Spelman College

Responses from the Student Interview

From a student  who identifies as Major: Biology – Premed track
Minor: None
Student Self Identifies as: African-American Straight Female

Summary

Mostly medical-based activities like the Minority Association of Pre-Medical Students (MAPS).

Background

Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: African-American
Sexual Orientation: Straight

High School Experience: Public high school in Georgia with a graduating class of about 100 students. There was a culture of going to college.
First-Generation College Student: No
Major: Biology – Premed track
Minor: None

Extracurricular Activities: Mostly medical-based activities like the Minority Association of Pre-Medical Students (MAPS).
Did any of your extracurricular activities have a particularly big impact on your experience?
They introduced new medical schools, speakers, and new ways to test for the MCAT.

Academic Experience

Can you describe the weekly coursework for your Biology major?
It’s mostly homework and then exams. The homework is normally problem sets. I have two lab classes, which is pretty standard each semester.
Is there anything you feel the Biology department does especially well or poorly?
It’s really good at motivating us and keeping us eager to stay in our major.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
I want to say the environment is competitive but more so collaborative. The students and the professors are really good at uplifting each other.
How accessible are your professors?
They’re very accessible. You can email them at night after hours, and they’ll email you back. Some of them will give you their personal phone numbers.
What has been your favorite class you’ve taken for your major?
Probably Parasitology.
How has going to an HBCU impacted your academic experience?
It’s definitely easier. Having people with similar cultures and backgrounds around you makes it seem like we know and understand each other well. We’re really good at uplifting each other.
Why did you pick your major? Are you happy with your choice?
My family comes from a medical background with nurses and doctors. It’s kind of all I’ve really known growing up.

Reasons to Attend

1) You’ll get a great education no matter what your major is.
2) After you graduate from Spelman, the rate of you going into a profession you love, or one with great connections is very high.
3) There is no pressure here. I think a lot of students feel a lot of pressure at their colleges.

Reasons Not to Attend

Our majors are very limited, and we don’t have a wide assortment.

Around Campus

Where have you lived on campus?
Freshman: Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Hall with one roommate.
Sophomore: Living & Learning Community (LLC) with one roommate.
Junior: Off-campus house with four roommates.
What was your favorite living situation?
Probably on campus my freshman year because it was a whole new experience with all new people. It was fun to be away from home. You’re more independent, and you feel like you have this newfound responsibility. I would say now I prefer living at home because I’ve had that experience, and it’s time for me to focus on my work. I was doing a bit more partying my freshman year.
How do you like going to school in the same area as your hometown?
I think it’s highly convenient. Even though I do like to travel, it would be harder for me to adjust living so far away from home. There are a lot of people I know here, and the culture is similar in this whole area, so I enjoy it.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
I feel very safe on campus, but around campus, I don’t feel as safe because of the surrounding neighborhood.

Social Opportunities

What kind of nightlife or weekend activities do you participate in?
I’m such a homebody now. I’d say I do go to bars every now and then if I have time to. I might go out to eat, and there are house parties and clubs around. I don’t go to them, but I know a lot of students do. When I was a freshman, I’d go to the clubs or house parties.
What nights of the week do you regularly do things?
Mostly Friday and Saturday nights. If it’s during homecoming, it’s every night.
What is the impact of Greek life on nightlife?
It makes things more interesting during events. It affects students when trying to make these organizations while being in school. Personally, it doesn’t affect me, but other students love Greek parties.
What’s an alternative to going to a party or a bar that you like for a night out?
My friends and I do a lot of relaxing things. Sometimes we go to a painting spot called Sips n Strokes, where we paint and listen to music. Sometimes we go and hike mountains. A lot of times we just chill at home.
How happy are you with the weekend activities or nightlife at your school? Is there anything you would change if you could?
I wish there were more fun activities where it’s not just partying.

Campus Culture

How did you meet your closest friends?
Mostly through the New Student Orientation, and Spel-Bound. Orientation is for all three schools together, but Spel-Bound is specifically for Spelman students. [The three schools that make up the Atlanta University Center Consortium include Spelman College, Morehouse College, and Clark Atlanta University.]
How would you describe the overall social scene?
Very fun and together. When we have social events, you’ll see a wide assortment of people. There is no hate or fighting. It’s a fun time, and we all get along.
How has going to an all-female school impacted your social experience?
This is part of the motivation of going to an HPCU, similar to people having similar experiences as you. Going to a school with only women is very empowering because we really motivate each other. If I’m feeling sad, even women I don’t know will come up and ask me if I’m okay. It’s really good and uplifting.
To what extent do people of different sexual orientations mix socially?
It doesn’t really have an impact. I’ve mostly known straight women here, but then again we don’t really ask or talk about it. When I was in a certain class, there was an anonymous topic about our sexuality. There is a wide assortment of different sexualities outside of lesbian and bisexual, and they mix perfectly well with everyone else.
How would you describe the student body at Spelman?
Very well mixed. People of different cultural backgrounds, ethnicities, religions, and sexualities mix very well. We see right through it, and we’re all very friendly.
How do you like the size of Spelman in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How has that impacted your experience? [There are about 2,100 students.]
I like the size. Because we’re a pretty small private college, we all pretty much know each other. We’re not just a number in class. All of our professors know us and are very involved with each other.
Do people generally seem happy with their choice of Spelman by senior year? Do people leave loving Spelman?
Yes definitely.

Careers

What have you used the career office for? How helpful have they been?
I haven’t used the career office. When it comes to organizations and internships, I mostly use my professors or other organizations.
Have you learned any computer programs that will be helpful to you professionally?
I’ve not taken Computer Science yet, but outside of that I’ve learned a lot of good things I can use in the medical field. I know Excel, and a lot of mapping software.

Financial Aid

Have you used financial aid? If so, how accommodating was the office to your needs?
They’ve been very helpful. You can email them, and they’re always in their office willing to help out.