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calmom · 04-29-2008, 08:34 PM

Alexra, they are the SAME in terms of academics.

As a Barnard parent, I would argue that Barnard is "superior", because
(a) it has the full resources of Columbia, including graduate level courses;
(b) in terms of academic expectations in classes, it is the same as Columbia -- that is, the reading lists, grading, class discussions are all on par, though of course individual profs may vary;
(c) If by "superior" your parents are concerned with prestige value of the degree, Barnard is affiliated with Columbia and you graduate with a degree from Columbia; also, as noted above, it is harder to get into Barnard;
(d) If you are interested in graduate or professional schools, by virtue of the affiliation there are some combined programs that may enable early entrance into the grad school.

But I am sure that Wellesley students and parents could easily counter with arguments as to why they feel that their school is "superior". So that would be stupid to argue - the point is that BOTH Barnard AND Wellesley are as good as it ever gets academically.

It also depends on how you define "superior". I don't see how Wellesley could possibly offer students the RANGE of courses and the OPPORTUNITIES for advanced study that the combined faculty & resources of Barnard/Columbia offers. For example, if you want to study an obscure language, they pretty much offer everything you could imagine, and what they don't offer you can get via an exchange agreement with NYU. But many of those introductory language courses are taught by TA's rather than full profs -- so maybe a Wellesley person could argue that all of their classes are taught by PhD-holding faculty. (I don't know, I'm just speculating).

What are YOU interested in studying? Do you have plans for grad school? If you get down to specific interests and departments, then there may be big differences academically. For example, I went to the Wellesley web site and looked up my daughter's major. I could see that at Wellesley she would be required to take 9 courses but at Barnard she is required to take 10; at Wellesley she would be required to take 1 seminar with a major research paper, but at Barnard she is required to take 2 colloquiums with major research paper plus a 2-semester senior seminar which includes a thesis. So for that particular major, it looks like Barnard is tougher -- which I would see as a academically "superior".... but then of course we really don't know about actual course content - I'd have to start digging up syllabi to figure out whether one college requires more reading than the other. And there is nothing to prevent a Wellesley student from taking extra classes beyond the minimal requirements.

You need to go where YOU will fit in the best, to the college that will best serve your needs. I think Wellesley and Barnard are probably worlds apart when it comes to campus "culture".

04-29-2008, 08:34 PM	#20
calmom Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Threads: 69 Posts: 5,489	Alexra, they are the SAME in terms of academics. As a Barnard parent, I would argue that Barnard is "superior", because (a) it has the full resources of Columbia, including graduate level courses; (b) in terms of academic expectations in classes, it is the same as Columbia -- that is, the reading lists, grading, class discussions are all on par, though of course individual profs may vary; (c) If by "superior" your parents are concerned with prestige value of the degree, Barnard is affiliated with Columbia and you graduate with a degree from Columbia; also, as noted above, it is harder to get into Barnard; (d) If you are interested in graduate or professional schools, by virtue of the affiliation there are some combined programs that may enable early entrance into the grad school. But I am sure that Wellesley students and parents could easily counter with arguments as to why they feel that their school is "superior". So that would be stupid to argue - the point is that BOTH Barnard AND Wellesley are as good as it ever gets academically. It also depends on how you define "superior". I don't see how Wellesley could possibly offer students the RANGE of courses and the OPPORTUNITIES for advanced study that the combined faculty & resources of Barnard/Columbia offers. For example, if you want to study an obscure language, they pretty much offer everything you could imagine, and what they don't offer you can get via an exchange agreement with NYU. But many of those introductory language courses are taught by TA's rather than full profs -- so maybe a Wellesley person could argue that all of their classes are taught by PhD-holding faculty. (I don't know, I'm just speculating). What are YOU interested in studying? Do you have plans for grad school? If you get down to specific interests and departments, then there may be big differences academically. For example, I went to the Wellesley web site and looked up my daughter's major. I could see that at Wellesley she would be required to take 9 courses but at Barnard she is required to take 10; at Wellesley she would be required to take 1 seminar with a major research paper, but at Barnard she is required to take 2 colloquiums with major research paper plus a 2-semester senior seminar which includes a thesis. So for that particular major, it looks like Barnard is tougher -- which I would see as a academically "superior".... but then of course we really don't know about actual course content - I'd have to start digging up syllabi to figure out whether one college requires more reading than the other. And there is nothing to prevent a Wellesley student from taking extra classes beyond the minimal requirements. You need to go where YOU will fit in the best, to the college that will best serve your needs. I think Wellesley and Barnard are probably worlds apart when it comes to campus "culture".