<p>My d is interested in several of the all-women schools--loves the campuses, programs, and the people she's me there--but is not sure she would be comfortable in that environment. She goes to a large, co-ed public high school, and many of her friends are boys. Could a place like Mount Holyoke, Wellesley or Smith be a good fit for her? How have others made the transition?</p>
<p>You might want to ask this question on the boards for those schools. </p>
<p>I went to a women’s college and my D has applied to some of them. Obviously if you want a big social scene, a women’s college is not the best place. However, they are not convents. Your D might want to visit and attend a class to see if she would like the environment. </p>
<p>If your D likes liberal arts colleges, the reality is that many (most?) are highly unbalanced in gender terms. When the ratio favors women strongly, I’m not sure there is any real social advantage to attending a co-ed LAC over an all-women’s LAC. In fact, if you go to a women’s college that has an association with a university that is mostly men (i.e. Wellesley and MIT, or Agnes Scott and Georgia Tech), you might find that you have better social opportunities with men than if you went to Vassar.</p>
<p>There is also a forum dedicated to women’s colleges on this site that might be helpful to you.</p>
<p>Your daughter may want to consider Scripps, one of the Claremont consortium colleges.
The other colleges in the consortium provide a expanded social network. Each campus borders on the next so it is very accessible and you can take classes at any of the colleges if desired. You can have the best of both worlds.</p>