Mount Holyoke College
Responses from the Student Interview
From a student who identifies as Major: Environmental Studies
Minor: None
Student Self Identifies as: Caucasian Lesbian Female
Summary
I play club rugby.
Background
Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: Caucasian
Sexual Orientation: Lesbian
High School Experience: Public magnet school in New York City with a graduating class of about 200 students.
First-Generation College Student: No
Major: Environmental Studies
Minor: None
Extracurricular Activities: I play club rugby.
Did any of your extracurricular activities have a particularly big impact?
Rugby has definitely formed my college experience both socially and as an activity. It’s a good way to stay in shape and meet people not only at Mount Holyoke but all around the Northeast because we travel for games. Rugby has such a friendly culture around it that you end up meeting a lot of people at other schools that you wouldn’t have met otherwise.
Academic Experience
Can you describe your weekly coursework for your major?
Environmental Studies is interesting because it’s an interdisciplinary major and it’s at the crossroads of science and humanities. For me, I’ve taken more STEM courses, like chemistry, biology, and geology. I’ve had classes that have been more problem set heavy, but also courses in philosophy, ethics, or on environmental issues that are more paper-heavy.
Is there anything that you feel your major’s department does especially well or especially poorly?
The student-professor engagement is excellent. You can go up to the professors and talk to them. You say hi to them when you see them on campus, so it’s a close-knit community. You can reach out if you need help with anything or just want to explore a topic more. They’re always open to helping you out.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
It’s definitely collaborative. When I came to Mount Holyoke, it was shocking how much people just want to help each other here. Especially since it’s a historically women’s college, it’s a supportive environment.
How has going to a historically women’s college impacted your academic experience?
I don’t think that it’s been that different than my friends’ experiences at co-ed schools. But, I think there is a greater feeling of community. With Mount Holyoke being in the Five College Consortium, I’ve noticed that it helps you have self-confidence in more male-dominated environments.
If at all, how has being part of the Five College Consortium impacted your academic experience?
Honestly, I don’t think I’ve fully taken advantage of the consortium. With that said, I do appreciate when we have people from the other schools in my Mount Holyoke classes – even if it’s just one or two guys – it’s exciting to get that other perspective and make new friends. It’s also great to have everything close by because we can go to different networking events and academic conferences. When you have that many schools so close, you’re bound to have so many different things happening between the different departments.
Why did you choose your major? Are you happy with your choice?
I started out as a Biology major, and I’d never had any earth science or geology coursework in high school so I’d never been exposed to it. I took a Geology course my sophomore year and I liked it a lot. Because the courses I had been taking worked with the Environmental Studies major, it worked out. With Environmental Studies, you can have more of a biology background, focus on conservation, or even focus on politics and law. Also, the environment is important so that’s part of why I picked it.
Reasons to Attend
1) The education is good and the professors are really helpful and supportive. The professors will go out of their way for you if you need help.
2) The people here are really friendly. You’re surrounded by people who are really kind but also intimately passionate about what their studying and their hobbies.
3) The dorms are absolutely beautiful.
4) We have a lot of really cool traditions."
Reasons Not to Attend
1) I don’t think Mount Holyoke is the right fit for someone who is not open-minded to new perspectives on issues, political issues, or really anything. Like, you have to be open-minded about food because the dining hall comes out with some weird stuff.
2) Honestly, if you’re super conservative I don’t think it would be a good fit. While people are open to different perspectives, if you’re not supportive of [LGBTQ+] people or something you won’t do well here.
Around Campus
Where have you lived on campus?
Freshman: Pearsons Hall in a triple
Sophomore: Mandelle Hall in a double
Junior: Mandelle Hall in a double
Senior: Torrey Hall in a single
What was your favorite living situation?
Sophomore year was nice because I was living with my best friend and we had our own bathroom with a really nice bathtub. This year I also have a really big room with a bathroom, so I’ve been very spoiled.
How was transitioning from your hometown in New York to South Hadley, MA in terms of location?
