Hi! These are some comments in the Wellesley Class of 2019 Facebook group on Wellesley vs. Barnard that I think can maybe help you 
“Obviously, this is biased (so keep it in mind!) When applying to colleges I briefly toyed with the idea of going to Barnard. The biggest factor that swayed me not to apply was that the overwhelming message I seemed to get from Barnard was that its major selling point is its affiliation with Columbia. When admissions officers from Barnard came over to our school… the biggest selling point they stressed was Barnard’s close ties with Columbia, all the videos on Barnard’s channel talked about Barnard’s close affiliation with Columbia, etc. This was a purely gut reaction but I didn’t want to go to a school where I would play second fiddle to the Ivy League next door – and of course this is an oversimplification but… It was important to me to find a school proud of its own identity. And for me that school is Wells! On the other hand I love the idea of living in NYC and having access to EVERYTHING, which is the only thing that might make me even consider turning from Wellesley to Barnard (but again. Do note I am EXTREMELY BIASED.) Both are good schools at the end of the day! And I’m confident you will find great people and great communities at both. I trust you will get a great education no matter what!”
“As said before this is a biased opinions but… I LOVE WELLESLEY! Coming here was one of the best decisions ever. It all depends on you though. Are you more of a city girl or one who likes more suburban (just outside of boston?) You should definitely do an over night at both (if you haven’t already) and see where you feel most comfortable. I love the professors here (they are all so passionate about the material) and the small class sizes are great! If you want to message me you can. I feel that deciding mostly depends on what type of person you are and what you prefer. But im happy to see that you are deciding between 2 wonderful womens colleges.”
"(i’ve always been decided on wellesley, but i do know that one of my closest friends decided on barnard almost entirely because she didn’t get into columbia (her dream school) - it definitely seems like an appendage. nothing against barnard, of course, this is literally the only impression i have of it because i never wanted to live in the city. in its favor, she also got into brown, and chose barnard above it because she loves nyc so much.)
“I think I am leaning towards Wellesley because based on the Barnard’s thread. It seems that the students are choosing the school because of NYC and Columbia but not of Barnard itself. Don’t get me wrong, I love Barnard. When I went to visit what pulled me in was the community. When I stayed with a host, all of her roommates stayed up till 1am to answer my questions even though it was midterms! But I want NYC to be a vacation place, a place where I want to come to with tons of surprises and I feel like living in NYC would actually take away that exciting part away. Also Wellesley is a lot more prestigious, yes Barnard is connected to Columbia, but Wellesley itself is ranked #4 in liberal arts. Also, I am leaning towards advocacy work as a career and college experience. I feel like I would get more of that from Wellesley.”
Also, keep in mind that Wellesley has affiliations with MIT, Babson, and Olin. Although Wellesley itself is a wealthy, suburban town, it’s just 40 minutes away from Boston. Personally, I’d prefer Boston just because it’s really a college city. Meeting new people, exploring new ideas, and networking with other students is important to me, and I think Wellesley/Boston encompasses all of those areas.
Good luck!