College Snapshots: Vassar

College Snap Shots

In an effort to provide Burlington High School students and their families with relevant and up-to-date college information, the Guidance Staff will be visiting various colleges and universities and providing you with information. The colleges visited do not represent a preference on the part of the BHS Guidance Department towards any particular school.

In the college search process, many things are taken into consideration. Things that are considered, but not limited to are: campus size, location, number of students on campus, majors, tuition, distance from home, athletic programs, clubs and other activities. When considering a college, students must also make realistic decisions based on personal interest, grades, test scores, etc.

The department feels that the college visit is an integral part of the process, and we strongly encourage students to visit any and all schools that interest them, especially if these schools are fairly close by. The information we provide is only a small snapshot into each respective college. We hope to add information about other schools in the future, and as always we appreciate any feedback that you have that would help us provide our students and their families useful information in the sometimes overwhelming college search process.

Furthermore we ask that students also research colleges by using their Naviance accounts and scheduling meetings with their counselor on a consistent basis. Please feel free to contact your son or daughter's individual counselor if you have any further questions.

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Vassar

Entrance to campus

Vassar College

5/9/07
Visited by: Ms. Diozzi

Location: A private, selective liberal arts college located in Poughkeepsie, NY (1.5 hrs from NYC.) Vassar was founded in the early 1860's by brewer, Matthew Vassar as a women's college. It went co-ed in the 1960's.

Population of college: 3800 undergraduates.

Snapshot: My first impression of Vassar was that the college campus is gorgeous and the architecture of the buildings is eclectic. It's located on a side street out of Poughkeepsie and is walled in by a large brick wall. (There has been much discussion over the years about tearing down the wall to make the college feel more inclusive with the community.) The students we met were fairly well-dressed, a bit preppy, seemingly privileged and very, very articulate. Many of them also seemed to be a bit quirky and creative. There was noticeable ethnic diversity on the campus among both students and professors.

A famous distinction of Vassar is that all of the bathrooms on campus are gender-neutral, and the student body consistently votes to keep it that way. According to Vassar students, the “type of student who would be most happy at Vassar is unique, passionate about something, eclectic, knows time management well, is not afraid to learn something new from someone different, and is open to intimate discussions.”

Vassar prides itself on being one of the top ten colleges for vegetarians, so at lunch, I asked for the vegetarian entrée. Not only was it vegetarian, it was vegan and amazing! One of the best meals I had on the entire tour, including the dinner at the Culinary Institute of America.

Famous alumni include Meryl Streep and Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe on Friends).

Dormitory

College Snapshots