The Seven Sisters - can someone help me identify distinguishing features?

Parents Forum
21

@Oregon2016 - thanks for your offer of information! My DD is looking at Economics/Political Science or maybe Finance (but also would like to participate in a strong extracurricular theatre program).

She did a summer course at Wellesley and loved the campus so that is a top choice. Her number one choice at the moment is Barnard because of the city atmosphere.

She is looking for relatively small (she will be coming out of a pretty tiny HS experience), liberal, close to a big city.

Merit aid would be great (and I think she would be a strong contender for it given her predicted IB grades and predicted SATs.) She will have a fairly interesting background (American student raised in India - mixed Americand and Indian heritage family.)

Thanks everyone for their comments!

22

Mt Holyoke, Bryn Mawr, and Smith offer merit. Barnard and Wellesley do not.

Smith is right in the middle of Northampton which is not a city, but it feels alive and it offers a lot for its size. Bryn Mawr is in an active suburban area and it’s a train ride away from Philly. Mt Holyoke is more rural, although it is on the free bus system to Northampton (and UMass, etc.).

Each has their pluses and minuses. I believe they are free to apply to, though (other than test score fees and financial aid form submission fees). Visit if you can, and stay overnight - it can make a difference!

23

I know it’s not totally a woman’s college…but what about Vassar?

24

@CValle: Don’t dismiss Bryb Mawr. It’s in an upscale suburn area, but Philly is a stone’s throw away. Public transportation (train) to the city is minutes from the BMC campus. My kid (BMC grad) went to Philly almost every weekend. Plus, theater opportunities abound in the trii-co, both in the theater department and with EC theater programs. BMC has a beautiful new theater as well. Also, most departments at BMC are strong academically. BMC is one LAC that consistently sends large numbers of its students to graduate programs. I’m always amazed by my kid’s group of close friends–all of them ended up going to excellent grad programs.

I can’t speak to merit aid, but I do know that one friend of D’s received this award a (as a junior) and it helped to support her through grad school (Yale): http://www.brynmawr.edu/fellowships/descriptions/undergraduate/Beinecke.html

25

My son liked Vassar because it was larger than most LACs (ca. 2500). It’s a beautiful campus on the edge of a somewhat gritty city. Lots of great outdoor stuff nearby. We liked Vassar for its artsy vibe plus top notch academics. In the end, my son was still looking for some place larger.

I went to Radcliffe - which basically is no more. When I was there I did avail myself of some of the resources of the Radcliffe Institute which is still going strong.

Barnard has the plus of being in a big city and being able to cross register with Columbia while also provided a community of women.

My son’s girlfriend is a graduate of Wellesley College, and she’s been a great representative of the place. If you aren’t taking their shuttle it’s about an hour into Boston via public transportation, half an hour by car.

26

There are other vibes as well, even though several colleges share many of the same characteristics, some schools are stronger in some areas:

Vassar–arty, noncompetitive, chic-chic feel and stylish; nice campus plus a farm; theater, virtually no requirements; very confident graduates who feel they are trend-setters in whatever field they are entering; students have connection to NYCity for research, work, and recreation; proud of placing women in fields that were traditionally male; trend-setting for aiding academically strong but financially poor students.

Wellesley --very competitive among students, gorgeous campus; very proud of its intellectualism–like serious overachievers.

Mt. Holyoke–proud of being first among women’s colleges historically; homey feel compared to some others; non-competitive among the students; honor code taken seriously; international student body

Bryn Mawr–intellectualism; small; cooperative; traditions are strong; honor code is taken seriously; gentle; has some graduate programs

Smith–strong political/social activism; more overtly feminist; strong academics; and very self-assured (like all of the women’s schools are known for this but Smithies in Northampton are really known for this).

Barnard–I don’t really have the feel for Barnard as a separate entity, but it’s under the umbrella of Columbia U and shares all resources. Has a great dance program.

If you’re interested in great women’s schools in other areas, I’d recommend also looking into–

Agnes Scott–great traditions and academics; unique astrophysics program; students are inquisitive; nice campus; and can cross-register at Emory (I love the school mascot . . . .)

Mills–strong women; engaged; great academics in SF Bay area/ Silicon Valley for internships; amazing arts; can cross register with Berkeley; has some graduate programs

Sweet Briar – has an engineering program. While this school has fallen on challenging times because of mismanagement in the past, it seems to be stabilized and has a lot to offer. Gorgeous historical campus in rural area; pink bikes that you can ride about the campus; very personal academics

27

Sweet Briar is great if you are into horses. Academically not so much. (My niece went there - she’s now working with horses at a prep school.)

I don’t get the sense that Wellesley women are competitive in a bad way. They seem very supportive of each other from what I can see. Network continues post graduation. Definitely an intellectual place. (Girlfriend I mentioned upthread is working on a PhD. I’m impressed with how much time she spends working on school work when she is with us on weekends.)

28

My D at Wellesley does not think everyone is “competitive in a bad way.” Students are often encouraged to work together, and they do. The population is generally supportive and accepting, and the professors are helpful and encouraging. Standards are very high, though.

