<p>Hi guys! I'm not sure if I should apply to MHC. </p>
<p>I like it, but there are a couple things that I'm not sure about. </p>
<p>First, I don't even know where South Hadley, Massachusetts is. I would like to go to a school that is either near a big city or is located in a big city. Obviously, South Hadley is, as I've heard, out in the middle of nowhere. I could live with that, though. I live out in the middle of nowhere, but I would like a change. </p>
<p>Second, I think the 5-College Consortium is really cool, but I'm not sure if I really want just a certificate in my areas of study. I want to double major in political science and international relations. If I can, I would like to minor in Middle Eastern studies. I don't know if MHC would have exactly what I want. </p>
<p>Don't get me wrong, I'm really considering Mount Holyoke. It's an amazing college, but I don't know if it would work for me. It just depends on how much money I can spend on application fees. I love the campus; it's gorgeous! I think there are some good opportunities for internships. Getting enough financial aid is very important to my parents. </p>
<p>Also, I don't consider it a safety, but because the acceptance rate is higher than the colleges I'm applying to, I've figured that I would maybe actually have a chance of getting in. I know that it's better than my state school (Mizzou).</p>
<p>So, if anyone has any thoughts or comments, I would very much appreciate them!</p>
<p>it would seem that it would be an excellent choice.
although the acceptance rate seems low, the applicants are way above average. many of the girls have very high weighted gpa’s. our daughter had all 5’s on ap exams, a weighted gpa above 4 and sat’s in the 90th percentile. she did not send them her sat scores, though.
she also applied to smith; the alum admissions asked to interview her never returned her e mail requests for an interview. and even though her gpa, sat’s and ap scores were very high, she was waitlisted. we had been reminded by financial aid at smith that they did “not” have a need blind admittance policy!
we are a working class family, and mhc showed more interest in my daughter, and are giving her a generous financial aid package.
i would advise any young women who are really serious academically to apply to mhc if the school has the area of study they wish to pursue.
good luck!</p>
<p>the village next to the campus is quite small, but there is regular bus service.
amherst is larger, a new england college town setting, northampton, where smith is located is burlington, vermont size, more or less.
with friends and the bus service, you’ll find all kinds of music and food and entertainment within about 40 minutes or less.
not much in walking distance, but a nice little collection of small stores with off-campus cafe, large bookstore, etc.
i would talk to students and alums about how easy or hard it is to get around for shopping and entertainment.
so. hadley is small, but the other local towns have a lot happening, which is commonplace in new england.
definitely more a studious environment than a party atmosphere on campus.</p>
<p>MHC has a reputation in the political world and is a recognized college in that field - you don’t have to worry about interviewing and hearing “Where?” types of responses. Tony Lake was a professor and served on the cabinet for Clinton as National Security Advisor. Mona Sutphen - alum '89- was Deputy Chief of Staff in the White House from 2009-2011 as well as member of National Security Council under Clinton, and there are many more alums with awesome connections in the politics/ir field. South Hadley is nice and quiet, and you can go to Noho or Amherst when you want noise. MHC is only 15 mins away from a very large shopping mall (Holyoke Mall at Ingleside - google it) and you could do much, much, much worse choosing a college! Good luck to you!</p>
<p>Thank you both! I would like to apply to 13 colleges, but I can’t spend 700 dollars on application fees. I like Vassar too, but it doesn’t have the Middle Eastern studies major that I want. Do you think that, no matter where I go, I could still design the major?</p>
<p>The professors sound great! I’ll be able to learn a lot. </p>
<p>South Hadley sounds cute! At least there are other towns nearby. I’m glad it isn’t a party school. I hope I get in!</p>
<p>Don’t forget that you can always fashion your own major at MHC, so if other courses offer some of the things that fit the middle east topic, you could use those as well. Not to mention, you can always get more specialized on the middle east during grad school if you don’t do it undergrad. BTW, the UN calls the middle east “western asia”, and others are calling it “southwest asia”, because many don’t like the term “middle east”. Just FYI!</p>
<p>teachandmom: Thanks! I really like the idea of designing my own major! I hope that option is available at the other colleges I hope to apply to.</p>
<p>Yeah, I’ve heard the term “Southwest Asia”, but I like the sound of “Middle East” better. I don’t know why; it sounds more mysterious, I guess. Western Asia is different. I’ve never heard the area called that before. I learned something today!</p>
<p>Vtparent, you were misinformed. Or possibly you misunderstood, which is understandable. Need-blind for the majority of applicants but need-aware for a small percentage can be confusing.</p>
<p>Smith is need-blind for all but 1-4 percent of applicants.</p>
<p>I’m sorry the Smith alumna failed to return your daughter’s email. I certainly hope the lack of communication and oversight was due to an incorrect email address or another understandable error.</p>
<p>Fwiw, I’m very fond of MHC. The current students and many alumnae I have the pleasure of knowing are exceptional women. No doubt your daughter is as well.</p>
<p>actually, i did make a mistake.
