Smith College Top Questions

yes. brainy lesbians and all the misfits from high school combined.

Smith does have a very intellectual culture, and students are not usually shy about speaking their minds in class. That being said, I personally never felt intimidated by my fellow students' intelligence, and I didn't think it was so much about intellectual competition as it was about excitement about ideas. In fact, I loved being at a college where people were genuinely excited about their classes. There were some houses (dorms) that had larger groups of people who liked to work all night long and all weekend and who liked to complain about their homework, but for the most part Smithies tend to be pretty balanced between work and play: work hard, then play hard. The whole sexual frustration thing is definitely not true; there are plenty of men to be found at neighboring colleges, at parties, and in classes, due to the 5-college consortium. About 1/3 of the students identify themselves as queer, lesbian, bi, or transgendered -- but, while the stereotype of a big gay school isn't numerically accurate, there IS a very pervasive culture of tolerance for the queer community. Homophobia is definitely frowned on, and the LGBT presence is loud and proud, not shy or closeted at all. If you're really not comfortable with a LGBT presence Smith might take some getting used to. I didn't meet a single woman while I was at Smith who owned a set of pearls (or a sweater set, for that matter). While plenty of Smithies come from well-off families, they don't flaunt their wealth. If anything students probably try to act like they have less money than they really do.

A student discusses some of the stereotypes associated with Smith college and comments on their accuracy.

A student discusses some of the stereotypes associated with Smith college and comments on their accuracy.

While there are indeed a lot of girls, it is a refreshing mix of people. Yes, sexuality is a hot topic on campus which is refreshing and mind expanding, especially for people coming from conservative hometowns.

Yes and ,like most stereotypes, completely wrong at the same time. The gamut is pretty big, but chances are that you can expect acceptance at Smith College.

There is a strong representation of both gay and straight students on campus. The all woman atmosphere is certainly different than a coed environment. Classes are interesting and challenging, and people work hard on their schoolwork.

Definitely not true. There's a big gay community, and people definitely take academics seriously but we also like to have fun.

Not necessarily. I am a straight, liberal person who does not always thrive in academic settings, and by no means is my family rich. However, stereotypes do come from somewhere, and I definitely feel that Smith's rep precedes it sometimes when I'm off campus. Ultimately, though, we are not restricted by these stereotypes and generally everyone is given a chance to be themselves.

NO! I am not. But many students at Smith are gay or something else but thats the case at other colleges too single - sex or coed.