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Would your son consider a women's college?


Daria
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My son has a very specific list of things he wants in a college, and one school that ticks all the boxes is Ursuline College outside Cleveland, a tiny women's college.  

 

At first, for obvious reasons, I thought it simply wouldn't be an option, but apparently Ursuline does accept men, and about 9% of their undergraduates are men.  They have one floor of one door that is set aside for them.  However, they continue to define themselves as a women's college.  If you look at their website, it's all about being a women's college, with an occasional reference to "plus men".

 

My son seems to think this isn't a problem.  But, I'm curious what other people think would be pros and cons.  

 

My son is straight and cisgender, which I mention only because I understand some of the reasons why a transmen might choose a single sex school, and also some of the controversy there.  Those reasons don't apply to him, although some of the reasons why some women object to transmen on campus (because they want to keep it completely female) would apply to him, and I worry that he'd feel unwelcome. 

 

Anyway, thoughts?

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I think he should arrange a visit, ideally with an overnight in the dorms, to get a feel for what his experience would actually be on campus.

 

That's a good idea about the overnight.  I hadn't thought about that, but they'd obviously put him on the men's floor and he could ask questions.  

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He should visit & ask the other men there about the atmosphere, at least try to eat a meal in the dining hall to get the vibe & attend a class.

 

I went to a women's college.

The alumni are pretty pissed that men are now allowed to take classes & be on campus, (it's also "still" a women's college but men are allowed to take classes there, but I have no idea what the current students think about it.

 

It could be awesome or the women could make the men miserable

Edited by Hilltopmom
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That's a really interesting question. My immediate response is no way, but I bet my ds wouldn't be bothered by it at all and would take a who cares attitude. He generally gets along better with women anyway.

 

DS gets along fine with women, but I wonder how the women feel about the men being there?  

 

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OK, so we found some stats, and last year the school had 3 male traditional freshmen (by which I mean, not adults returning, or part time students).  DS decided that is just too low.  He said he'd be fine with something like 80/20, but he wants male friends and that just isn't enough of a peer group.  

 

So, I guess we won't be pursuing it.  

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I was one of only two women in grad school. But it was graduate level and there were no dorms. And I didn't care.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I don't think I'd care if I was taking classes, or working at a job, where I was the only woman, although as a special educator that will probably never happen.  But I know that my closest friends to this day are the women I went to college with and lived in the dorm with.  I think that had I done undergrad in an otherwise all male environment it would have been totally different.  I can see why he wants guys to bond with.  

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I don't think I'd care if I was taking classes, or working at a job, where I was the only woman, although as a special educator that will probably never happen. But I know that my closest friends to this day are the women I went to college with and lived in the dorm with. I think that had I done undergrad in an otherwise all male environment it would have been totally different. I can see why he wants guys to bond with.

Yes, which is why I pointed out that it was at the graduate level. ;). Though I retain a lot of close friends from that time- and their wives. I would not have had as positive an experience in such an environment for my undergraduate studies.

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My boys are too little, but since a couple people are tossing in their own experiences, I'll toss in mine. I think it is different to be the only woman in a sea of males than to be one of the only men in a sea of females. 

 

My undergrad degree is in engineering. In almost all of my classes, as in my work experience later (except for one employer), I was surrounded by men. I had one other female in some of my classes, but it was never the same female. All my best friends, except for my dorm roommate from sophomore year on, were males. All my study groups and all the people I hung with (again, except for my roommate) were males. I fit in with them beautifully. I think part of it was personality & part was interests being aligned.

 

I don't know that most guys would fit in nearly as well with a large swath of females, but I suppose there are some that would. I personally wouldn't want to be surrounded by all the behavior that periodically comes with a group of women hanging out closely together for months on end. (There are four females in my household now & I find it tough sometimes!)

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I think DS, who is also hetero and cisgender, would do fine at a Women's College. He's so easy going and friendly that everyone just feels instantly comfortable with him.  Plus he doesn't have any hangups about appearing feminine or masculine.  I think I would also insist on a couple visits to get the feel for the place and how they would receive him, he would not want to be an "outsider" or to make others uncomfortable.

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I don't think my ds would have had a problem with that at all. In fact, he probably would have enjoyed the statistics. He grew up with four sisters and was more comfortable with girls than boys for a long time. He was actually looking at a college in our state that only recently converted from all girls to both genders, but is still 90% girls. He maybe would have gone there but it didn't have his major.

 

But I think what others have said about making sure the girls there would be accepting of him was all okay. I'd want him to spend the night and a couple days there on a trial.

 

 

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I don't think my ds would have had a problem with that at all. In fact, he probably would have enjoyed the statistics. He grew up with four sisters and was more comfortable with girls than boys for a long time. He was actually looking at a college in our state that only recently converted from all girls to both genders, but is still 90% girls. He maybe would have gone there but it didn't have his major. But I think what others have said about making sure the girls there would be accepting of him was all okay. I'd want him to spend the night and a couple days there on a trial.

DS is also the only boy with 4 sisters.

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