<p>what is the student body like at barnard?</p>
<p>are they down to earth or really cocky and snobby? friendly, mean?</p>
<p>im a really shy girl so im wondering if i’ll fit in with the crowd! :)</p>
<p>runninglover: It would be difficult to characterize the Barnard student body wholesale. Cocky, snobby, and mean would definitely not apply. There are definitely a bunch of people here who are more on the reserved side, although most people are typically less-so by the time they graduate. I would not worry about fitting in! Everyone is really nice, from the gregarious to the shy.</p>
<p>Aside from that, most Barnard women are very driven (sometimes to the point of being stressed), and very supportive of their friends and classmates. Aside from that, I don’t think I’d be able to pin a specific type on the Barnard women. I don’t think that “down-to-earth” quite applies, in that, because they are so motivated and passionate about what they do, sometimes Barnard women lose track of greater perspective…not that this is a bubble community, or that they’re self-absorbed, just that they tend to move at a pace and intensity that only occasionally allows them to take a break and re-evaluate in terms of their larger world-view. Not all Barnard women, and not all of the time. That’s it, though. It’s a great, supportive community of intelligent, compassionate, motivated women!</p>
<p>Somehow the above post reminds me of one kind of funny characteristic that we heard about when D started Barnard and which made us laugh: that is that Barnard women TALK FAST!!! And it’s true. While our D was a student there, we could hardly understand her at times on the phone. She always had so much to say, I guess!!! :)</p>
<p>USofArugula- Do you know anything about the Speaking Fellows Program? Or do you know anyone who has taken part in it? It seems really interesting!</p>
<p>Thanks :)</p>
<p>
LOL! That is my daughter to a T – but not from Barnard, she’s always been that way. She talks so fast that I’ve never been able to catch everything she says.</p>
<p>Now that you bring it up, maybe that’s what got her accepted – she had an on campus interview in September of her senior year – maybe it was her galloping speech patterns that convinced them she was a perfect fit for Barnard. ;)</p>
<p>To runninglover – I think that USofArugula describes Barnard women pretty well – but I think you have to think about what you mean by “shy”. Barnard women – and people in NY on the whole – do give the impression of being always on the go and in a hurry, and normal day to day interactions can be perceived by others as rudeness. I always thought it was a cultural difference – so it never really bothered me too much – but if you interpret brusqueness as a personal snub, or if you find it hard to speak up in environments where everyone seems to be ignoring you – then you may find that Barnard and NYC are a tough adjustment for you. </p>
<p>That being said, you may find that you benefit from being in an environment that forces you to come out of your shell somewhat – that you will graduate a much more confident and assertive person than the shy youngster who came in. Overall, Barnard seems to be a very empowering environment.</p>
<p>Mdh625–I know a few women who do the Speaking Fellows program, and they are pretty fabulous, but I unfortunately do not know anything about the training process. The program is still getting on its feet, but Ditty Vick, who runs both SF and Writing Fellows, is very capable.</p>
<p>Increasingly, upper level courses are requiring their students to do the sessions. I took one of the first last fall, and it has some really good take-aways. I think they’re still figuring out how to best integrate it into curricula, but a lot of the information is widely applicable beyond the classroom. The sessions teach you how to convey authority, with particular attention to all of those nasty little lady habits that speak to a lack of confidence, and undermine your authority (prefacing questions with something like “Um, sorry, maybe I’m wrong, but I sort of thought that maybe…”, inflection, body language, tone, hedging, etc.). Overall, the lessons enable one to conduct oneself with poise, give a fantastic presentation, and lead a disciplined and focused discussion.</p>
<p>Calmom raises a great point about NYC brusqueness. I’ve lived all of my life in the Northeast, and think it’s somewhat endemic to the region, at least the suburban/urban areas. I don’t think the tendency towards brusqueness is quite as pronounced on the Barnard campus, but locomotion outside of the gates is usually results in at least one encounter with a passive aggressive mover…there’s a permanent sense of rush (even when in reality none exists), and any delay in motion tends to send one or two people into a passive-aggressive sigh, eye-bug, foot tap, or huffy passing movement. If that part’s strange at first, most people adapt to it pretty quickly, weaving expertly through crowds, and boring holes into the backs of slowwalkers’ heads with a death glare. Again, though, it’s calmer on campus/in the neighborhood; people smile and wave to friends and acquaintances…and that’s what’s normal to me.</p>
