Most young women are not initially excited about the possibility of attending a women’s college. I believe this is due in large part to the many misperceptions that exist regarding women’s colleges. Contrary to most people’s image modern women’s colleges are not finishing schools where men are not allowed. And they are not colleges for women looking for protection from the real world. Rather, women’s colleges provide strong academic offerings in an environment supportive of women.
The number of well known successful women that have attended an all women’s college is very high. Their placement rate into top graduate programs is also very high and their graduates are able to compete in the “real” world just as ably as those women who attended coed colleges.
Several of the all women’s colleges are also very strong in educating women who come from a lower economic status. Smith College and Mount Holyoke College have some of the highest percentages of students who qualify for Pell Grants of any four year college in the country. Given the education that the women who attend these colleges receive that statistic is all the more impressive.
If you are a women looking for a very high quality education you might want to consider an all women’s college. Admission to even the best of the all women’s colleges is relatively easier than comparable quality coed colleges because they have fewer students that apply. And if you investigate the all women’s colleges what you will discovery is that many of them are associated with coed colleges so there will be men on campus and in the classroom. For the right women, these colleges represent an excellent educational opportunity. For more information about women’s colleges check out The Women’s College Coalition.