<p>Hi all! I am a current student at Wellesley College. If you have any questions about social or academic life here, feel free to ask away. (Keep in mind I am going to try to stay away from answering personal questions.)</p>
<p>MODERATOR'S NOTE: All Wellesley students are welcome to answer questions in this thread (we don't allow "Ask Me" threads, because sometimes others feel hesitant to offer advice, and also sometimes the OP disappears, leaving questioners hanging).</p>
<p>How hard is it to maintain a GPA above a 3.5? (I’m asking this because I’m highly interested in the MIT-Wellesley 5 year double degree program)</p>
<p>Thanks for doing this!
Do you ever feel isolated?
What has been your hardest class so far?
What does Wellesley lack?
How (honestly) are the CS and math majors/departments?
Are there parties and if so, what are they like?
Gay life?</p>
<p>Oh and @awesomeirl, that program looks really really great</p>
<p>Ok can you please chance me for wellesley?
I have a 3.6 UW but I’m taking many AP classes and my standardized scores are good (34 ACT 2250 SAT) along with varsity swim for 3 years (will be captain senior year!). Also I’m a business intern for a company with connections to Apple and Google and I volunteer at an animal shelter. Does Wellesley look at applicants holistically? Because it’s my GPA that puts me at a disadvantage I believe.</p>
<p>Why is the statue of the guy in the underwear causing such consternation at Wellesley? </p>
<p>Hey guys. Hope OP doesn’t mind me answering some of these questions (from yet another current Wellesley student).</p>
<p>@awesomeirl I don’t know much about that program, but as you may know, Wellesley does have a “grade deflation” policy (although they don’t call it that). The average grade is a B-, or a 3.33. Given that guideline, a 3.5 is definitely above average, and even so above average for Wellesley students, which is saying a lot. So it’s by no means impossible, but it’s definitely not a walk in the park.</p>
<p>@kitkat522 Good question. I’m not big on staying on campus (although this semester I’ve been staying in way more…), but fortunately it is SO easy to get into Boston. The bus runs on the hour, and it’s free on the weekdays, so there is no problem getting into what I like to call “real life” if you’re feeling cooped up on campus. And keep in mind the ville (the actual town of Wellesley. Downtown Wellesley, I guess. Can I call it that?) is like a 5-15 minute walk from various places on campus.</p>
<p>The hardest class question is a little arbitrary…I think it really depends on what subjects you’re strong in. There aren’t too many classes that are notoriously difficult, on a relative scale, at least. For me, the hardest classes are the subjects I’ve been consistently weak in beginning in high school.</p>
<p>What does Wellesley lack…
Tough question. Not sure if this matters to you, but we aren’t really a sportsy school. I wish there was a little more school spirit in that respect. I’m not really a sports fan at all, but I still have to go to a couple of Harvard football games every semester to get my college sports fix.</p>
<p>I don’t know too much about the CS department as a whole, but the CS class I took was very enjoyable, the professors were fantastic, and I learned a lot. I’ve heard it’s a great program, but I don’t know very much about it.</p>
<p>Parties! Woohoo! Well, you aren’t going to find many parties on campus. There are a couple by various groups/societies, but those are pretty infrequent. You will, however, find tons of Harvard or MIT parties that Wellesley girls go to all the time, so parties are very in reach, just not on campus. Which I’ll admit is actually a very nice thing, for me at least. When I want a quieter weekend, I’ll stay on campus and chill. When I want to go out, I do. It’s a nice balance that way.</p>
<p>Wellesley is a very, very accepting community. We have a pretty big LGBT community, which is always putting on events and things like that. I’m personally not involved in it, but I’d say Wellesley’s a very good place to be if you’re into it.</p>
<p>@swimtennisgirl I’m not too good with chancing, but I will tell you that Wellesley does look very holistically at applications. Grades aren’t everything for Wellesley, they do give you the chance to prove yourself a good fit for Wellesley in other ways. So stay hopeful! A 3.6 is still impressive - way better than my college GPA…haaaaaa</p>
<p>@makennacompton What a fabulous question! Yeah, I have no clue. Well, some students are concerned about the somewhat threatening nature of a basically naked guy with his hands outstretched on Munger Meadow, while others are concerned about his lack of proper attire for Massachusetts weather. There was a big discussion about it on campus (something Wellesley is very good at by the way, the open discussions here are fantastic), and for some reason the media blew up about it. It’s sticking around for a while, at least, and frankly, it’s growing on me.</p>
<p>So there you have it. OP, feel free to disagree with me in any respect, I know we don’t all have the same experiences with Wellesley. To everyone else, if you applied, good luck! Don’t stress too much in the coming weeks; you’ll end up where you need to be. Enjoy the (hopefully) warm weather!</p>
<p>Any more questions? :)</p>
<p>We are taking our D (junior, 3.85 UW, 33 ACT, debate & orchestra) on a tour of several east coast schools over spring break (last week of March) and we will be visiting Wellesley that week. Anything that we have to see on campus? What would be a good lunch spot where students would be more likely to be? Any majors/programs that are particularly strong? D is a phenomenal writer and thinking of majoring in English. Finally, what do you like best about being at an all-women’s college? Thanks. </p>
<p>@idkhowtocollege Thanks for answering the questions! And as you said, it’d be great to hear a variety of opinions. 
