<p>I am sitting here during my college's January term not finishing my homework for the simple fact that I am entirely confused regarding the direction in which my life is going.</p>
<p>The question as to whether I came to the right school has bothered me throughout my first semester.</p>
<p>I chose Wellesley College based on several factors—I wanted a small liberal arts college. I thought it might have been interesting/empowering/different to choose a women's one.</p>
<p>I didn't realize that it isn't as intellectual as I thought it would be. I mean, everyone is incredibly smart and accomplished, and it's a fantastic school—incredible, incredible academic resources, and I love my professors. It's just more preprofessional than I thought it would be. I feel super out of place because everyone I know has some idea as to what they're going to do in life—some even have a complete four-year plan.</p>
<p>The problem is that I've already made a great friend group, and I'm concerned that I wouldn't be able to integrate into another college as easily. I've also gotten to know the English and philosophy departments very well. I love the professors in both departments, and the academics at Wellesley are positively amazing.</p>
<p>So, I open up the forum for insights. Suggestions for more intellectual liberal arts colleges? I mean intellectual as in learning-for-the-sake-of-learning. Also, is this a real problem, or is it simply a common insecurity?</p>
<p>It would be OK if everyone simply had plans. I feel like intellectual/scholarly pursuits aren’t valued, as a whole, as much as becoming an investment banker/doctor/lawyer. I feel out of place enjoying studying so much.</p>
<p>Whatever you do, please keep up your schoolwork & grades or you will have fewer and fewer options. You can contemplate whether you are interested in remaining at the school, transferring, or developing more interests BUT if you don’t keep up your grades, you will not be allowed to remain at your school, not be able to transfer to a “scholarly” or “intellectual” school, and have very few options. </p>
<p>All schools have great counselor’s offices that are good at helping students like you, but you have to reach out and ask them. They have many services that your tuition & fees are paying for, so don’t be shy. If it’s not too late, consider whether you want to take different courses from those you are currently enrolled in. You can also ask about a leave of absence if that is something you might be interested in. Being “intellectual” or “scholarly” can be useful for being a professor or historian or writer or work in a “think tank” and help with strategic planning. There is nothing wrong with enjoying studying–my S has read textbooks after the course was done “for fun” and “to get his money’s worth,” because the instructor didn’t cover the entire book.</p>
<p>I doubt the father of ancient philosophy, Socrates, was like that. I can’t think of any of the greats who wanted that kind of mediocraty… some of the greatest were very very controvercial in their time.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. I am keeping up with my schoolwork—working very intently at it, except for the break I’m taking from this assignment right now.</p>
<p>I’ll definitely consider taking a leave of absence to refocus myself.</p>
<p>I agree, if you didn’t do well your first semester then your probably stuck at the school in reguards to transfer. Though for graduate school you can always improve your grades and wow potential universities. Another note would be, as it seems your doing, wait until your freshmen year has completely finished before making a drastic decision. In the situation you described, I think this is common and no reason to consider changing schools. Try to become driven by others that appear also determine to meet end goals.</p>
<p>I would do one more semester and then maybe consider other options if you feel the same way. I think a lot of people don’t quite feel right as they adjust to college, as it is a very big transition, and one semester may not be quite long enough to form a well-informed opinion about how the rest of your college experience will go.</p>
<p>Also, I think you will find non-scholarly people at every school, it may be that you have mainly met people who are interested mostly in the bottom line. Even schools that are very prestigious and scholarly attract those who simply want to have a prestigious, scholarly school on their resume to attract employers. There are obviously schools in which there are less of these people, but it could be that the people you know simply tend to be less scholarly.</p>
<p>Also, consider the very real possibility that many of your classmates are putting forth facades, whether to avoid openly projecting an image of lacking concrete direction in one’s goals/life or as a way to psyche other classmates out to feel they’re stronger/better than others. </p>
<p>IME at my own LAC and those of various friends at various elite universities…including Wellesley, plenty of students who seem the most certain and decisive about their majors/career paths are just as likely to change their minds about it as everyone else. Don’t let the seemingly more decisive or pre-professional orientation of your classmates thwart you from who you are or what you’re aims/goals are in college…especially if it is for the sake of intellectual pursuit for its own sake. </p>
<p>IMHO, most US universities/LACs…even the elite ones like Wellesley need far more students like you to enrich the campuses and more importantly, in the larger working world/life. Maybe this is a chance for you to take a leadership position on something. :)</p>
<p>Though I had a wonderful experience with many classmates who had the same scholarly purpose as yourself, I’ve seen and heard from countless high school classmates at various campuses how having too many cutthroat wannabe pre-meds, lawyers, and finance/i-bankers can really ruin the intellectual atmosphere both in and out of class. What’s more ironic was that the vast majority of those high school classmates were also quite pre-professional and ultimately ended up working quite successfully in those very fields. However, they did feel that some respect should be paid to “learning for learning’s sake”, there is a place for serendipity in the learning process, and ignoring those factors by being a 100% pre-professional machine was going too far and wasting a golden educational opportunity. </p>
<p>Some of those very classmates are Wellesley alums who have had nothing, but the highest regard for classmates whose goals in college were similar to your own.</p>
<p>It’s just that I’ve met perhaps 50% of my class, and I’ve been sorely disappointed by the amount of interesting conversations I can have that are not about sexuality or gender.</p>
<p>I’m not sure I made the right decision in coming to a women’s college. I feel like certain stereotypes about females are exacerbated here.</p>
<p>Try to seek out those who don’t dwell on such topics in the other 50% of the class, if at all possible. Also, if you need some relief from the “bubble”, take the Wellesley-MIT shuttle to MIT when you have free time and enjoy a break in Cambridge/Boston by yourself or with some friends from Wellesley or other Boston area schools. </p>
<p>Try building a network of friends on other campuses…great to relieve the “bubble” feeling…and for any parties/comparing notes/future networking purposes purposes.</p>
<p>As a current Wellesley upperclasswoman, I can say with authority that first years are the most “decided” group on campus. The vast majority of students deviate from their plan somewhere. </p>
<p>I haven’t found Wellesley too pre-professional… especially when I’m not in the bio, poli sci, or econ departments. Great, fascinating, and intellectual people are out there. (I know them/ am one). You just haven’t met them yet. And they may not necessarily be in your year either. </p>
<p>I don’t know where you are living, but I have found that the “nerdiness” factor of Wellesley increases as one heads east (so Stone D/ New Dorms). </p>
<p>Feel free to PM me. I transferred INTO Wellesley, so I have some perspective of college life outside of Wellesley. I am also always open to interesting/ intellectual conversations. :)</p>