Wellesley College Top Questions

Let me start off by saying that I have loved the majority of my classes here and it is as much due to the material being taught as it has to do with the professor. My professors have been really wonderful both inside and outside of the classroom. They are so accessible and if you cannot make their office hours, they make an effort to find time to see you. Their number one priority is their students and they want nothing more than to see their students do well. Besides office hours, the resources available to students are immense including peer tutors and general help rooms run by students. Within the classroom environment, classes vary based on whether it is discussion based or lecture based. Many of the science classes are lecture based and so there isn't a lot of student participation but in the humanities, the more discussion there is, the better the class is. The professor can offer you what you know but often the most interesting comments come from the students themselves.

Great academics, many great professors who're easy to talk to. Students are smart, but most don't really do intellectual conversations outside of class. They're competitive with themselves more often than they are with others.

I love my classes at Wellesley. There has never been a question in my mind that I came her for my classes and they have never failed me. My professors know who I am, not only by name, but also my interests, other pursuits, directions. I meet a few times a semester with my advisor, but I've also adopted several other "advisors", whose strengths, weaknesses, and personalities complement one another beautifully. And beyond helping me choose courses, I think that there's no question that Wellesley professors will go above and beyond for their students. I took two courses on Chaucer and other Middle English literature, and at the end of them, my professor offered to teach a small Old English group. So there are three of us who have been learning to read Old English together this year. Likewise, I have struggled to find courses which match my interests in our relatively small German department (nice, but very small), and my first professor has been an advisor for not one but two independant studies, above and beyond his normal teaching load, so that I can pursue the topics I'm most interested in. In terms of most unique or interesting classes (because I have a zillion favorites!), I think I have to mention one I'm enrolled in right now, EXTD 240: Papyrus to Print to Pixel. The course is co-taught by the Special Collections Head Librarian and the director of the Book Arts Lab. Every week we look at different phases in the history of textual transmission, looking at examples in special collections (Wellesley's special collections are AMAZING! AMAZING!), and then we have a "lab" in the book arts lab to try things out for ourselves. I've made papyrus, I've made hemp and rag paper, I've set type by hand, I've tried my hand at calligraphy on parchment, I've bound a book - it's really an incredible class. And on top of all of that, we have guest lecturers from all across campus (from the Classics to History to English to Computer Science) and professional artisans (the man who lead the carving on the WWII memorial in Washington, D.C.? Yeah, he came to our class, gave a carving demonstration, let us give it a go.). The course is absolutely amazing, and I think it just wouldn't be possible somewhere without the combined resources of our special collections, book arts lab, and generous alum donors. And on one mroe note, working from the prompts above: I think that the student body at Wellesley is really interesting because I think we're very split on why we're here. I came for myself, and I was fortunate that that was possible, for me to take four years and study what I love without having to gear up for a particular position. But our law, medical, and graduate school placements are quite good, as are our recruiting relationships with big firms - and of course the alumnae W network - so there are people who choose Wellesley because it is a school which can enable them to move towards later professional goals.

We have grade deflation to counter the accusations of grade inflation at elite colleges, which is a bit rough to take as a student. For the administration, it's a great policy. Very respectable. Wellesley students are known for being pretty intense and competitive, and everyone talks in class. Know how in high school, one person from each group wanted to do all the work? Every single one of those went to Wellesley -- group projects are like a power struggle. Wellesley also has a physical education requirement, but there are a lot of fun ways to fill it: golf, tennis, sailing, horseback riding...lots of stuff.

I love the classroom academics. Professors always know my name, and encourage participation. The professors are truly wonderful, and I would rather spend my time in office hours with them than with most Wellesley students. My current favorite class is Weapons, Strategy, and War with Professor Goddard. She lights up like a kid on Christmas morning when she talks about most topics. Political Theory is a class I was dreading, but Professor Candreva has made it one of my favorite classes as well. She really is able to bring Hobbes, Burke, Mill and others alive. Students are way too competitive. In class they act like they do all the reading - and most of them do. This is quite a feat. Wellesley students tend to be too focused on academics, and the competition is cutthroat. You know the Cutthroat Bitch on House? That probably can describe many Wellesley students. I don't like Wellesley's academic requirements, and after being abroad, wished I went to a college that didn't have academic requirements. They really are a big burden unless you plan for them, and your major(s) and goring abroad from day 1 at Wellesley.

my professors not only know my name, but probably know even more about me. contrary to the stereotype, students aren't competitive with each other, but with themselves. i do spend time with some of my professors out of class. my film professor had a screening/tea party at her home one day when we had a long weekend. the most unique class i've taken so far was a class about ancient athenian politics. it had never been taught before, and was based on research that my professor had compiled for his doctoral thesis, which he published the semester before. we used very modern poli sci theories and analyses to account for the existence of a "true" democracy, which was previously thought to be impossible in reality.

My prof's DEFINITELY know my name, background, life story (some of them, anyway...and they would almost all be interested), strengths and weaknesses... Favorite class: Econ with Velenchik. She's hilarious, charismatic, and above all a very clear professor. She also tells it like it is, which I really respect. Least favorite: Astro 101lab. Prof French is awesome, but hot damn, don't take that class thinking it's going to be an easy A. It's not. And it's fucking cold outside at 11pm by the telescopes in winter (well, almost any time, really).

It's the best! I love my professors and my classes are small, so you really get to know them. Since Wellesley is solely undergrad, so the professors are really here to teach and not quite as interested in research. I feel really challenged in all my classes, and it's really a fun place to live and go to school.

They are hard. There are no breaks. Usually you have to go to class. People are smart here and they participate. You have to study for tests. It's a lot like high school ... but harder.

A friend from Dartmouth College once commented that, "The closer I get to Wellesley, the higher I can feel my blood pressure rising." Wellesley is not for the faint of heart. We are a community of driven, overachievers. We are used to being the best and find anything less hard to accept. This mindset would lead many to assume that Wellesley is an extremely competitive school, which is true. However, competition does not exist between individuals. The only place competition lives is within each student where a fierce battle rages between the student you are and the student you want to be. Academics are the focus of the college and generally a sense of quiet reigns over the campus (during finals week, it's more an eerie silence). Classes are never optional and participation is expected. This is great for creating dialogue and an exchange of ideas, but it also prompts the inevitable handraiser: the girl who always has a question or a comment, even if it happens to be identical to what the professor just said.