<p>The WC experience sounds like something I would love. But like most girls, I still want the chance to interact with boys, have guy friends, and date. It's not my top priority by any means, but it still seems like an important part of the college experience for me. </p>
<p>What WC's provide the best experience in this regard? Which interact the most and in what ways with nearby coed schools?</p>
<p>Also, what type of guys are connected to the colleges? For example, I love Sweet Briar College, but I've heard that -most- guys at counterpart Hampden-Sydney are conservative, partying, "manly men" types (which aren't my type personally). </p>
<p>Scripps. Like Mount Holyoke and Smith, it is part of a 5-college consortium, but unlike MHC and Smith, Scripps is within walking distance of the other colleges. A lot of girls who want the women’s college experience, but also want some interactions with guys on a daily basis, are drawn to Scripps.</p>
<p>I went to Mount Holyoke eons ago and loved it, but I did not have daily interaction with guys except in the classes I took on the other campuses, which were a bus ride away. I met them at parties (not my kind of thing, either) and on my junior year abroad program.</p>
<p>Call me biased, but Bryn Mawr truly offers the best of all worlds regarding interaction with guys. Though a distinct campus, Bryn Mawr still keeps very close ties with its brother school, Haverford. We have a seamless course registration process and students can major at either college even if their home college has the same major. For example, if you prefer Haverford’s political science department you can major there but still be a Bryn Mawr student. We also share some departments, like Comparative Literature and Gender and Sexuality Studies. Their campus is only a mile away and connected by a free bus system that runs every 15 minutes. I regularly have male students from both Haverford and Swarthmore in my classes, but I’m also active in extra-curriculars at Haverford, like booking for their concert series.</p>
<p>Despite this accessibility, I wanted to still feel like I was part of a close-knit women’s college. Bryn Mawr really allows students to determine when they want to interact with guys or not, while making it very easy to do so. This semester I’m taking two courses at UPenn where there’s a solid mix of the genders – not to mention being in a city full of students! Philadelphia is a 20 minute train ride away so it offers a lot of opportunities to mingle with people that aren’t students within the consortium of Bryn Mawr, Haverford, or Swarthmore. This ability to choose where and in what company I spend my time was a big factor in my decision to attend Bryn Mawr.</p>
<p>I agree with englishivy. Bryn Mawr’s relationship with Haverford is by far the closet bi-college relationship I’ve seen outside of the Claremont/Pomona Colleges in California. Proximity is hard to beat, especially with a bus that travels between the two campuses every 15 minutes. Haverford is complete accessible in every way, whether you’re looking for course with more guys in them or social events in a more co-ed environment, you definitely have that option going to Bryn Mawr. Swarthmore and UPenn/Philly is also (obvious) co-ed and many Bryn Mawr students take full advantage of that.
There definitely wont be a lack of guys, just because you go to a WC. </p>
<p>As far as types of guys, they all vary. My experience with guys at Ford have been guys that are committed to working hard academically as well as not being afraid of being themselves and letting loose. There is not quite a mold that each boy fits into. I’ve met guys from both ends of the spectrum (“manly men” to brainy guys). Again, if Haverford boys aren’t your style there is Swarthmore and UPenn to explore. You can definitely check out the Haverford/Swarthmore/Upenn forums for more info on what guys are like there.</p>
<p>I went to Spelman College, which is right across the street from Morehouse (a men’s college) and Clark Atlanta University (a co-ed university). Also within the city are Georgia State, Georgia Tech, Emory, and a host of other smaller colleges. There was a lot of cross-university partying and I met people (men and women) from several different schools. By far, the most men I met went to Morehouse, and my husband is a Morehouse Man :D</p>
<p>I teach at Columbia College, a women’s college in Columbia, SC. Just a few miles down main street is the University of South Carolina, so plenty of college guys nearby (college students tend to hang out in the same night spots, regardless of where they go to school).</p>
<p>As for the type of guys interested in women’s college students, we have a bumper sticker that reads, “If you’re dating a Columbia College woman, raise your hand. If not, raise your standards.”</p>
<p>I went to Barnard, and during my three years there (I did my JYA in London) I only had three classes which were not coed. I also lived in coed dorms. So if you want the best of both worlds–a small women’s college and a world-renowned research university–you can’t beat going to Barnard.</p>
<p>There are guys if you go to either Smith or Mt. Holyoke; Amherst and UMass are nearby and the schools interact with each other a lot. Tip: UMass parties are fun. :)</p>
<p>Scripps, Bryn Mawr, and Barnard are your top choices in regards to proximity to other co-ed colleges. At all three colleges, you can take classes at co-ed schools, but still get the benefits of a WC.</p>
<p>Barnard has it’s own defined beautiful mecca in the midst of a chaotic city, and you can quite literally cross the street to get to Columbia’s campus.</p>
<p>Bryn Mawr, from what I have heard, is also extremely close to Haverford…15 minutes away if I am correct.</p>
<p>However, my all time favorite and preferred would be Scripps. When I visited, all I had to do was hop over a hip-level divider or even better, step from Pitzer’s arid, desert-like campus to Scripps grassy knolls. Sounds kind of cheesy, but it sometimes doesn’t even feel like five campuses…all parties are for everyone, it’s beautiful weather, amazing spanish style architecture… but you get the experience of living in only women’s dorms. It’s on my list, I would recommend this as the top choice of all.</p>