| Hi Steve - I entered this quite a while ago - it was probably
one of my earliest contributions to this conference. I was interested
to note that the Newsweek article confirmed the graduate school
statistics that I mentioned last summer.
<<< RAINBO::$2$DUA11:[NOTES$LIBRARY]WOMANNOTES.NOTE;1 >>>
-< Topics of Interest to Women >-
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Note 36.4 COEDUCATION 4 of 8
STUBBI::REINKE 78 lines 11-JUL-1986 16:14
-< in praise of women's colleges >-
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As a graduate of the oldest women's college in the country I would
like to speak out in their favor. I just went to my 20th reunion
at Mount Holyoke and it left me with very positive feelings about
the school and my experiences there.
Do you know that a higher percentage of women who graduated from
single sex colleges go on to obtain graduate degrees, M.D.'s and
management positions than women from coed colleges. (This was reported
by a speaker at my reunion - and no I don't have the source.) This
was the case with recent graduates as well as women of my era and
certainly speaks well for a single sex education being to a woman's
advantage when she gets out in the "real world". Other studies have
shown that graduates of women's schools are more apt to participate,
and speak out in class in graduate school than women who went to
coed schools. I certainly found this to be true when I went for
my M.A. You might also be interested to know that enrollment in
all or nearly allBlack schools has been on the rise lately. (Source
- the recent Boston Globe series on Black education .) One reason
given by Black students for their preference was the same as I have
heard from women at women's colleges - a freedom from certain
steriotypes/prejudices allowing them to get on with the business
of getting a good education. (Only fighting one battle at a time
so to speak.) (Other reasons for the increase in enrollment in Black
schools was greater financial aid and greater assistance for smart
students with poor academic backgrounds.)
I remember once as an undergraduate visiting a youngman who was
a graduate student at M.I.T. He told me that he rountinely gave
women a lower grade for similar work because a woman had to be better
than a man to do as well at M.I.T. (his opinion not college policy.)
One advantage of a woman's college then, was that you would be graded
on your abilities without encountering this type of sexist bias
from instructors and professors (much of it subtle and hidden.)
Can we honestly say that this sort of bias is no longer found today?
Another advantage was that of strong role models. Twenty years ago
there were very few women professors at coed schools (and almost
none at men's schools.) This hasn't improved very much today, but
women's colleges still employ a lot of bright competent women. I
remember being very impressed with my professors - some of the first
bright high achieving women I had ever met. Having women of this
type to emulate would still be valuable for young women today.
Over the years since I graduated I found I could very often pick
out the women in a group who had been to a woman's college. Very
often they were the ones who seemed most sure of themselves, and
showed no hesitation in speaking out in any situation. I believe
that women's colleges do impart a greater degree of self-confidence
and drive to achieve in women than do co-ed schools and that this
definitely does carry over to life after school.
Probably the major drawback was a lack of natural ways to meet men
as friends - putting too much emphasis on the socializing on weekends
(mixers and their ilk) and setting men up as creatures apart as
a result. (For those of you fortunate enough to have never gone
to a mixer - often refered to as "cattle shows" - they are something
like a dating bar where students from one school are bused to a
dance at another - a terrible way to get to meet people.) However,
the reverse side of this was an advantage - the absence of men meant
that the campus was quieter during the week and students could
generally study in their rooms. I know of a number of people who
attended men's or coed schools who could never study in their dorm
room because of the noise. (Question are men students still noisier
than women?)
I am certainly very well pleased with the quality of the education
I received and feel that there have been lasting benefits to me
to this day. I would encourage any bright ambitious young woman to
attend MHC or any of the other remaining woman's colleges. Unfortun-
ately MHC may well be forced to go coed due to financial pressures.
The pool of qualified young women who are interested in a single
sex college has been declining. Given the intense loyalty I've seen
among MHC alumnae (which I don't see in women graduates of coed
schools) I hope the college will not be the looser in the long run
if they do.
Bonnie
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