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Smith College

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If I could go to another college IQuite BrightEnglish
If I could go to another college I would. I am too late in the process and could not afford to transfer. My issues with Smith do not lie in the academics but the environment which they are housed in. Smithies are far too competitive. The stress Olympics are very real. If you are not studying or advocating for social change at all times then you are ridiculed. Passive-Aggressive is pretty much how this whole campus operates. Students are encouraged to speak out when their status quo is challenged or something makes them slightly uncomfortable. The results are often anonymous notes on doors, emails sent out to the house, social media posts or noise complaints. Which leads me to the non-existent party scene on campus. If you are looking to do any partying (literally any) larger than a gathering of about 8 girls in a room with a glass of wine, you won't find it here. On more than one occasion I have received noise complaints for having even a few friends over at 9pm on a Friday night. Don't listen to what people say about meeting guys while at Smith. Going off campus is a lot more hassle than it seems and more often than not students at that campus are unwelcoming. The only way I've seen my friends meet guys while here is through Tinder. Overall, if you are looking to have a balanced SOCIAL and work life, Smith is not for you. If you are entirely dedicated to your studies, would describe yourself as socially awkward and prefer to spend your weekends doing work, this may be your place.
3rd Year Female -- Class 2018
Faculty Accessibility: A+, Collaboration/Competitive: F
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Smith is a very overrated school.Quite BrightChemistry
Smith is a very overrated school. It prides itself on academic rigor but there is very little of that going on. It's nothing more than a brainwashing college and spoiled stuck up brats. The only thing that have going are their humanities and very little of the social sciences. Their science degrees are a joke. It's all about name and very little else
1st Year Female -- Class 1920
Perceived Campus Safety: A-, Education Quality: F
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Things to expect from Smith: a sometimes oppressiveQuite BrightMath
Things to expect from Smith: a sometimes oppressive overly-liberal atmosphere, lots of queer folk, lots of people who will inspire you. While another recent comment has mentioned the competitive and stressful vibe here, and I do not disagree with that, I think that Smith trains you to be a sort of feminist woman "out to change the world with her woman powers." If you are not like that when you come in-- if you're like me-- you may at first be intimidated by the people in your intro classes who seem to know everything about the subject already, who raise their hand to every question and (attempt to) correct the professor. You may feel like you don't belong at such a school. You might try to leave. I, for one, applied to transfer out of Smith, but ultimately returned because of the things that had drawn me to the place at first: the camaraderie, within your house and otherwise; the political activism; the quirkiness; the idea of being one of the many influential and awesome women who have gone to Smith and schools like it.

It is a hard place to be sometimes. You will wish you went to UMass at some point. Or maybe Hampshire, or Amherst, if that's your style. And possibly Smith is not the place for you-- it is certainly not the traditional college experience; no hopping social life for sure, no men. But, having been here for three years, I see that Smith has changed me for the better, stressed me out more than another school might have, and definitely taught me different things about myself than another school would have. Plus, I think I will be eternally grateful for being forced to appreciate the value of my own sex (/gender/identity?? You will learn many words here to describe how your genitals relate to everything else).

If you come here, be confident. You can say the wrong answers in class and be OK. You got into this school for a reason, and it really is a great place to be.

2nd Year Female -- Class 2016
Campus Aesthetics: A+, Collaboration/Competitive: C
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