<p>But, when I got here, I was pretty surprised by the degree to which my friends from the Midwest and the Southwest were disarmed by the “Northeastern chill.” I think, in general, it’s just an intimacy difference/a different sense of politesse. When I’m standing in the Starbucks line, I’m carrying out the requisite function to get my caffeine fix; if I see someone I know, I’ll say hi/chitchat. Otherwise, I’ll return a polite nod, smile, or greeting, and expect that to be that. We’re both people, we both want a mediocre ubiquitous beverage experience; it’s not disdain or rudeness that stops the encounter there–just a (presumably) mutual understanding that we’re there for coffee, and interaction beyond courtesy is unnecessary and beside the point of the activity. Same goes for people in elevators. Ditto brief service interactions (barristas, waiters, delivery people, cashiers), but expanded into exchanged inquiries of status/well-being. I clarify that point, because there can be a tendency to perceive NY service as rude, when it’s merely less overtly friendly. It absolutely is a cultural thing, and, for a while until my friends and I adapted to our differences in tone, I really had to watch my tone, as what I and my NE friends perceived to be playful teasing/chiding was perceived much more harshly, and without humor by my friends from other regions. This is all just to say that, if it seems like people are being overly harsh or cold at first, give yourself some time to adjust, and don’t take it personally. It’s a learning-curve for everyone, and it typically settles itself pretty quickly.</p>
<p>I want to acknowledge the wonderful, information rich posts of USofArugula. However, at the risk of being termed a bickering adult I <em>do</em> want to correct one misimpression, or at least something that contradicts our exprerience.</p>
<p>She states that although Barnard FA can be iffy and folks get “stiffed” (her word), that FA can be good for women from less represented geographical regions.</p>
<p>I don’t think FA is distributed based on “preferential packaging” that results in local women being stiffed and geographical desirables being rewarded. From our experience, the FA system is not merit based in that the school does not reward it in a preferential manner. If Barnard accepts a student (I have only their world that their admission process is need blind, but I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt), the same formulas are applied to all.</p>
<p>It may seem preferential because NE salaries tend to be higher and the formula does not adjust for greater COL (cost of living) in the Northeast. Thus, a family with a similar lifestyle in the Northeast may not get the same package because the salaries of the Northeast family may be higher.</p>
<p>My D hailed from a typical suburban Long Island high school (a very highly represented group at Barnard). Her FA package was excellent and the second highest she received.
It trailed the highest package by only a small fraction of the overall award.</p>
<p>For what it’s worth in terms of brusqueness of New Yorkers, NYC was voted most polite city by travelers many years in a row by surveys of the travel industry. I think what is meant by this is that strangers will help travelers who look lost etc.</p>
<p>I think the brusqueness is a cultural style. </p>
<p>But as a native New Yorker, I can’t be objected and as USofArugula and calmon indicate, I am equally indoctrinated in the ethos of “rush”.</p>
<p>I think Arugula’s points about sense of humor are well taken. We do tease each other here; it’s a sign of being loved, LOL.</p>
<p>Sorry, yeah, I suppose I should have been more clear with my comments on FinAid. Based on anecdotal experience, those whose “demonstrated need” is truly borderline (i.e., the difference between a small, unsubsidized federal loan and absolutely nothing) sometimes get less than they do other places. To wit, Barnard was the only school out of 7-ish schools to give me a-a-absolutely nothing need-based.</p>
<p>In general, though, those with significant “demonstrated need” always have that met, and, again anecdotally, frequently to a more favorable degree than other packages they were offered.</p>
<p>question-can the mealplan be used anywhere else? like, i know there’s a maoz falafel and a pinkberry close to campus. can you use it there?</p>