admissions made the statement smith was not need blind, not financial aid at the fa seminar for the prospects’ open house.
i have never heard anything about the 1 - 4%. either a college or university is nb or they are not nb.
my daughter’s e mail to the alum did send without error (twice)
i’m sure she will do fine at mhc.
i’m sure smith is a fine school, but our daughter’s academic achievement would have put her in the top 10 - 20 % of the incoming class.<br>
that makes us wonder about their admission criteria.</p>
<p>vtparent, why would it be a problem if your daughter was in the top 10-20% of the class at Smith? It would be a great opportunity to when applying to graduate school or even looking for a job after graduation.
Our oldest went to MHC, (also got into Smith), took some classes at Smith and found them both to be academically rigorous.</p>
<p>I did not have time to read all the previous responses so I apologize in advance if anything i say is repetitive.</p>
<p>First, let me say that the people who say that S. Hadley is “the middle of nowhere” have never been to the middle of nowhere. Yes, it is more removed than the other five colleges and there is not a bustling town just a minute’s walk from campus. But never once have I felt isolated at MHC. The bus rides are easy, free, and pretty quick. The village commons has a great coffee shop and bookstore and a few nice, albeit expensive restaurants as well as a salon that I hear does great haircuts and seems reasonably priced (at least, compared to the area I live in). Oh, and a movie theater (very important). It is more rural than, say, Smith but it’s not like you can go very far without running into someone/something. Having been to all 5 colleges I must say that MHC is far and away the most beautiful, though the competition is really only with Smith and Amherst. Smith is lovely, but I love the traditional flavor of MHC’s campus. </p>
<p>All this being said, if you are looking for a city/close to a city, you might want to consider your priorities. The nearby cities of Holyoke and Springfield leave much to be desired when it comes to cool urban areas. I don’t know anyone who frequents either area, and they are also somewhat difficult to access. Northampton is more of a large town than a city but there is lots going on, thought it is about a 40 min (free) ride from campus (never feels long to me at all). If you are from a city MHC will feel much more rural. However, often such distance from cities is positively correlated with some serious campus beauty with which (as you know) MHC is blessed.
MHC has tons of international students and a great IR program. I understand your concern about only having a certificate in your field and I think that is something to be considered carefully. I will tell you that even though I’m not involved in politics and IR at school, I know that the programs are great, well-respected, and very big on campus. Frankly it seems like every other person I meet is studying IR or politics or global development. Very cool stuff. Globalism is a huge part of MHC.</p>
<p>Do not be deceived by the acceptance rate. There are 2 things to consider: 1, when you apply to a coed school you are typically competing with half of the applicant pool (women, in your case) rather than the entire applicant pool (though some might say this fact is offset by the fact that as a women’s college MHC receives fewer applicants overall). 2, the group of women that applies to MHC is somewhat self-selecting. People do not apply to MHC in hopes of attending a party school or an easy experience. MHC is very demanding.</p>
<p>Best of luck on your search. MHC is a wonderful, engaging, comfortable place. I hope that you find the right school for you and we would all be delighted if your best match is moho =]</p>
<p>The town in which I live has a population of 2,000 people, so I’m used to it, but MA is a lot different from MO. :)</p>
<p>I’ve decided that I’m definitely going to apply. I just have to convince my mom. </p>
<p>I’m very worried about the SAT/ACT. I’m not a great test taker, but I have a feeling I will do better on the SAT. My mom wants me to only take the ACT. :(</p>
<p>I like that MHC has a global focus. That’s just what I’m looking for.</p>
<p>I hadn’t thought about the applicant pool like that. I definitely don’t want to go a party school, so I’m glad to hear that! :)</p>
<p>Chelsea: Not sure what you mean by “general education requirements”.</p>
<p>When there, students have a number of academic requirements to fulfill. These courses are outside, and not typically related to, the major and minor.</p>
<p>If you mean High school education requirements, I do not believe that there are any “requirements”, but see:</p>
<p>Any good liberal arts college or university looks more favorably upon students who have taken a broad range of courses and who have taken some advanced courses in subjects of interest to the student. Extra-curricular activities are also of interest, such as sports, or music, or debating, community help, etc., whatever. Colleges look to long term commitment to meaningful activities, not just the chess club for first term senior year.</p>
