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I'm planning to major in biology or chemistry and then go to Vet School. Would Mount Holyoke be a good choice for this? Does the all girls education put me at an advantage? How's the social life at Mount Holyoke?

By AFL on Sunday, April 07, 2002 - 10:36 pm: Edit

For a future scientist, Mount Holyoke is a good choice. Your aspirations will be taken seriously, and you will be in the loop when it comes to finding out about such opportunities as conferences in your field, summer internships, jobs, etc. The facilities are excellent, and the classes are small.

As for social life, that's another story. YOU must be the one to make the effort if you hope to consort (or cavort?) with the opposite sex. Plan to sign up for a class each term at a nearby coed institution (Amherst College, Hampshire, or UMass) and don't expect the males from those colleges who cross-register at Mount Holyoke to make more than a tiny dent in the all-female community. Keep in mind that, with a science-intensive schedule, you will have to be a good time manager to get to another campus for this class and also find room for your labs and other obligations.

The last thing you should know is that--if you do enroll at Mount Holyoke--you will need to learn to stop calling it a "girls'" school, and prepare to hear the word "woman" about a gazillion times a day.

Good luck with your decision. What are your other choices?

By LnRI on Monday, April 08, 2002 - 06:43 am: Edit

I was also accepted to Bates College, Franklin and Marshall, Wheaton (MA), and Gettysburg. But i think i've narrowed it down to Holyoke and Bates based upon their strong science prograrms.

By AFL on Monday, April 08, 2002 - 08:46 am: Edit

I hope you are able to attend the Mount Holyoke program for admitted students. That must be coming up, right?

Even though there will be hundreds of other young women there, and it may seem at times like a bit of a cattle call, at least you can check out the single-sex environment with a mind-set that says, "Hey, this is the real deal. I'm not window shopping any more," and you can also meet many of your prospective classmates and see if you feel that the school is a good fit.

In fact, post-acceptance campus visits can be almost more valuable than the pre-application ones because you recognize that you really will be living in one of these places in just a few months. So do take advantage of as many of the on-campus programs for admitted students as you can.

Meanwhile, congratulations. You have some excellent choices.

By LnRI on Tuesday, April 09, 2002 - 02:39 pm: Edit

Thank you for your help. I am planning on attending the program at Mount Holyoke for admitted students in a few weeks.

By Dadster on Tuesday, April 09, 2002 - 03:08 pm: Edit

I'm a big fan of post-acceptance visits, too, LnRI - the pre-admission stress is gone, you get to meet the people you'd be spending four years with, and the college usually does its best to show everyone a good time. Good luck!

By Slayer (Slayer) on Tuesday, January 27, 2004 - 04:44 pm: Edit

Has anyone received a MERIT scholarship here? The leadership one I think it is... If so, what were your stats? I'd love to hear thanks