<p>Ugh, tragically, no, as Maoz is boss. Meals can be used in Hewitt (Barnard) or John Jay (Columbia), and Barnard Points can be used at Liz’s Place (a coffee shop with sandwiches, pastries, and sundry items) or the Diana Cafe, which, as of now, only does lunch. That said, though, the Diana Cafe is AWESOME (caveat: I went three years without it, so part of it could be appreciation of contrast). Thin crust pizza, grill items, Asian noodles (pho, ramen, udon, etc. depending on the week), fabulous sandwiches (roast turkey, cranberry mayo, and brie on pumpernickel, etc.), sushi, soup, cheeses by the ounce. But, no off-campus stuff, unfortunately.</p>
<p>Actually, Mythmom, after 4 years of experience with Barnard financial aid, I have to go with the anecdotal report that their meeting full need can be iffy and is not always consistent. It is absolutely true that they apply a consistent formula to the numbers – but they have a tremendous amount of leeway in adjusting some of the numbers that go in, through the use of “professional judgment.” There are enough factors in my situation (divorced parent, self-employed, non-custodial parent also self employed) to give a tremendous amount of play.</p>
<p>Because my daughter was only a single case, I can’t really draw any conclusions as to the underlying reasons for the somewhat fickle nature of the award calculation each year. But my impression was that if there was any possibility that my d. would qualify for a Pell grant, the indulged every possible presumption in our favor, trying to minimize our FAFSA income – whereas when the FAFSA EFC was too high to qualify for Pell, it went the other way. Now it may be that there are other factors at work – but my d. qualified for Pell in years #1 & #4, not years #2 and #3 … and there was a very significant difference both in level of aid, and the attitude & responsiveness of the financial aid dept. in those years. I’d note that Barnard never actually met our Pell-qualifying EFC-- that’s where the NCP parent income and home equity comes in to create a pretty sizeable gap – but my impression was that they wanted to maximize the federal dollars coming in. </p>
<p>One possible reason for the perception that geography plays a part in financial aid could be the home equity issue – people living in the Northeast probably live in homes with a significantly higher market value than people coming from most other parts of the country.</p>
<p>I don’t mean to be negative here. Barnard’s financial aid award for my d’s first year was by far the most generous of any private college, in part because they used professional judgment to reduce my AGI on the FAFSA, thereby qualifying us for the Pell & ACG money. But it wasn’t always easy to make sense of what they were doing, or to predict from one year to the next what my aid would be.</p>
<p>I didn’t establish a core group of friends my freshman year at barnard because it was all by proximity that i was friends with these girls. we had nothing in common except that we were nice, however, i realized what a huge waste of time it was since i don’t talk to any of them anymore and i want to be friends with people who are actually fun. my really good friends from my freshman year either transferred out of barnard or are at columbia and i know it is so stupid to transfer for social reasons, but i don’t know if i will ever find people i really connect with…is it too late?</p>
<p>Collegeblues: If you want to find people you “connect with”, why don’t you find and join a campus-based club that interests you? It sounds, from this and your other post, like you isolated yourself during your first year and then moved off-campus. No wonder you do not feel connected. Yes, Barnard admits only women, but if you are involved in almost any sort of Columbia U. campus-wide group, you should be able to meet and get to know many different people. You are going to have to make an effort, here, it’s true, but it can be done. And I have to think doing that would be easier than transferring…</p>
<p>It’s unfortunate, IMO, that you chose to live off-campus, as I think you have realized. Good for others here to know that, but not a lot of help to you at this point, I do hope you are able to make some “connections”. What sort of things do you enjoy doing? Writing? Music? Dance? Find a group that loves doing what you do and get involved!!!</p>
<p>Do any of you know about the joint degree with School of International and Public Affairs ?</p>
<p>I have to disagree with churchmusicmom re: meeting people. </p>
<p>I am currently a Barnard senior and over my four years here I have experienced the same problem–my freshman year I really had nothing in common with my hall mates, and had virtually no one to talk to outside of class until halfway through my second semester, when I made one close friend. I was involved in a couple of clubs and really put myself out there, and did meet a new group of friends, but after my sophomore year I had a messy falling out with nearly all of them. I now live off-campus with my boyfriend, who is often all I need, and have one close friend at Barnard, who still isn’t the greatest person in my eyes.</p>
