kind=link}
<p>Wendymouse,</p>
<p>Perhaps there is a lack of education and fuller discussion on sexual matters at coed schools, but I do know this. You get many more opportunities to practice a life-long skill when there are guys around.</p>
<p>BalletGirl, I suppose you assume that the Wellesley student body is not only 100% heterosexual, but also either chained to the classroom floors or on a college campus located in a small cave thousands of miles away from civilization.</p>
<p>There are plenty of opportunities to speak with, meet with, and sleep with men if a woman has that prerogative. </p>
<p>I have a general question…why is it that, when people dislike Wellesley, they actually loathe the school? And the main reason, it seems to me, is that it’s because it’s a women’s college.</p>
<p>I’ve officially settled on Wellesley and one of the main reasons is that whenever I asked others about their opinion, their first response was “There’s no men. There are men in the real world… blah blah blah” as though women existing on their own is truly something so horrific and as if choosing to be around men (by leaving campus or inviting them over) instead of “being forced” to be around them is completely awful.</p>
<p>Not that I think co-ed places are institutionalized torture… I think it’s all about choice. “Forced” offers a harsher connotation than I intend… Anyway, I don’t see why people are so mean about it. If women want to go to a women’s college, let that be their choice. If women want to go to a college with men, then whatever, that is perfectly acceptable too. </p>
<p>Sorry for the rant. Such things just get to me, that’s all. But everyone is entitled to their own opinion; just thought I would share mine.</p>
<p>(As for Wellesley being a convent… if it does turn out to be that way, I hope Benedetta Carlini is the head nun. ;D)</p>
<p>Having spent four fulfilling years at Wellesley, I never thought of Wellesley as a lonley place. In contrast, I found it to be friendly and warm! </p>
<pre><code>Regardless of where one goes to college, I suggest getting involved in organizations, sports teams or clubs that really appeal to you-- there
</code></pre>
<p>were many activities at Wellesley so I learned to prioritize. You will spend time with people who share similar interests and make friends. Whether
you hang out on Severance Green for a game of frisbee, the student center, the Lulu, for a cultural event, or ZA Society for a party, I never felt
lonely on campus. Keep in mind, you are getting an exceptional education which requires you to invest time studying, so you will need to manage
your time well too. </p>
<pre><code>Before classes start your first year at Wellesley, the school organizes an orientation for new students to become acquainted with classmates
</code></pre>
<p>and the college in general. I cannot imagine anyone feeling lonely after having had a chance to meet so many accomplished and motivated women.
You form great friendships with classmates in your dorm. You meet up for activities on campus and go into Cambridge or Boston together for cultural
reasons or simply to meet up with friends. Even though I graduated quite a few years ago, I am very close to my Wellesley friends because we bonded
through so many activities on campus, and also off campus. Wellesley was definitely not a lonely place (-:</p>
<p>Thank you for your input, everyone. And, for anyone turned off by the fact that Wellesley is a women’s college (<em>balletgirl</em>), take note that the institution is very self-selective. If it’s not for you, by all means, don’t enroll. There are many other co-ed institutions that will probably suit you. As for the “nuns” issue, I don’t really see how “lonely” (I was trying to get at the feel of the campus) translates into that. How many women attended single-sex colleges and chose non-religious careers in which they frequently encountered men, Sylvia Plath, Hilary Clinton, Madeleine Albright, Desiree Rogers, my teacher’s daughter (who is now married with a new-born), the list goes on and on–so let’s just cut the crap.</p>
<p>i liked the possibility of finding peace. the high strung, packed, forced-smile-until-your-cheeks-hurt of many campuses is a bit tiring for me.</p>
<p>if you want bustle, boston is there. i’ll see you in b-town on the weekends
peace.</p>
<p>ummmmmmm, Balletgirl…you probably didn’t think of this when you typed that you get “many more opportunities to practice a life-long skill when there are guys around”, but your post begs the question: what is this life-long skill you’re so concerned about mastering, and is that really priority #1 in choosing a college…? Just saying.</p>
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<p>Balletgirl, as a current Wellesley students, I can’t help but laugh at your comments. They are a classic example of stereotypes and concerns about Wellesley, or any other women’s college.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Yes, Wellesley is quiet, but really, most of us like it that way. And on a Friday night when there are parties going on, you’ll see tons of people walking around. Also, here’s a shocker: you can get off campus. That’s right, there’s a bus that takes you to MIT and Harvard. (I’m actually at MIT right now as I’m typing this.) Wellesley provides me the best of both worlds. I can get a quiet suburban town and a bustling city at once.</p></li>
<li><p>As for “life-long” skills in relation to men, those are hardly to be considered as skills. You’ll have the rest of your life to see men, not seeing them in a classroom setting as often as you did in high school for four years is not a tragedy. My academic environment has actually been much more focused since high school, and I’m sure I’ll be able to use my new working strategies in the real world (with real men). I see plenty of men around anyway. I work with men when I’m doing my research position at MIT. I see men when I’m hanging out with boyfriend and other friends from other schools on the weekends. Other people see men when they take classes at Babson/MIT/Harvard. Also, I’ve worked with plenty of men in an academic setting in high school, going to a women’s college is not much different.</p></li>
<li><p>SOC weather was actually a bummer, I felt bad for the prospective students. And right after they left, we had 80 degree weather! My Russian class was held outside that day, it was kind of awesome.</p></li>
<li><p>Firefly raises a good point. There will be plenty of times in college, even at Wellesley, to practice seducing men. Except this time it doesn’t have to be in the classroom, how convenient.</p></li>
</ol>