We are just starting the search process and these schools came up on list provide by D’s college counselor. We are from the West Coast, very liberal town (think Collin the Chicken). To be honest, we don’t know much about these schools, so I’m curious when one says they are “edgy” what does that imply? Is that more an East Coast term which describes a look or style? Or is to describe LGBT community? Thru my research on this site, I’ve come to understand the women’s colleges provide a very open and accepting environment, yet from my liberal view point, the discussions I’ve read seem almost overkill regarding just how “edgy” the different schools are. What the heck does “edgy” really imply? And why is it brought up so much in regards to these schools?
I might put Smith in the sightly edgy camp but not the rest. Bowdoin is probably the most middle of the road out of the list - a little preppy, a little cocky, a little outdoorsy. Haverford and Bryn Mawr (in a co-college partnership together and part of a larger Quaker consortium) are just really accepting places, of any and everybody. Both schools were founded by Quakers and they still embrace Quaker values like community, consensus, equality, social justice.
Thank you. So it sounds as if being from a liberal town, the atmosphere at these schools wouldn’t necessarily be much different than what she’s grown up with? Sorry if my questions seem obvious, having never been to any of these schools it’s hard to get an accurate image in my mind as to what the environments are really like.
I think someone coming from a liberal town would feel very comfortable at every school you’ve mentioned.
Thank you!
BTW, love your Colin reference. 
Ha!
BTW, my comment about Bowdoin should be jocky not cocky, although I’m sure some are cocky, too. Darn autocorrect.
I tried to google colin the chicken and didn’t quite figure out what it meant. Send me a link!
I think the edgy assessment came from people who find hair died anything other than a "naturual"color to be daring. We are from NYC and it didn’t feel the least bit edgy, but studious and harmonious. We toured Bryn Mawr and we didn’t see any rainbow hair on the day we were there. The academics were emphasized. Accepting other people seemed important. Knowing each other from Day 1 on a first name basis seemed to be a thing. Coming from NYC and very diverse environment (where anyone standing next to you on a street corner could be speaking a language you can’t identify) we were concerned that the school might be not very diverse. We saw all kinds of different sorts of women, all sizes, all shapes, all religions and skin tones. And we liked hearing about the school traditions (heavily emphasized at Bryn Mawr) and the honor code. Haverford also has an honor code. They like to tell everyone that their classes are harder, but that remains to be seen! Haverford has the studio arts program. BMC has the geology program and a gorgeous collection. Also BMC has a few graduate programs. The buses between Haverford and BMC run frequently and the boys get off to attend BMC classes regularly. Haverford has a great nature/running path while BMC has the nice swimming pool. They share some student activities.
Swarthmore is also part of the mix and if you attend any of the schools you can also attend classes ad UPenn. There are also some engineering opportunities. Swarthmore has it’s own program. Haverford and BMC have a 4+1 with Upenn.
If you are looking at these schools, I want to suggest other schools that are similar–
Earlham has the Quaker vibe
St. Lawrence U has the Bowdoinesque sporty snowy feel.
Middlebury ditto
Agnes Scott is a great women’s school with the sciences that you may expect that has cross reg with Emory and a great mascot
Mt. Holyoke is part of the 5 college consortium with Smith and has traditions like BMC and has buses among the 5 campuses for free.
Hamilton has the preppy Bowdoin feel
"The buses between Haverford and BMC run frequently and the boys get off to attend BMC classes regularly. "
As do Haverford women. 
Hilarious. Love this.
BMC and Bowdoin have great food btw!!
I don’t know if you can walk out to look at the farm but . . . . Maybe at Hampshire you can.
You beat me too it, doschicos! Dusty feathers, you can watch Portlandia on Netflix. The episode with Collin the chicken is in the first season, I believe.
You’ve both been a big help painting a clearer picture as to just how edgy these schools are, so thank you for taking time to reply. The other schools you mentioned were also on her list:)
I believe “edgy” is really a subjective term. For some reason, some people took offense to it (not really sure why) when it was used to describe some girls at Bryn Mawr, although not all girls would fall into that category, obviously. It is a community of open and accepting students so I believe that there are women who feel comfortable being their true selves, which means coloring their hair, wearing eclectic clothing, asserting their sexual preferences, and offering their views on all sorts of subjects. That’s where the “edgy” comes in. It’s really nothing more than that. It’s just a different group of people than you might find in, say, a conservative college. Your daughter would probably feel very comfortable there.
I’m not really familiar with the other colleges, although we did visit Bowdoin and drove through Mt. Holyoke, which was beautiful, btw. We were told the food was amazing at Bowdoin. 
It also seemed like a very environmentally conscious school. Unfortunately, we went during the summer so there wasn’t a lot going on at the time.
Not to be argumentative, but I do find the term “edgy” pejorative. it’s not purely descriptive and neutral by any means. It’s not a complement.
A complement for the same behavior might be: self-assured; forward thinking; unafraid; powerful; expressive; innovative; on the vanguard; and the like.
Edgy implies that they are borderline and on the fringe and maybe even a little unstable.
I don’t like the term.
Again, it’s a subjective term. Even if you look it up in the dictionary, there are many different meanings. I found these: having a bold, provocative, or unconventional quality; daringly innovative; daring, provocative, trend-setting. I don’t see anything negative in any of those definitions found in 3 different dictionaries.
But some people are having an issue with the term. Obviously, it’s people’s perception of that word that seems to be the problem so let’s just say they’re innovative and unconventional and leave it at that. Sheesh! :)>-
I never thought of the term edgy as negative but it may be because I have heard women describe themselves and their friends this way with pride rather than describe others this way negatively. As in “we are pushing the boundaries”. I appreciate this discussion - I will be more careful in how I use this term going forward realizing it is bringing very different reactions to different listeners. Thanks!
Edgy doesn’t have negative connotations with me. The word and who it describes, as well, is definitely a matter of perspective. What’s edgy for one, isn’t for another.
Thanks to all for your input! What I noticed, not being familiar with women’s colleges, or many of the East Coast colleges placed on my D’s list, was that “edgy” was used frequently when describing the women’s colleges, but not the co-ed schools, which prompted my OP. I wasn’t sure if that was some sort of underground east coast slang referring to something that one from the West Coast might not pick up on. Coming from a very liberal town (hippies, tie dye everything, rainbow hair, ear plugs, and tattoos being very typical style) I highly doubt the edginess used to describe the students at some of these campuses would shock my D. In fact, she’ll probably get a chuckle out of what they consider edgy. When visiting Georgetown, one of her first observations was “there are no hippies or tie dye t-shirts anywhere”. This was a welcome change. In parts of our area, the 60’s are alive and well.