The college campus is really beautiful with a lot of natural scenery. The students tend to be affluent young women with strenuous academic goals and there is a large LGBTQ presence on campus in addition to other social activism movements. The classes are rigorous regardless of your department but you can always find help if you ask for it.
Do you have any tips for prospective students?
It is important not to overwhelm yourself by taking too many classes or involving yourself in too many extracurricular activities. You will feel a lot of pressure to get involved in as many things as possible, but seriously, don't do it. Pick one or two things that you really are super passionate about and stick to them. Also, double majoring is a bad idea, no matter how many other people are doing it.
Do you find there’s enough academic rigor at your school?
Smith is a very rigorous academic institution and you have to keep a good schedule to keep up. But there are many resources available to you such as professors' office hours and the tutoring centers. Your success boils down to your effort and hard work definitely pays off. You leave the class feeling like you really understand the material if you stick with it.
Describe the dorm life at your college.
Dorm life varies from house to house. The rooms are awesome for the most part. Mostly singles, it's possible to get your own room as a first year, and there are kitchen facilities for student use in every house. I have lived in several different houses, and each community has its own personality and way of doing things. People tend to be very nice and polite and it is easy to make friends, especially with all of the programming that house leaders organize.
Describe the food and dining at your college.
The food will be impressive at first and become boring within a month or two. It's good quality and the dining hall staff work really hard. But the menu gets pretty repetitive after awhile and the idea of seasoning usually seems to be something that nobody thought of. Lines get pretty long when there's something good on the menu but it's definitely worth the wait.
What’s there to do for fun at your college?
There are lots and lots of extracurricular organizations and events happening all around campus all the time. Just keep your eyes and ears open. Downtown Northampton is fun to visit and it's just down the road. There are lots of restaurants and little hippie shops as well as a concert hall. It's also great to take the PVTA and explore other campuses.
Do you feel you’re getting value for the money you’re spending on college?
Smith is really really really expensive. It's hard to afford tuition without some kind of financial aid. But the academic quality makes it worthwhile as well as the opportunities that are available to you here such as the PRAXIS internship and Junior Year Abroad. The financial aid office will work with you if you make them.
Share any unusual traditions or locations on campus
Convocation is pretty non-traditional on Smith Campus. It tends to involve a lot of drinking, nudity, and rainbow flags. Other fun things include celebrations, a performance halfway through the semester to celebrate LGBTQ pride, primal scream, which is an event that takes place during finals week where everyone runs outside and screams for a few minutes to blow off some anxiety about tests, and winter weekend, which is a house party at the end of the year where everyone gets dressed up and acts fancy for a few hours.
Which types of students will excel at your college?
Academics, nerds, geeks, whiz-kids, social activists, environmentalists, LGBTQ kids and non-gender-conforming individuals, athletes, medical students, engineering students, liberal arts students, artistic types, and many more.
Are you involved in any clubs or activities?
There are clubs for everything on campus. Don't try to do too many of them. There are lots of activist groups with environmentalist or social justice goals, like the Divestment Campaign, and other groups for musical talents, like the Ukelele club, as well as sports, like the Quidditch Team, and special interests, like the Science Fiction and Fantasy Society.
Are you involved in any clubs or activities?
None.
How would you describe campus safety? Do you feel safe on campus?
Smith has a very safe campus. There are emergency call boxes everywhere and campus police is always available. I have personally never felt afraid walking around campus alone at night.
The college campus is really beautiful with a lot of natural scenery. The students tend to be affluent young women with strenuous academic goals and there is a large LGBTQ presence on campus in addition to other social activism movements. The classes are rigorous regardless of your department but you can always find help if you ask for it.
It is important not to overwhelm yourself by taking too many classes or involving yourself in too many extracurricular activities. You will feel a lot of pressure to get involved in as many things as possible, but seriously, don't do it. Pick one or two things that you really are super passionate about and stick to them. Also, double majoring is a bad idea, no matter how many other people are doing it.
Smith is a very rigorous academic institution and you have to keep a good schedule to keep up. But there are many resources available to you such as professors' office hours and the tutoring centers. Your success boils down to your effort and hard work definitely pays off. You leave the class feeling like you really understand the material if you stick with it.
Dorm life varies from house to house. The rooms are awesome for the most part. Mostly singles, it's possible to get your own room as a first year, and there are kitchen facilities for student use in every house. I have lived in several different houses, and each community has its own personality and way of doing things. People tend to be very nice and polite and it is easy to make friends, especially with all of the programming that house leaders organize.
The food will be impressive at first and become boring within a month or two. It's good quality and the dining hall staff work really hard. But the menu gets pretty repetitive after awhile and the idea of seasoning usually seems to be something that nobody thought of. Lines get pretty long when there's something good on the menu but it's definitely worth the wait.
There are lots and lots of extracurricular organizations and events happening all around campus all the time. Just keep your eyes and ears open. Downtown Northampton is fun to visit and it's just down the road. There are lots of restaurants and little hippie shops as well as a concert hall. It's also great to take the PVTA and explore other campuses.
Smith is really really really expensive. It's hard to afford tuition without some kind of financial aid. But the academic quality makes it worthwhile as well as the opportunities that are available to you here such as the PRAXIS internship and Junior Year Abroad. The financial aid office will work with you if you make them.
Convocation is pretty non-traditional on Smith Campus. It tends to involve a lot of drinking, nudity, and rainbow flags. Other fun things include celebrations, a performance halfway through the semester to celebrate LGBTQ pride, primal scream, which is an event that takes place during finals week where everyone runs outside and screams for a few minutes to blow off some anxiety about tests, and winter weekend, which is a house party at the end of the year where everyone gets dressed up and acts fancy for a few hours.
Academics, nerds, geeks, whiz-kids, social activists, environmentalists, LGBTQ kids and non-gender-conforming individuals, athletes, medical students, engineering students, liberal arts students, artistic types, and many more.
There are clubs for everything on campus. Don't try to do too many of them. There are lots of activist groups with environmentalist or social justice goals, like the Divestment Campaign, and other groups for musical talents, like the Ukelele club, as well as sports, like the Quidditch Team, and special interests, like the Science Fiction and Fantasy Society.
None.
Smith has a very safe campus. There are emergency call boxes everywhere and campus police is always available. I have personally never felt afraid walking around campus alone at night.