So I got in to Vassar and Wesleyan, and have to decide between them.
I visited Vassar this vacation and really liked it, probably leaning towards it. I visited Wesleyan last year, so I need help refreshing my memory of it to make sure I’m not picking Vassar over Wesleyan, but forgetting good things about Wesleyan.
Vassar: The campus is beautiful, the people were very upbeat, housing is great.
Wesleyan: Performing arts seems great, comparable in how prestigious
What I’m looking for/ advice please:
I am really interested in East Asian studies and Chinese, how good is each? I know Vassar doesn’t have it as a particular major for East Asian Studies, but it has Asian studies without the language component.
I am very interested in extracurricular theatre and music. How easy is it to get involved?
Student body comparison – I am looking for the close feel of a liberal arts college. Does the extra people at Wesleyan (maybe 800 more, around?) make it more lively/less isolated? Would it be too socially stuck/hard to branch out at Vassar with a smaller group?
I like social sciences but would not want over-focus on sciences- is that the case at Wesleyan?
Where is social life more active?
I know this is loads of questions, but I have to make the decision by the end of the week and I’m quite stressed out about it. If anyone could give details, I would be really grateful!!!
Two great choices! My husband went to Vassar. We visited both with my son, who will be applying to both.
I think that, in many ways, they are more alike than different, and you will be happy at either. Here are some thoughts.
Both: great reps, small classes, wonderful professors, strong community, among the most liberal colleges
Vassar: cohesive dorms to which students are assigned freshman year and remain at least through junior year
Wesleyan: more program housing available (by ethnicity, interest, etc.)
Both allow you to live on campus all four years and most kids do.
Vassar: prettier buildings with more classic college look and more self-contained campus, okay town
Wesleyan: better town, more varied architecture, less physical separation between college and town
Vassar: afternoon tea in the parlor
Wesleyan: afternoons on Foss Hill
Wesleyan: has the edge in film; both schools have good theater programs. Wesleyan may have somewhat of an edge in the sciences as well.
Vassar: male-female balance tilts a bit more towards females numbers wise
Husband loved Vassar and so did his friends; he is going on 49 and is still in touch with 6 friends from his Vassar days.
Son loved both based on visits.
Pick by gut feeling. You can’t go wrong here. Both are amazing!
Asian studies at Vassar is excellent. They DO have Japanese and Chinese that’s quite good. and you can concentrate in one or the other. I’m not clear about what Wesleyan offers in this regard.
Vassar is a much prettier campus. It’s also easier to get into NYC from Vassar on the train. Kids are upbeat and creative.
Wesleyan is also great school but I’m less familiar with its programs.
I am a parent of a Vassar senior. I can’t speak for wesleyan except that is the one school my daughter got such a bad vibe from she refused to do the interview even after driving 4 hours to get there
Two comments: my son is not a drama major but has been in at least two plays every semester he has been there. All the theater is completely student run one puts together a proposal and gets the money approved. There is huge competition to get theater space. He just actually directed a play last night. He hates musicals so has only done Elizabethan dramas. last night he directed a Greek tragedy as his senior theses for classic studies. I always characterize Vassar vibe as theater nerd. Theater is to Vassar what sports are to some other schools. It is a huge part of the social fabric.
Second there dorms are fantastic. They have so much communal space and are designed to be social . Everyone is alway out of their rooms and in the communal space. it is extremely social. I have never seen a college where so many people out in the communal spaces in the dorm. Also there is a lot of dorm college pride, almost everyone stays with their house for three years and for senior year you get an apartment with it’s own kitchen. It’s kind of like a condo. That is great.
Can’t speak to Asian studies, but with respect to extracurricular music, one of my kids is a science-nerd type with a strong side interest in music/film/art and while both Wes and Vassar offer an atmosphere that supports similar students, mine chose Vassar because of its access to NYC (and the campus is pretty amazing, too). I would totally agree with @robotrainbow regarding the atmosphere of the campus, and similar to their son, my kid is not a performance-related major but always seems to be involved in multiple music/film/art groups and projects at any given time.
Got a terrible vibe from Wesleyan. Every student I know there is just so unhappy. They market it as a very small personal school, but the mood is pretty hostile.
Thank you so much everyone for your help!!! @WelcomeWeek I have accepted Vassar; I just recently got into Wesleyan off the wait list but I’m pretty sure I’m going to stick with Vassar.
I talked to someone who went to Vassar from my high school and she said that there being more girls wasn’t a problem, the extra-curriculars were really accessible and the atmosphere friendly. So it sounded great.
I was really concerned about Chinese but from what people commenting have told me it sounds like Vassar is great for that which is really reassuring.
So I have a week to make my decision but I’m almost 100% sure Vassar.
One thing I would like to ask more is: do you think Vassar’s housing limits people’s independence? Because you don’t get to really live yourself out of dorm-style living until senior year. Does that matter much?
I really want to thank everyone again because your comments were really helpful.
While Wesleyan does explicitly plan for students to gain increasing amounts of independence in their living arrangements across four years, I do not think that your independence will be limited by Vassar. You will be having a great time with your dorm mates and together can travel off the grounds and assert your independence that way if you like… plus you will be in charge of your own learning, work, planning, banking, laundry, etc.
(Maybe it’s just me, but I am glad I did not have to deal with landlords and utility bills until graduate school, and I was kinda freaked out about the idea of my son’s having to look for an off-campus apartment as early as sophomore year at one school he looked at, and was relieved when he did not like it! To me, four years of guaranteed on-campus housing is big plus. There are enough other things to be independent about living away from home for the first time!)
To be clear, however, the Wesleyan houses are all owned and completely furnished by the university. About the only hard knock about them is having to clean your own bathroom. The big plus, of course, is being able to go off the meal plan (well, somewhat - there’s a points system for buying stuff from the college grocery) and drilling down into the art of cooking which btw is a big deal at Wesleyan.