Mainstream at Bard

<p>My daughter was recently accepted to Bard, and I personally got a great impression of the school and its community. However, I would describe my daughter as more mainstream, laid back, shy but friendly. I wouldn’t describe her as preppy, but I also wouldn’t describe her as “hipster” or artsy, as the student body at Bard is often stereotyped. My daughter is interested in studying social sciences and life sciences. While the school seems like it would be a great fit academically, I want to make sure she is happy socially as well. I want it to be a good fit all around. Would a friendly, more mainstream girl have trouble making friends at Bard? Would she feel out of place? She is open and accepting of many different points of views and ideas, but I just want to make sure that she’d be accepted there as well. Thanks!</p>

<p>My son is the same, and he is accepted and may end up there, too. My sense is that Bard has its share of the stereotypical kids, but that not everyone is that way, and what excited me about the school at first was when my friend said that she likes Bard because the kids discuss issues and ideas and not just how drunk they got the night before… My S’s academic interests are wide-ranging, but principally languages and social sciences. He is very appreciative of the arts and is happy to watch / listen, but that’s the extent of his artistic life.</p>

<p>Your kids will meet all kinds of people at Bard. Your daughter will love social sciences and life sciences at Bard.</p>

<p>She’ll meet kids in her dorm (all kinds), she’ll meet kids in her classes (all kinds), she’ll meet kids in her extra-curriculars (of which there are many). Most interesting, she’ll meet lots of kids NOT in her classes, simply because all freshmen must go through L & T (3-week orientation) and FYSEM (first-year seminar), so they all take the same class, but with different professors, which gives a really different bend to the same subject matter. Imagine a math professor and a dance teacher conducting seminars on the same subject matter! Therefore, it would not be at all unusual to sit down with a bunch of people who are NOT in your class, but still be able to discuss the same readings and assignments.</p>

<p>Again, there are all kinds there. Hikers, hipsters, artists, nerds & geeks, comics, locals, internationals, rubgy fans, musicians, environmentalists and economists.</p>

<p>Some are friendly, some are not. Your kids will fit in just fine. :)</p>

<p>My D, now getting ready for Moderation (ulp!), had a lot of the same concerns before she arrived there…to the point that she made her final decision at 11:55 on April 30 and then looked nauseous for some time afterwards.</p>

<p>Long story short, she’s been very happy, made a great circle of friends, some of whom fit the Bard stereotype, most of which do not.</p>

<p>Go to accepted students day and peer around at the other prospies there. They’ll look pretty normal.</p>