smith vs wellesley

Colleges and Universities A-Z Wellesley College
1

<p>i guess this is somewhat self explanatory.
i'll start
open curriculum (smith) vs many (?) required courses
northampton vs wellesley, bryn mawr
lower sats v higher sats -don't know what difference this makes, maybe just that smith people weren't super college crazy in hs, or weren't good at standardized tests, or didn't take expensive prep courses, or even that bm and w student are empirically smarter (though I dont trust the sats). it could also be one indicator of how much harder it is to get into wellesly and bm also possibily better academics, reputation at wellesley, bm ??)</p>

<p>i know more about smith than bm and wellesley because the open curriculum and semeter in washington is a big draw for me, plus all the nice, enthusiastic, helpful people on the smith board- not to say w and bm aren't active and nice, just that i have some more experience on the smith one. i don't mean to sound biased in my comparisons or make bm and w seem identical</p>

<p>all seem very liberal, accepting of gays, and rank high in washington monthly.</p>

2

<p>Hey there...i'd really like it if more people posted here since i'm a junior and am very interested in both Smith and Wellesley.</p>

3

<p>I think it's worth a visit. I visited both and learned that Wellesley was more serious--my tour guide at Smith told me. I think her exact words were, "The difference between Smith and Wellesley is that you don't go to breakfast in your pajamas at Wellesley."
Overall I felt that Wellesley was a more studious place, while Smith was more adventurous.
Both are fine schools--you need to visit to decide for yourself. I loved both campuses--absolutely gorgeous.</p>

4

<p>Aw, we definitely go to breakfast in our pajamas! Well, maybe just brunch, on the weekends. Not very many people go to breakfast during the week with enough time to go back to the room and change into marginally cleaner clothes. Also, if you live in a dorm without a dining hall, it's a little less convenient to trek in PJs through leaves, snow, or puddles, depending on the season.</p>

<p>There aren't any required courses at Wellesley. There are required subjects, but not courses. If you take a look at the distribution requirements, you'll see the breakdown, and none of them are really painful. There are all sorts of ways to fulfill them, and you never know what you might end up loving beyond all belief. (I found my major through the distribution requirements!)</p>

<p>Wellesley also has a program in Washington, but not during the academic year--it's during the summer. A few of my friends were admitted and thoroughly enjoyed it.</p>

<p>If you can, visit the three schools (overnight stays, if you can manage it), and see how you feel on each campus. All three provide excellent educations and will give you a lifelong network, but you need to find the environment that best fits you. I loved every moment at Wellesley, but I never would have applied if I hadn't visited.</p>

<p>Oh, and as for the SATs ... yeah, there's really no use in trying to evaluate the quality of the school based on incoming scores. Once you're admitted (and possibly even before that), they don't mean anything. None of your classmates will care what you got, none of your professors will care, and chances are good that no one will ever ask for them again in your life.</p>

5

<p>o, what i mean by ranking high in washington monthly is that they have lots of students committed to service and lots of people on financial aid.</p>

<p>thanks for the info so far. if anyone could comment specifically about the political science/govt and french programs, that would help a lot.
also, i tried for a long time to get the list of requirements for graduation at wellesley and haven'tbeen able to find it again., it honestly seemed like a pretty hefty load. i'd like to double major in four years without having to take summer courses, so that's one of my main areas of concern.</p>

6

<p>Distribution</a> Requirements</p>

<p>They aren't hefty, at all. Really. A portion of them are pretty much guaranteed to come from your major, and they'll count for both requirements. If you're interested in French, the language requirement will be filled by the major. When you're looking through the course catalog, the course descriptions will indicate which distributions each class fills.</p>

<p>Many many people graduate with double majors within four years. In fact, I believe there are students who do so in three years, sans summer courses (which generally aren't the same as the regular semester offerings). You need 32 credits to graduate, which roughly translates to 4 credits per semester, give or take. 1 credit = 1 class (usually), and most majors are 8 or 9 credits. There are a few exceptions to this, such as IR, which is almost a double major, in itself. </p>

<p>Every student has a major advisor, and that faculty member ensures that his or her students graduate on time. You won't get lost in the shuffle and suddenly realize after three and a half years that you can't graduate with your class.</p>

7

<p>dude, I totally go to breakfast in my pj's...I roll out of bed, go downstairs, eat, go up, and then my day starts. I don't think that anybody at Wellesley really cares what you do as long as you can keep up in class. </p>

<p>as far as required courses, as a first year you are required to taking Writing 125, which is annoying.</p>

8

<p>Regarding the French and PoliSci departments, both are quite strong and offer a variety of courses. Looking through the course catalogue will give you a good idea of their strengths and whether or not they coincide with your interests.</p>

<p>The French department offers a Wintersession course in Paris and also has a study-abroad program in Aix en Provence.</p>

<p>PoliSci ... it's a mystery to me. Madeleine Albright keeps in touch with the department, but that's about all I know. The department has a ridiculous number of pages in the course catalog--hopefully an indication of widespread options.</p>