<p>Generally, colleges will look favorably on applicants who have taken English for all 4 years of HS, significant study of a foreign language, 3 years of math, 3 years of sciences, 3 years of history. Your HS grades are very important in the admissions process at any collegeor university. For many LACs, including MHC and a number of others, SAT or ACT scores are not required. Studies have shown that SAT scores do not correlate with college success.</p>
<p>Yes, moho has a core curriculum and it is fairly extensive. For many students this is a big turnoff, but I think that it has way more pros than cons. I know lots of students who came to MHC dead-set on a particular major but found a different passion through another requirement, often one that they were reluctant to fulfill and would not have otherwise. The requirements are hard to explain because they’re a touch convoluted and hard to grasp, but basically you will be required to take a class or two from a few different disciplines which are quite broad. I don’t know anyone who has been unable to find a class they would LIKE to take that would fulfill a req, even though scheduling might be an issue. MHC also has a physical education requirement. Basically, you will need to take 6 units of PE during your time at MHC in order to graduate. Most classes are 1/2 semester long (often with a second half-semester optional, i.e. beginning yoga for the first have and intermediate for the second half of the semester). So most likely you will take 3 semesters of PE. HOWEVER if you play sports, a season will count for (I think) 2 credits. Also, some PEs like lifeguarding count for 3 credits if you get certified.</p>
<p>Sorry if that was super confusing, I don’t think anyone can really explain the reqs easily, even seasoned students. However, while they are confusing, they are generally pretty easy to fulfill (I’m almost done, except for the PEs, and haven’t even started my soph.year yet).</p>
<p>Also, saw that you’re from MO. I’m from IL (not for my whole life but a current midwesterner at least). I LOVE the pioneer valley, much more than I like my home state. Not sure where in MO you are but IL is just too flat for me, and everything is very far. Maybe that’s why the 40 min ride to Smith feels short to me–all my New Englander friends complain but it’s nothing to a midwesterner who’s used to driving forever to get anywhere.</p>
<p>ConCernedDad: I meant to ask if there are any required classes one has to take at MHC. Is there a core curriculum?</p>
<p>I will admit that I got a B- my freshman year in both algebra 2 and the stupid integrated science class we all had to take. I hope that doesn’t hurt me.</p>
<p>I’m in key club, heritage club and knowledge bowl. Hopefully I’ll be in NHS this year too. I’m also in band, debate and 4-H.</p>
<p>I’m going to graduate with honors, so I’m good on that, but getting 3 years of a foreign language in will be tough. I’m hoping to take Spanish 2 next summer and Spanish 3 in the fall. I couldn’t fit it in this year. :(</p>
<p>Thanks for the link and the advice! I really appreciate it!</p>
<p>i agree with moho55 on pretty much all counts, except for the distribution requirements being too tricky to explain. essentially, they are this: take one to two classes in every discipline. why? because it allows you to widen your worldview and to understand the world through many lenses.
here they are: a lab science. a math. two social sciences (those will be covered by IR/politics). two humanities (maybe also IR). a “multicultural” - aka non-Western - course (also likely covered by IR). foreign language (also an IR requirement). your major would cover most of those things! and don’t forget phys ed. that last one is important - it forces students to do something fun and physical, ensuring that academic life doesn’t completely take over. classes like hiking, canoeing, frisbee, and scuba diving are pretty great diversions!</p>
<p>being from just outside a major city, i can say that western mass has way more to do (that i enjoy) than my home city, for way less money. amazing restaurants, great concerts, lots of outdoorsy activities, and tons of students to keep things interesting. plus, it’s very easily accessible. i love the pvta (the 5-college bus).
the other thing to consider is the trade-off that often occurs - immersion in urban life vs strong campus community. those two things tend to be mutually exclusive. i like that at mhc, there is SO much to do on campus and a great sense of unity. </p>
<p>also, international relations INCLUDES politics. so you wouldn’t need to double major - it’s all in there already. IR is econ, geography, politics, language, and history. it’s also whatever else you want to include, based on your area of interest. if your area of interest is the middle east, you would also have some asian studies courses. maybe gender studies. maybe religion. you could throw in some art history too! you decide. that’s the beauty of mhc, and of IR. an IR major can become so large and so inclusive, which is why IR majors are not required to minor or double major.</p>
Western Asia is different. I’ve never heard the area called that before. I learned something today!</p>