<p>I write this sloppy history because I really tried to put myself out there and meet people throughout my Barnard years, but sometimes it’s not as easy as joining a group. Inevitably, I have never felt I quite fit in at Barnard; people here just aren’t like me, their backgrounds (which seems to be key to a close friendship) are not at all like mine, and our goals and interests are just so different. I wish that I had chosen to transfer, but by the time I had figured this out it was too late for me. The greatest advice I can give you is to consider the option of transferring while you still can. However, make sure you are doing it for the right reasons. Do you feel like you will never really belong at Barnard? Do you like everything else about it? If so, it might be worth it to tough it out and try to meet people outside of school. The thing is, after college you may very well move away and never see any of these people again. Is a social life worth a lot to you, or can you survive with fewer friends?</p>
<p>Mdh625–</p>
<p>I do indeed know about the SIPA dual-degree program. One of my best friends was accepted last year, and started this year. Every year there are a few (~ 5-6/year) juniors who are accepted and enroll. Basically, it just requires diligent planning from the get-go, as you have to finish all of your degree and major requirements, excepting the thesis, within 3 years. This can be especially challenging if you plan on going abroad. That said, my friend went abroad for a full year. I don’t have a great sense of how competitive the admissions are, as this particular friend was pretty exceptionally accomplished, IR-wise. It’s a definite possibility, though. Even if you don’t apply, or aren’t accepted, you can still take courses at SIPA, which I have done a few times. Alternately, if you take or are interested in French, Barnard also offers a 5-year masters program with Sciences Po in Paris, which is totally awesome.</p>
<p>@USofArugula: Thank you! That was very insightful, I now know that when I go to Barnard (crossing my fingers that I am accepted!) I will need to speak to someone my 1st semester about the 5 year program. That way I can plan out how to fulfill all the requirements on time! 
Thanks again!</p>
<p>a poster above said:
as a part of an explanation about how feeling like you are truly part of a “group” at Barnard is not that easy. </p>
<p>My D was a part of a close-knit group of girls who roomed together in a suite her 2nd-4th years. That is, most of them did. One of the girls chose to move in with her BF their last year. I relate this only to point out that the observation that follows is based upon more than just supposition on my part:</p>
<p>If you choose to move off-campus, particularly with a boy friend with whom you spend almost all of your spare time, you cannot also expect to have anything approaching an involved and invested college “experience”. I am not making a value judgement here. If you feel that moving in with the guy is more important to you than the college “experience”, than blessings on you both. But don’t expect to have the one experience while precluding it with your decision to embrace the other. I know my D’s friend often felt “left out” of the other girls’ activities and of campus life in general. She had to work hard to stay around campus to be involved in things, and yet she still was frustrated with feeling like she had one foot in one world and the other foot in yet another. </p>
<p>I maintain that your best bet for making good friends and getting the entire college “experience” is to live all four years on, or very near, campus.</p>
<p>Just MHO.</p>
<p>mdh – the SIPA program is very difficult to get into They usually only accept 2 or 3 students per year, and some years they don’t take any. My d. applied but was not accepted – the Dean at Barnard who acts as the advisor for the SIPA applicants felt that my d’s application was very strong.</p>
<p>In hindsight it is just as well… I don’t see how my d could have financed that 5th year. </p>
<p>Certainly if you want that program, then your idea to plan ahead is appropriate – I just wanted to let you know that it is not something to count on in your planning. </p>
<p>I would point out that as a Barnard undergrad, you can take courses at SIPA – so even if it does not work out for to get the dual degree, you certainly can take advantage of SIPA’s resources.</p>
<p>I didn’t say it wasn’t iffy. I said it wasn’t awarded on the basis of geographical desirability.</p>