Lesbiana?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Wellesley College
21

<p>Wellesley alum here - from way back (graduated in late 70's) Even then there was a small group of folks who were lesbian, and it wasn't a big deal. I happened to live one semester on floor that was mostly lesbian, and received a couple of overtures from some of my floormates. I was hetero, and when I passed on the overtures (I'm talking things like a tenative offer of dating), it was no big deal. Slightly awkward - yeah, but no more than if I had a guy living on my floor, and I turned down a date with him.</p>

<p>If you are concerned about all female school, it's not just about whether some folks are lesbian. Are you happier in a population that is mixed, or single sex? Would you be bummed if there aren't guys around, or do you find it empowering that you don't have to put up with male egos (guys - please excuse the stereotype I just used)?</p>

<p>For me, my best friend in HS had been a guy (not my boyfriend), and I discovered that I missed having guys around. I ended up taking quite a few of my classes at MIT, and making quite a few friends there, which meant I spent a lot of time on the MIT campus, missing out on some of the Wellesley experience.</p>

<p>So assess an all women school in a broader context - first, is it academically a good fit for you? Second, is it socially a good fit for you (activities and types of people you would enjoy)? If you find yourself uncomfortable around a certain category of behaviour (drinking, homosexuality, using marijuana, singing a capella, studying on Saturdays, etc.), and a specific school seems to have a lot of people who have that behaviour, it may be a bad match.
Third, do you see an all women's school as a positive, or are you going to bumming because of the lack of guys?</p>

<p>On a personal note, I don't think you should be worried about being pressured into homosexualty. It just doesn't work that way.</p>

22

<p>Chancers -
Great post! You highlight a lot of really important things to consider.</p>

<p>From what I've gathered (I'm just a prospective student, so I could be off), the women at Wellesley are generally just overall accepting. If you're a hetero student, nobody will pressure you to be gay. If you're gay, nobody's going to try to make you straight.</p>

<p>It seems like the whole world could benefit if it functioned more like that.</p>

23

<p>Unless you're terribly confused about your own sexuality, I don't see how the people at one institution can alter that for you.</p>

24

<p>Hi, I'm an international, who's gay and I want to apply to women's colleges. However, should I mention my sexuality in my applications? I finished school 4 years ago & graduated with an Diploma in TV and have since been working in media. I really want to get a degree and a masters as I'm passionate and ready to work hard, but will it work against me if I disclose my sexuality and my age (21)? I don't want the admissions office to think I'm only going to perve on 17 year olds? What do you think?</p>

25

<p>"I wasn't aware that one can be forced or harassed into altering their sexual orientation "</p>

<p>Yes, but usually they're called republicans..</p>

26

<p>
[quote]
Hi, I'm an international, who's gay and I want to apply to women's colleges. However, should I mention my sexuality in my applications? I finished school 4 years ago & graduated with an Diploma in TV and have since been working in media. I really want to get a degree and a masters as I'm passionate and ready to work hard, but will it work against me if I disclose my sexuality and my age (21)? I don't want the admissions office to think I'm only going to perve on 17 year olds? What do you think?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>The information you include about yourself in the application is your own choice, but the application doesn't ask about your sexual orientation. Your age would primarily be important if you were old enough to be considered a non-traditional student (I believe you need to be at least 24 for that distinction). I pasted the College's nondiscrimination policy below.</p>

<p>Wellesley College admits students, without regard to race, color,
religion or national origin, to all the rights, privileges, programs, and
activities generally accorded or made available to students at the
College. The College does not discriminate on the basis of race, color,
religion or national origin or sexual orientation, in administration of
its education policies, scholarship and loan programs, athletic and
other college-administered programs or in its employment
policies…[The College] does not discriminate on the basis of sex
against its students in the educational programs or activities which it
operates and does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its
employment policies…nor does the College discriminate on the basis of
handicap in violation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973.</p>

27

<p>Thank you so much.</p>

28

<p>Are lesbians more visible at Wellesley than in "the real world"? Yes, because our campus fosters a very open and accepting environment that embraces people regardless of sexuality. Women feel safe here, and to be honest, if you're gay--the grand majority of us are attractive, highly intelligent and fun to be around--you're in luck. </p>

<p>I definitely have not seen any underground dyke militants, hairy-pitted and buzzed, grimly pressuring fragile straight girls. </p>

<p>With all due respect to your father, maybe the people he heard it from were exaggerating, or making a joke.</p>

<p>It's good you're thinking about issues like this, beyond academics and extracurricular. Knowing the character of your school is very important; you might be able to get in, but without being a good fit, it's difficult to stay. </p>

<p>Best,
L.</p>

29

<p>I may sound really awkward but it's funny how I feel this discussion board is already a sort of community. We all feel closer when we're under the same pressure!
Do you know any student from France applying? I think I'm the only one IN THE COUNTRY. I never felt so alone (O-o)</p>

30

<p>I have a really silly pointless question to ask. One of my guy friends was making fun of me when I told him I applied to Wellesley because he thinks that only lesbians go to women's colleges. Of course this isn't true so we started arguing about the percentage of lesbians there are at Wellesley. I know there is no way to really know this, and I know it doesn't actually matter, but he was really being a jerk and I was wondering what you guys have to say about this. Is it higher than the average by much?</p>

31

<p>I have no statistics to back this up--only a general sense of averages--but I'd say that there are (by percentage) no more gay students on the Wellesley campus than there are at any college or university. That said, it's quite possible that there are more openly gay students at Wellesley. The campus and the student body are very open and accepting of all sexual orientations, which allows individuals to express their preferences without fear of retaliation or exclusion.</p>

32

<p>gub, I'm curious, where would I find what the "average" number of lesbians on a typical college campus? and how accurate would those numbers be?</p>

<p>I've found that people who ask about the "lesbian problem" on campus just really don't know anything about Wellesley or women's colleges in general, have heard some wild, weird story from 3rd, 4th, 5th, etc. hand sources, or they're just being jerks, like you said your guy friend was being. </p>

<p>Remember, its hard to get any sort of accurate depiction of a school from a single person's one anecdote.</p>

<p>That said, I always thought the gay/queer/bi/whatever students on campus were one of the most fun bunch to hangout with.</p>

33

<p>BrianJonesIsGOD, there are actually a lot of international students here! You're definitely not alone.</p>