Shandra

Amazing Students, Annoying Administration

Students at Mt. Holyoke are very accepting and always interested in meeting someone with different cultural and life experiences. The problem is that the administration tries to force diversity down everyone's throats. If you brush aside the institutional push for perceived diversity and focus on expanding your own experiences and being open to learning from others, you will meet amazing people from every walk of life.

No One "Type"

Girls at MHC tend to either be very pretty or very ugly. There aren't many in between. However, when it comes to personality and interests, you can find someone in every category you can think of. It is near impossible to fit the women of Mt. Holyoke into a type. Some of them love to go to the frat parties at Umass, some prefer to stay in and read a book, some go out to dinner with friends, some go dancing at the local gay clubs. My main reason for giving the grade of A is that no matter what, you can find friends here because of the diverse personalities and groups on campus.

Definitely Not a Jock School

Being a women's college, there is definitely not a prevailing team spirit that might be found at Big 10 schools or large state schools. There are a variety of teams to become involved with, and some of them are quite good, but no one comes to MHC for the athletics. They would come because of the balance they can achieve between athletics and academics. All of the sports at Div III, except for horseback riding, which is Div I and taken very seriously. Riders tend to form a clique. Other teams definitely do provide a great bonding and social experience without being cliquey. Another great thing is that there are intramural sports and 5-college teams, which are a great way to meet people from the Five College Consortium and even score a date or two. Overall, athletics are definitely in the background.

Mind Your Own Business and Public Safety Will Mind Theirs

As long as you are respectful and not being crazy obnoxious, you can pretty much do whatever you want on campus. Keep your parties to the weekends, don't barf all over, and you're fine. Public safety never gives the impression of really wanting to ruin your night and will only respond if they think someone is in danger or they get several calls. The one thing they are strict about is parking. Don't ever think you can get away with parking in a restricted space.

As for academics, MHC is on the honor code. Final exams are usually self-scheduled, which is one of the best things ever. You can choose when and where you want to take your exam. I'm not a morning person AT ALL, so I loved being able to take my exams in the afternoon or evening. The rooms are totally unmonitored, which I liked because it made me feel much more relaxed. MHC really trusts their students.