<p>Hi Wants2Thrive! How are you? This is icesk8mom’s daughter and I am a graduating senior at Mount Holyoke College. When I was first starting my college application process, I ruled out women’s colleges for a similar reason - I was worried about the lack of male interaction that I might experience as a women’s college student. A local women’s college held a seminar about how to write the perfect college essay and at the seminar, I realized my misconception about women’s college. Let me try to respond to your concerns regarding MHC one at a time:</p>
<p>1) The Mount Holyoke Community: </p>
<p>Mount Holyoke is a diverse community - not just in terms of sexual identity but also race, religion, nationality, interests, etc. Just like any of these other groups, the LGBTQ community is not threatening in any way, shape, or form. It is perhaps the diversity of the student body that leaves some people to see the eccentricities on campus. The beauty of the school is that it promotes mutual respect though the various types of diversity that everyone brings to campus. Everyone at MHC can find a group of friends that will make them feel supported through the undergraduate journey in residential life, clubs, academics, and MHC traditions. One example of a bonding moment in my dorm was when the most of the residents got together during M&Cs to watch Glee. </p>
<p>Just because MHC is a women’s college does not mean that all political activism that happens on campus is related to gender issues. Political student organizations such as the College Democrats, College Republicans, and the Roosevelt Institute and students organizations such as Model UN and Debate, which use politics in their club missions, draw inspiration from a variety of issues and gain legitimacy within the student body, the 5 college community, and the “real world” because they are attuned to the current political landscape - the recent SCOTUS nominations, the economic crisis, etc.</p>
<p>Mount Holyoke women are serious about their academics and about making time to have fun. What attracted me to the college was the balance that I saw between social and academic life and this is something that I have greatly enjoyed as a student. </p>
<p>2) Life in South Hadley and the 5-College Consortium:</p>
<p>There are no two ways around it South Hadley is small. However, travel within the 5-college area and the pioneer valley is greatly facilitated by the PVTA Bus System which is free for all students. I do not have a car and was able to take classes at UMass and Amherst College without an issue it just required planning. The 5-Colleges not only serve as a way to take classes off campus, but there are many social events that happen through the 5 colleges that bring a lot of cultural opportunities to the area. The UMass Fine Arts Center and Mullins Center have a great selection of shows. There are 5-college clubs, opportunities to join dance teams, orchestras, etc. All 5 College parties are open to college students at any of the consortium colleges and are a great way to meet new friends. If you do not feel like leaving campus, there is always something to do WAY past 8pm!!! (and I am not talking about homework). We are not an ultra-party campus (UMass Frat parties for example) but neither are we a dry campus. </p>
<p>If you are looking for a list of Mount Holyoke students who have received Fullbrights and other national fellowships, look no further than the CDCs (Career Development Centers) web page. [Award</a> Winners :: Career Development Center :: Mount Holyoke College](<a href=“http://www.mtholyoke.edu/cdc/winners.html]Award”>http://www.mtholyoke.edu/cdc/winners.html) I can only tell you about the graduate school admissions among my friends: Harvard (2), McGill, Notre Dame, and UNC Chapel Hill to name a few. If you want more information about these statistics, the admissions office would be glad to provide you with them! </p>
<p>3) Study Abroad:</p>
<p>I am a huge advocate of study abroad. Mount Holyoke offers two main routes to study abroad. These opportunities are approved through a merit-based application process that is carried out by a faculty committee in which the student must demonstrate the how the experience will benefit her academic career at MHC.
The first is through the International Internship Program. This program provides sophomores and juniors with the chance to intern abroad with direct funding from the McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives ([Mount</a> Holyoke College :: McCulloch Center for Global Initiatives](<a href=“http://www.mtholyoke.edu/global/index.shtml]Mount”>http://www.mtholyoke.edu/global/index.shtml)) for all costs related directly to the internship (housing, travel, food, etc). The second way is through year or semester-long programs. Mount Holyoke has a variety of in-house programs but also encourages its students to attend other programs. I studied abroad in Ecuador and have had internships in Spain and Chile. </p>
<p>Most of my friends studied abroad and found that the college embraced their personal, academic, and linguistic growth from the experience. They went to: France, Italy, Brazil, Chile, China, Japan, Australia, Argentina, Costa Rica, Israel, Spain, England, Ireland, Scotland, Poland, the Czech Republic, the Dominican Republic etc.</p>
<p>Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I am more than happy to answer them.</p>
<p>Icesk8moms daughter</p>