I have some questions if that’s fine.</p>
<ol>
<li>What’s the party/drinking vibe at Wellesley? Are they really strict about it/do a lot of people (especially first-years) do it? (omg this question makes me sound so bad but I’m honestly just curious :P)</li>
<li>I’m really bad at math and science, and I know that I have to fulfill a certain number of credits for those topics. Do you know of any “easier”/“better” classes to take for someone who isn’t that strong at it? (Like I can do algebra/stats but I CANNOT do calculus. And I’m ok with bio – and I know there are a lot of premeds so I’m just worried about having like worse marks, as a result of deflation, because there will be so many other students who are 100x better than me at those courses! Help me out? :s)</li>
<li>Kinda adding on to my 2nd question, would you recommend putting “harder” courses in the first semester because of the shadow grading? :)</li>
</ol>
<p>THANK YOU! :D</p>
<p>@idkhowtocollege oh gosh I’m so sorry for the abundance of questions, but have you heard positive (or even negative) things about the Cinema and Media Studies department? I’m kind of leaning towards majoring in that now. :)</p>
<p>Where else did you apply to and was deciding to attend (or getting into Wellesley) a nerve-racking challenge?
What do you major in and have or are you considering switching?</p>
<p>I’m the mother of a Wellesley first year, so I hope you don’t mind if I chime in here. First, regarding partying: yes, there are people who drink, even first-years, so if that is what you want, you will find like-minded people. My daughter lives in what is probably the soberest, geekiest res hall at Wellesley and there are still people who like to party on the weekends there. It won’t be like UMass, but if that’s what you wanted, you’d be headed there! People are serious about their studies at Wellesley, which is what you are paying your $60K a year for!</p>
<p>Holistic admissions: one of D’s friends, who didn’t have the greatest GPA or SAT scores, got in. She picked another school bcs she wanted a co-ed school, but clearly, Wellesley cares more about who you are than what you’ve done. (This girl is an awesome, interesting person.)</p>
<p>Grade “deflation” shouldn’t worry you. If you earn an A, you will get one. D made straight As her first semester. She’ll likely get a B in her hideous French class this semester, but isn’t complaining. There is a lot of work, but if you follow Wellesley’s prescribed 9-5 approach, you will get it done and still have time to do other stuff.</p>
<p>Math and science courses are flexible. D took astronomy her first semester, but decided to use it as her math class. (She’s very good at science, and doesn’t love math, so she’ll take other sciences to fulfill that requirement.) You can take horticulture and spend a lot of time in the greenhouses, if you like. Almost every college has distribution requirements, so you’ll encounter these everywhere.</p>
<p>I can’t speak to the grad school experience because she’s not there yet, but Wellesley grads get into the top graduate programs in the world, so grade deflation really isn’t an issue. At the accepted students gathering we attended last spring, we met alums who were now attending Harvard, Stanford, and MIT.</p>
<p>@Massmomm</p>
<p>Congratulations on your D’s straight A. She must be one smart cookie. Did she take Biology, Chemistry and Math in her 1st semester?</p>
<p>What is the —“Wellesley’s prescribed 9-5 approach”? That is a new terminology for me.</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>Wellesley suggests that you use 9-5 for classes and school work, then divide up the rest of the time for sleeping, exercise, and leisure in order to stay healthy and focused. It’s not always possible, especially if you have labs (D’s astronomy lab was late at night), but people who try this approach say it really helps.</p>
<p>@Massmomm
Thank you for your input! I’m also interested in the classes that your daughter took/are taking. And what is her major? </p>
<p>I’m asking because medical school is my goal and I want to see how possible it is to make a 4.0 at Wellesley!</p>