9

<p>I don't really have time to write a response, but I go down to breakfast in my PJs on weekends. I also go down to dinner in my PJs.</p>

<p>But on weekdays I get dressed before I eat since the dining hall is on my way out.</p>

10

<p>You're going to need a Wellesley Course Catalog to look at the relevant descriptions, but I believe you can find the equivalent online at Wellesley.edu </p>

<p>Let's see (I'm procrastinating so this is off the top of my head)</p>

<p>Quantitative Reasoning Basic Skills
-get half the questions right on a 7th grade level math test sans calculator
or
-take QR 140</p>

<p>Quantitaive Reasoning Overlay
-Get a 5 on AP Stats or
-take class marked QR overlay (there are about 9 of these, somehow my major requires 2 of them, even though I got a 5 on the AP Stats $#!@) and make friends with error propogation and Mr. Gauss</p>

<p>Take 3 from these two groups, making sure you get one in each group
Language and Literature
Arts, Musics, Theater, Film and Video</p>

<p>Take 3 from these two groups, making sure you get one in each group, and one (or more) of the science classes has a lab
Mathematical Modelling
Natural and Physical Science</p>

<p>Take Social and Behavioral Analysis</p>

<p>Take 2 from these three groups
Historical Studies
Epistomology and Cognition
Religion Ethics and Moral Philosophy</p>

<p>Writing Class (about 20 themes to choose from, 15 person class)</p>

<p>Foreign Language
-get good SAT II/AP scores
-take 101-102,201-202, or if you bypassed 202, just one 200 level class</p>

<p>Some class that you can consider "Multicultural", write an essay about, and not have it be your writing class</p>

<p>A Major</p>

<p>4 300-level classes</p>

<p>It sounds like a lot, but really isn't too bad. The major certainly eats up a good chunk of it, as does trying to take a variety of clases your first year because you're all excited Wellesley offers linguistics. What it comes out to is the distribution forcing you to take classes that are different or fun that you might have found vaguely interesting in the c. Or making the English people take a couple of math and science classes and the Science people taking some Humanities. Currently, my distribution is forcing me to play with video cameras, the shame and horror.</p>

11

<p>There are ridiculously great ways to fill the requirements. And, if you find that there are simply too many classes to take and you can't do all of them ... audit. You get the exposure and the content without the extra work. A friend and I thought about auditing an econ class, but we never got around to it. The only downside is that auditors aren't generally allowed to participate in class discussion.</p>

<p>Please don't let the distribution requirements keep you from seriously considering Wellesley. There are so many wonderful opportunities to be had in them, and there are many other great facets to the school. Our student government is active, strong, and influential; students are continuously creating new organizations; the professors are amazing and committed to teaching; the whole environment challenges you to stretch and grow and think about new ideas; the students, faculty, and staff are supportive and welcoming. Most of all, people talk to each other. Whether through organizations or simply through online fora, most everyone knows what's going on. You have a voice, you can hear what others have to say, and you can actively participate in the community happenings.</p>

12

<p>Well, I just wanted to touch on the pj thing. I don't think it's silly and is a good reflection on the type of people that go to school. Though, I can assure you that people most definitely come to breakfast in their pajamas. Not only on the weekends. For example, I work at one of the dining halls and on Thursday mornings and my job is to count the amount of people that come in with a clicky-county thing. So, I get to see everyone that walks in for breakfast. </p>

<p>To stress my point even more, last week there were 2 big parties on campus (which means there were a lot of people from other schools) and I was eating dinner at the campus center with some friends. Then walks in, 2 Wellesley students not only their pajamas, but in their nathrobes with curlers in their hair! Oh, that made me so happy. Actually, I think I was wearing my pajama pants too, 8pm is much too early to change into my night clothes.</p>

<p>Anyway, I almost chose Smith over Wellesley (I didn't apply to BM, no free apps!) because of their open curriculum. The requirements really looked intimidating, but then when I really put things into perspective, I realized that they would be better for me in the long run and they didn't look so bad at all. It makes sense that Wellesley wants their students to be well-rounded and isn't that the whole point of a liberal arts education? Regardless, both are wonderful institutions with gorgeous campuses! Feel free to ask me more questions if you're so inclined.</p>

13

<p>I haven't read through this entire thread, but a lot of people eat breakfast in their pjs... I mean the dining hall is right downstairs from where we sleep. </p>

<p>The one thing I love about wellesley is it's location. Boston! :)</p>

14

<p>I thought Wellesley was in the forest...?</p>

15

<p>
[quote]
I thought Wellesley was in the forest...?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>No ... definitely not in a forest. There are some wooded areas, and the campus looks more like a beautifully crafted park than anything else, but it's absolutely part of the greater Boston area.</p>

16

<p>Oh. Okay. Thanks.</p>

<p>How does Wellelsey compare to Barnard? In terms of boy-accessability and overall academics? What about for English/Writing in particular? Which one is better? </p>

<p>How is going to a women's college beneficial? I heard somewhere that there are a lot of homosexual people at women's colleges (I'm not a homophobe, I promise!)... Is that true?</p>