29

Thanks so much everyone! I am starting to get a “flavor” of the different schools - they all seem to offer so much! Visits are going to be a challenge from India so we may wait until after decisions come in to visit only the schools she is accepted to. So we are working to understand the schools in advance so her list is a good one for her.

30

Mt. Holyoke represents the Sisters in this opinion on campus aesthetics:

https://www.thrillist.com/travel/nation/the-25-most-beautiful-college-campuses-in-america

Good luck moving forward, @CValle .

31

Smith has an open curriculum and is the only one with an accredited engineering school. It’s also part of the 5 college consortium (along with MHC.) Northampton is a very cute town with a progressive vibe. Wellesley has a stunning campus and is the highest ranked. Those two schools had very different feels for me, but that could be in part due to the tour guides and the graduates I know.

32

My daughter applied to a couple of the all-female schools (did not attend though); she got a more feminist vibe from Smith, and a “stricter” vibe from Wellesley in terms of campus rules. She did not apply to Bryn Mawr because of the many “traditions” which were not her thing (only seniors allowed to sit on a certain step, all white springtime parties etc.) which reminded her too much of her sleepaway summer camp. Just one more perspective!

33

My daughter looked at several of the Sisters over the last year and a half, and is currently waiting for ED results at one. I think @dustyfeathers is very accurate in the thumbnail descriptions above. One thing that I found illuminating and she kind of focused on was the different spectrum of the schools’ relationships with co ed schools. This kind of went from Wellsley, which didn’t really sell the whole MIT/consortium thing, and seemed much more of a stand alone womens’ college, through the five college consortium schools of Mt Holyoke and Smith, where the spin seemed to be that co ed resources were available if you wanted to reach out, to Bryn Mawr and the very close relationship with Haverford, to Barnard which is pretty much integrated with Columbia and finally Vassar which is straight up co ed.

34

My Mom didn’t like the Bryn Mawr traditions way back when. She scuttled off to Radcliffe after a semester!

35

Wellesley has the distinction of appearing here (#39):

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-50-smartest-colleges-in-america-2016-10/#40-cooper-union-for-the-advancement-of-science-and-art-average-sat-score-1388-12

36

Wellesley grad here and D at Barnard. Wellesley is known for Economics and Poli Sci. Wellesley students are definitely collaborative, but they expect much of themselves. It’s hard to find a brighter, more motivated group of students anywhere. Brainiacs. I took classes at MIT, and the shuttle is no big deal. Also the best way to get into Cambridge on the weekends. Barnard students are more creative types and I’d say more worldly. They have an aversion to being lumped in with Columbia students and prefer to emphasize the distinction between the two schools. Again, very bright group.

37

My daughter is a Barnard grad (2010) and was a poli sci major. So I can answer general questions, though I think its hard to make generalizations. For example, the post above “aversion to being lumped in with Columbia students” – doesn’t reflect my daughter’s experience – she seemed to view herself as part of the Columbia community, participated in politically-oriented groups at Columbia, and maintained many friendships with Columbia students. At the same time she is proud of her Barnard credentials, didn’t apply to Columbia and I doubt that she would have wanted to attended Columbia in hindsight. But the difference is one of the relationship among students, faculty and administration. Wonderful at Barnard, not so great for the students across the street. My daughter is still involved with Barnard, as she is mentoring a current Barnard senior through the career office.

You said that Barnard is your daughter’s top choice – and I think it’s a wonderful choice, and that Barnard admissions will definitely value the diversity she brings to campus.

38

On-topic:
These schools are as different from each other as many other LACs are from each other. Except that they used to be all-female and some of them still are. As such, IMO the screening process should be like the screening process for other LACs. I’ve been to all but Mount Holyoke, doing college visits for two daughters.

Digression:

33 had a familiar ring to it, I remembered CC poster Hanna did essentially the same thing, in an updated context (she transferred to Harvard).

Excerpted from her old post:

">you have also said that you began your transfer plans after your THIRD day as a freshman at an LAC

That was because the third day at Bryn Mawr is “Parade Night,” a hazing tradition that I was ostracized for refusing to participate in. So that was a campus-culture disaster unique to that school. I had been very enthusiastic about Bryn Mawr up to that point, and after that point decided that if it was a social mismatch, I’d devote myself 100% to my studies…which turned out to be disappointing, too. "

That was not her only issue, of course.

39

re Bryn Mawr traditions. This is illuminating, and reminds me why my rather sarcastic and very independent daughter had no interest: http://www.brynmawr.edu/activities/traditions.shtml

(this is my kid, while in daycare at age 2-- when I picked her up after a day when families pledged 10 cents per “hop” for some charity – I arrived to a sticker on her chest “I hopped 0 times for XXXX”) She does not go along to get along LOL.

40

As a BMC alum who was quite a skeptic when it came to the traditions, Lantern night is a hauntingly beautiful experience. And May Day is a treat, and a hoot. I attended my first Step Sing as I was preparing to graduate, so I did not immerse myself in the traditions.