<p>My daughter hasn’t picked a major yet. She’s just getting her distribution requirements out of the way. I didn’t mean to imply that a 4.0 was easy, or that she expects to get straight As every semester, only that it’s not impossible. For example, D’s roommate, a math major, also made straight As last term and took linear algebra and chem, along with a couple of other distribution requirements. </p>
<p>D took history, German, astronomy, and drawing her first semester, as well as piano and choir. She said the drawing class was the most challenging in terms of the amount of time it required and because it was her first time taking such a class. The astronomy class wasn’t as difficult for her as she expected.</p>
<p>I would never let the fear of not making all As all the time deter me from going to Wellesley. The education you will receive has a value far beyond your GPA. Medical and other professional schools know Wellesley, so they’re not going to be comparing a Wellesley grad’s 3.5 with a grad of a less challenging school’s 4.0.</p>
<p>My D is thinking about Wellesley, but we are from the West Coast and are not as familiar with the school. We know a few people who go there and have read as much as we could.</p>
<p>What is the reputation of Wellesley nowadays? Are students picking Wellesley over some of the lower Ivies still or has that changed? Does having a degree at Wellesley help greatly in the marketplace, seeing that an alumnus would not have a vast network of fellow alumni. </p>
<p>^2 years ago, a graduate of my high school apparently picked Wellesley over Yale (not sure why)</p>
<p>@Bruinsteve85 Not sure if this is entirely helpful, but here’s a link to an article about the best “Top 10 Ivy League Alternatives”: <a href=“Top 10 Ivy League alternatives”>http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/01/07/top-10-ivy-alternatives/4354659/</a> </p>
<p>Although things like this are subjective, Wellesley is extremely prestigious, and as prestigious as some Ivies nowadays. Honestly, just reading this forum and reading about why students love it will be helpful (imo!). Statistics like these are also very telling of how good of a school Wellesley is! <a href=“http://www.wellesley.edu/admission/guidancecounselors/outcomes”>http://www.wellesley.edu/admission/guidancecounselors/outcomes</a></p>
<p>Adding on to what absentions said, a girl I know turned down Harvard and Cambridge to go to Wellesley!</p>
<p>@Ljtjrose It’s so fun that you’ll be visiting! I ran into a tour on my way to the airport last week - I love seeing prospective students around I’m not sure there’s anywhere on campus to eat, because it’s currently our spring break, but the Ville has a ton of great restaurants, and Washington Street is right off campus. Enjoy the visit :)</p>
<p>Also I saw shadow grading mentioned - if that’s what I think it is (like what MIT does, first semester grades don’t count toward your GPA?), Wellesley doesn’t have that. As much as I would’ve like for it to…it does not.</p>
<p>To reaffirm what was already said, you can take things like astronomy, computer science, and horticulture to fill your distribution requirements for math/science, so there are options if you don’t feel comfortable going the calc/lin alg route. There are a lot of cool ways to fulfill distribution requirements. The distribution requirements are actually one of my favorite things about Wellesley - they allow you to try different classes that you wouldn’t have normally picked.</p>
<p>Another question mentioned - what do I like about being at a women’s college. I have my qualms about that, honestly, but I do always feel extremely safe on campus. I am probably calmer around campus, I’ll throw on that extra scarf even if it makes me look like an eskimo (tip from Boston - when in doubt, ALWAYS throw on that extra scarf), stuff like that. It’s a pretty new environment for me, coming from a co-ed high school, but a lot of students really really love the fact that it’s all girls.</p>
<p>As far as the prestige thing goes, I’m pretty sure Wellesley is still prestigious. It’s kind of hard to tell from within the school, but I have met a lot of girls that ended up deciding between Wellesley and Ivies or other top schools. All bias aside, every single graduate leaves Wellesley with a FANTASTIC education, it’s an amazing school. I’d be willing to bet employers that know anything at all about the school will recognize that.</p>