I only see a few reviews on this school so im going to take the time to write about what my experience here has been like, and tell anyone reading what I wish someone would have told me.
On the surface level this school seems very girl power, inclusive, and all around awesome. I drank the koolaid like everyone else did and got sucked in by the idea of it being an all womens university. I remember when I first spoke to the admissions counselor here. I made it very clear that I did not come from an upper middle class family like most of the women here seem to come from. She assured me that the school gives lots of financial aid to make it affordable for everyone that comes here. Trust me when I say there is no way that I would have come here if I thought it was out of my budget.
Long story short she lied. Maybe lied is harsh. She bent the truth is what Ill say. Im not going to place the blame on her because at the end of the day the woman was just doing her job. Her job is to recruit new students and thats what she was doing. So ill start off with this topic:
1) financial aid - expect little to no financial aid help here besides whats given to you in your fafsa award. My honest opinion would be that if you dont have parents or relatives that can help you pay for this school, or some really good scholarships that will last until you graduate, dont come here...Unless you know you qualify for outside private loans and youre okay with taking those out. You will be stressed out beyond belief trying to balance a heavy courseload(the work here is tough) while also trying to figure out how youre going to come up with the money to make it to the next semester. At first i thought this was just an issue that i was having, but ive talked to many students and it has been the case for quite a few of them. While the workload here is difficult to manage at times, its not impossible. The single most stressful aspect of this school is figuring out how to pay for it.
2) Professors - The teachers here are awesome. They are all very intelligent and passionate about what it is they teach, even the adjuncts. They are also very understanding. They understand that the students here come from all walks of life. You can tell that they dont just hire anyone. I have nothing bad to say about the professors or the quality of the education you receive here. I have learned so much here. Class sizes are very small too. Your professors know who you are and they care about you.
3) Diversity -While there is SOME diversity the school doesnt really have a open friendly vibe about it. They try hard to encourage communication between people of different backgrounds(they even make you take two courses about diversity) but it just doesnt feel very friendly here. I dont get the feeling that im actually a part of this school. I always feel like a visitor here even though ive been here for awhile. On the surface it seems like because this is a womens school everyone loves each other and holds hands and sings in a communal circle, but its not like that at all. To be honest a lot of the people here are kind of snotty and rude. The only way I can think to describe it is like a giant sorority with no parties, where everyone is really passive aggressive, kind of depressed, and extremely stressed out. Yes you can make friends here but expect for it to be very difficult if you are a minority. Join a club or hang out in the multicultural student center to make this easier, otherwise just be prepared to be pretty much by yourself, unless you come across other students of color in your classes that you can get to know. Also: this APPEARS to be a very liberal school. Its not. I find that this school is secretly really conservative.
4) Parking - Horrible. It can take you awhile to find a parking spot regardless of whether or not you paid for a permit. If your classes are very early in the morning dont even bother paying for a permit. No ones comes around to check them until around 1130 ish. I dont have a permit and I havent had any issues. I would be mad if i spent money on one and still can never find parking.
5) Activities - There are no parties here. The typical college party scene happens at St. Thomas so if thats an important part of college for you, just know it doesnt exist here. I get the feeling that that type of stuff is secretly frowned upon here. There are little activities throughout the year, but theyre very niche and are usually related to academics, which is fine. Keeps you focused.
So overall, I would say that if you are solely interested in getting your work done with zero distractions, you KNOW you can afford to come here, and you are indifferent when it comes to actually meeting people, this is the school for you. If not, look elsewhere. If i could do it all over again I wouldnt come here. While the quality of the education is excellent, I feel as though I could get an education just as great somewhere else cheaper with nicer people. read more