<p>so i just got a letter from university of richmond and it sounds freaking awsome. (i really want to go to an upper ranked business school, but i also like LA schools, the two never go together, or so i thought). so i checked out UR in princeton review, and was kind of disappointed to find that one of the things current students complained about was the separation between guys and girls on campus. they made it sound like the guys live on one half, the girls on the other, and there isnt a lot of places for them to interact. it said it's hard for students to date because of this separation, and it says that intimate/or friendly relationship with the opposite sex is awkward and not like "in the outside world". can anyone shed light onto if this is true?</p>
<p>It's not true. The only thing that separates guys and girls are dorms. Dorms are all single sex, but there are guys and girls dorms on both sides of the lake, so the lake doesn't act like a barrier as it used to. I have a boyfriend on campus, and it's definitely not awkward, and certainly much easier than having a bf in high school was. And there are PLENTY of places to interact with the opposite sex. Guys are in girls dorms constantly and vice versa. We're in the dining hall together, walking around together, doing ECs together, taking classes together. Trust me, we're together. The "gender separation" is made out by some people to be a much bigger, more isolating thing than it is.</p>
<p>Don't kid yourself. That lake is sorta like what kept Running Bare and Little White Dove apart ... until they swam out into the middle and hung out in the Happy Hunting Grounds Cafe from then on ...</p>
<p>The Lake is a victorian symbol of the separation of the sexes, I spose. But I understand there's even a footbridge across it these days.</p>
<p>More seriously, I asked about what this really meant ... the 2 college gig ... in the admissions presentation, and only got a lot of jibberish about how "unique" this made UR. Still don't know how so though ... maybe someone here can put meat on that myth.</p>
<p>I'm engaged to a Spider I met on the first day of orientation since she was in my orientation group (and getting married in the chapel on campus). Two of my fiances closest college friends are in 3+ year relationships with their Spider boyfriends. I know of at least three couples in my class ('05) that are already married and several more that are engaged. I think the dating scene is easy enough. It's college though, so there are a lot more flings than serious relationships, but that's on every campus. </p>
<p>Whistle, the coordinate system (which essentially boils down to different deans and differenst student governements now) does make UR unique and I think it has a lot to offer students. There are some different traditions, unique to Wessthampton College (women's) and Richmond College (men's) that are put on by the vaious student government associations. They're able to plan and deal with issues that relate specifically to that sex and when there are issues regarding the entire student body, both govenerments come together. This offers more leadership roles on campus for those that want to be involved. Additionally, the seperate deans is awesome. I had an incident over a girl my freshman year in which I had to report to the dean. They understood where I was coming from, and why I let my temper get the best of me, because they've dealt with the issue before themselves. My second year, I had to meet with the dean again because I wasn't focusing enough on my grades, and we talked a lot about the issues that were personal to me. I felt I could be more open since the Dean dealt with just guys who were having the same issues as I was. The same goes for the WC Dean. Eating disorders and depression are prevelant, along with other female issues, and they do a great job of getting girls help if they need it, and being able to talk about it in an open environment on a personal level.</p>
<p>It may have sounded like jibberish, and that's too bad, because it really is a tremendous feature of UR.</p>