<p>When I first visited Barnard I loved the atmosphere, the academic opportunities and just about everything about it. It is my top choice for college next year. </p>
<p>The fact that it is a women’s college makes me feel secure in a way because of the supportive faculty and mission tailored to the needs of women. But, I’ll be honest. The lack of boys on campus made me a bid uneasy. I have heard that Barnard women do socialize with men alot, but I want to get a better sense of what male-female relationships are like.</p>
<p>Has anyone heard anything to share about this subject? Maybe first-hand experience or just what you’ve heard. Thanks!</p>
<p>Okay, first of all.
I was accepted ED and then i flipped a bit after realizing that i am pretty much legally bound to attend an all-women’s institution for at least one year.</p>
<p>but then…
i visited. and realized i counted more guys on campus than women.</p>
<p>But as far as like relationships…i mean…a lot of the girls i know at barnard have a ton of columbia guy friends…and i know a few who have boyfriends at columbia too.
and then i know a lot of guys at columbia who have a ton of female friends at barnard.
i think it’s like…pretty normal from what i’ve heard…
I dunno, I did one piece of advise from a close friend at barnard and that was to just steer clear of undergrads</p>
<p>second, meeting boys will not be a problem.</p>
<p>third- I am pretty sure you could do a search and find this has been discussed multiple times on this forum. you might find those threads pretty enlightening…</p>
<p>Yep. Any guest (over age 13, I think) can stay overnight but each visitor to the dorm has to leave an ID at the front desk and be signed in by a student. Of course, common courtesy applies if you share a room with someone…</p>
<p>Oh i should clarify,
she was talking about all the animosity and how columbia guys tend to make fun of barnard. so she told me that, in general, grad students don’t do the whole superficial “barnard is a backdoor” etc thing.</p>
<p>Just wondering… I hope I didn’t seem promiscuous or anything, because boys “sleeping over” really isn’t my thing anyway. However, if my roommate were to have a boy over, then, well… I guess I’ll have to prep for a discussion about it now.</p>
<p>Please don’t buy into the idea that Columbia guys (undergrads or otherwise) universally (or even noticeably ) look down on Barnard girls. It’s just not been my daughter’s experience AT ALL. And, as she just pointed out to me, if one did he would not be worth your time any way.</p>
<p>My sister graduated from Barnard in '06 and she said that she mostly took Columbia classes, so most of her classes were with boys. The Barnard classes were really small and she said there was a completely different atmosphere, but there was never any problem finding boys</p>
<p>Many, if not most, Barnard women say that the Barnard classes are more rigorous. There are Columbia kids in them too.</p>
<p>D’s classes were 60% Barnard, 40% Columbia.</p>
<p>She dated a Columbia guy her first year, but got a long distance boyfriend after that. Junior year was spent in England with lots of guys and senior year she is much too busy with her thesis to care whether her school is filled with women, men, elephants or orangatans. </p>
<p>I think she enjoyed the quiet, non-drinking atmosphere of the Barnard dorms but never lacked for male companionship if that’s what she wanted.</p>
<p>She did have her boyfriend visit and stay in her single for ten days Fall semester.</p>
<p>About the “animosity”, I have a friend who got into Columbia ED, and she’s been poking fun at Barnard ever since (she’s just joking :). And luckily I have wonderful blackmail photos of her~), but she did find this:</p>
<p>Eh…but I don’t think “animosity” would be quite the right word. (If you ever get the “Barnard girls are lesbians that steal Columbia girls’ boyfriends.” one, be sure to point out just how badly that joke backfires–among other things, Columbia boys would rather date lesbians from Barnard than straight girls from Columbia. (bwahaha))</p>
<p>haha those analogies are really cute…make columbia feel like it’s own world.
The thing is…I’m fairly positive I could have gotten into Columbia (College) if I really wanted to. Barnard is the most selective and applied to women’s college in the country. Right now, Barnard is in its prime. Columbia, on the other hand (don’t get me wrong, i like columbia), is not number one. That doesn’t mean it’s anything less than amazing, but I’ve heard a lot of things about Barnard basically making us out to be the dumb blonde of Columbia University.
I’m going to Barnard because I want small classes, a liberal core, special attention (in terms of advisors) and easier access to professors. Columbia was easily my top choice until I realized that I would be in huge lecture classes and would be slaving away at a Core that I really don’t like. Once I found Barnard, I never looked back.</p>
<p>Now I know everyone is going to reply saying that no such anti-barnard sentiments exist on the University’s campus, but I’ve heard it. In fact, I just had dinner with a girl from Columbia who proceeded to bash Barnard despite being perfectly informed that I am part of the class of 2013.</p>
<p>Indeed, the Columbia core does give one an excellent basis in the liberal arts. However, it is quite restrictive in that everyone on campus does have to take exactly the same core courses. No flexibility at all. Barnard’s basic liberal arts requirements, however, are very, very flexible. </p>
<p>As to the existence of anti-Barnard sentiment on campus: I don’t think anyone has tried to deny it’s there. It just does not define the place or the experience of attending as a Barnard student. At least anyone in my daughter’s acquaintance. Or anyone I have heard from on these boards, for that matter.</p>
I hope I didn’t seem promiscuous or anything, because boys “sleeping over” really isn’t my thing anyway. However, if my roommate were to have a boy over, then, well… I guess I’ll have to prep for a discussion about it now.</p>
(If you ever get the “Barnard girls are lesbians that steal Columbia girls’ boyfriends.” one, be sure to point out just how badly that joke backfires–among other things, Columbia boys would rather date lesbians from Barnard than straight girls from Columbia. (bwahaha))</p>