Barnard College Top Questions

No on both counts! Barnard is an all-girls school, so we do miss guys, but we look to CU for friendship more than sex. Columbia women can be a little standoffish at first, but it's not long before they realize how smart and talented their sister school is, and any animosity is usually gone by the first semester of freshman year.

1) yes and no. While the campus is heavily liberal, it is nothing like say UC Berkeley. Personally, I know several lesbians, but by no means is GLBTQ population huge 2) I think this comes from New Yorkers wearing black. 3) Most of the young women I know at Barnard, Barnard was their primary choice of schools. I have met one person who admitted that she wanted to go to CC and applied to Barnard as a back up (Barnard, CC, SEAS, and GS students can take classes at all of the schools, the only ones that are all female are first-year English, and first-year Seminar). Barnard has a very different academic milieu than CC--there is a big emphasis on female and minority thinkers in English classes, and our coure curriculum is much more open.

These stereotypes aren't accurate at all! While Barnard girls are pretty much all fashionable, we come from all walks of life. And, our political beliefs are just as diverse. The women at this college are generally very attentive to the situation of women, in the United States and elsewhere, but no one I know allows herself to be pigeon-holed into a certain ideological category.

Not really, although Barnard students are certainly invested in women's rights as they are all women!

No!

Generally- not at all

Yes, there are lesbians and feminists, but like any population, there are people who are not. Barnard is about empowering women and preparing them for leadership and success, so outsiders might see it as fostering feminism. But it is a girls school, and by not allowing men it is a feminist school that caters to women over men. I guess it depends on your own personal definition of feminist, and whether or not you agree with it. I consider myself relatively feminist because I believe that women can do just as well as men and should have equal rights completely, but I don't advocate that any one person elevate themselves over another, and disagree when "feminists" degrade men. In terms of the "Barnyard," girls at Barnard tend to be a little more relaxed than those at Columbia. This is just my opinon, and depends on who you interact with, but typically I notice that girls who go to Barnard are more real and open to discovering themselves. If you choose Columbia over Barnard as a woman, it sometimes seems like a sell-out, because Barnard is just as great if not better. As a woman, I think the smarter choice is to go to Barnard where the classes are excellent and we are given the oppertunity to grow intellectually as women. But Barnard is not for everyone, and if you don't want to challenge your own views/opinons and be open to change, then its not for you...You might be happier at Columbia. And does everyone dance at Barnard...pretty much. As a dancer myself, the oppertunities are endless and I love being able to dance everyday. Finally, in terms of "Barnard to bed, Columbia to wed" I know that alot of Columbia guys date Barnard women...sometimes that creates tension with the Columbia women. But in terms of Columbia men ultimately choosing Columbia girls over Barnard women, I don't know if that has merit. If the man is afraid of marrying an opinonated woman who is bound to be successful, then he might not want to marry a Barnard woman. No trophy wives here

Not at all! After the first year people realize how stupid and completely untrue these stereotypes are.

For the most part. I would say that not as many are as well off as the stereotype suggests.

Not at all! Most of the Barnard students I know didn't apply to Columbia because they wanted a liberal arts education, and loved Barnard for what it is. I applied early decision because it was my first choice. We can cross-register for classes at Columbia, but I like Barnard classes better (Columbia is bigger though, so sometimes they have classes Barnard doesn't). There are some lesbians at Barnard, like any other college, single sex or co-ed. While most Barnard women are feminists, we are in the sense that we beleive in equal rights, and we definitely don't hate men. We just know that we're as good as they are.