South Hadley is a big change. It’s very rural in some places, but I do think that it helps that there’s so much to do on campus that you never get bored. I feel like I would be overwhelmed going to school in New York because I would have so much else going on in addition to school.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
The campus feels safe. I’ve never been worried about being on campus and will walk around campus alone at night.
Social Opportunities
What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
Personally, I like to go to sports games on the weekends or I’m playing in a rugby game. There is a bit of a party scene here. Usually, if I go to a party it will be a few people or a friend group hosting it. They’re most often in dorm common rooms. Mount Holyoke has really beautiful dorms and we take full advantage of them.
If at all, how has being LGBT influenced your nightlife experience at Mount Holyoke? Is there much of an LGBT+ nightlife scene on campus?
Honestly, I did not anticipate how open people would be about that kind of stuff here. I knew that there was a big LGBT population going in, but I didn’t expect how supportive people are about it and how accepting they are.
How happy were you with the weekend options at Mount Holyoke? If you could change anything, what would you change?
My friends and I are the kinds of people who aren’t really into co-ed parties and we have a good on campus on the weekends. But, I know there are other people who are into going off-campus to UMass or Amherst to parties, but that’s not really my scene. If I could change anything, I’m sometimes like, “Come on Mount Holyoke, we can stay out past midnight tonight! We can do better” [laughs], but it’s fun. I definitely know some people who feel it can be boring. But, in general, I think we know how to have a good time.
How often do you mix with the other schools in the Five College Consortium?
People mix every weekend. There are buses that go to the other schools that go until 2:00 AM. I tend to stay on campus because that’s more my scene. I think there is a divide when it comes to people on campus because it seems like if you’re looking to meet a boy, you go off-campus. I’ve gone off-campus before and it’s fun, but for me personally, it’s a whole production to get on the bus. But, at the end of the day, everyone does hang out with each other and it doesn’t feel super separated by sexual identity or anything.
Campus Culture
How did you meet your closest friends?
Most of my closest friends I met by playing rugby, or by taking classes together.
How would you describe the overall social scene at Mount Holyoke?
People find their friends in different ways. We have a pretty big cultural club scene, but I’m not as involved with that. Most people join some sort of activity here, whether that’s a club or a team, and that’s how they find their friends. It helps that it’s pretty friendly here and everyone is open to talking to anyone.
To what extent do students of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
I think there is some separation when it comes to how people mix socially. I think there’s the feeling that people who are straight go out to Amherst and UMass on the weekends while the more Queer scene stays on campus. I’m not sure if that’s completely true. I can’t speak on the experience of students of color at MHC, but I have heard people talk about separation and lack of diversity in social groups and at parties (and on sports teams and in other student groups). In general, people are open-minded and accepting at MHC, but separation is something we need to think about because you don’t necessarily notice it until someone points it out to you.
How do you like the size of Mount Holyoke in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How has that impacted your experience? [Mount Holyoke has about 2,300 students.]
At times, it can feel a little bit small, but, at the same time, there’s no way that you’re going to know everyone. You think you know everyone because you see the same 200 people who have a similar lunchtime to you and it also can feel like everybody knows everybody. The good part is we have small classes and can be on a small campus (area-wise).
How has going to a historically women’s college impacted your social experience?
I think it’s interesting. I don’t mind not having any cisgender men in the mix at all. It’s also cool because you’ll never get this experience again.
Careers
Has the alumni network helped you find internships or jobs?
The alumni network is very supportive, but I found my internship last summer through a different way. What’s nice is the alumni network is not just Mount Holyoke because the other Seven Sister College alumni are welcoming to us too. There’s a nice camaraderie there.
What have you used the career office for? How helpful have they been?
We have Handshake, which is useful. They also do events for networking and took my LinkedIn headshot which was nice.
Have you learned any computer programs or languages that will be helpful to you professionally?
Chemistry classes helped me become quite proficient at Excel and then for Geology courses I had to learn some Python and for another class I had to learn R.