Mount Holyoke College vs LAfayette college?????

teachandmom
Mon, 21 Mar 2011 21:47:16 +0000

Well, the biggest difference between these two selective colleges would be that Mt. Holyoke is a women’s college, and Lafayette is co-ed. If you want to be in classes with men, and have more choice for friendships/relationships with men, then Lafayette would be the choice. If you want to be in an incredibly challenging,supportive, and intellectually stimulating environment for women, then Mt. Holyoke would be the choice. Mt. Holyoke is in South Hadley, MA. It is a small, rural town 20 minutes from Amherst and Northampton, about 15 minutes from Holyoke Mass and the Holyoke Mall (lots of shopping, restaurants, etc, and about 25 minutes from Springfield, MA.) It is also 1.5 hours or so from Boston, MA. As part of the 5-College Consortium, students can take classes at Smith, Amherst, U-Mass Amherst, and Hampshire colleges in addition to Mt. Holyoke. That’s how you meet many students of both genders. Men do take courses at MHC, but not in huge numbers. There is a free 5-College bus that runs between all the schools. Although the Mt. Holyoke campus is very quiet, with just a few restaurants, a movie theatre, 3 churches and a few stores nearby, you can quickly be in much more vibrant locations which offer many entertainment and social venues.
I don’t know anything about Easton, PA, or whether Lafayette has any other colleges close by to interact with.
I graduated from Mt. Holyoke and loved every minute. I am a very proud alum. My D has been waitlisted, so if you have been accepted and prefer a co-ed school, she would be happy to take your spot at MHC! (kidding, somewhat!) Good luck with your decision.