If You're Still Deciding...

Hi everyone! I know that you make your official college decision in just two days, so I thought I would write another entry to offer some advice for those of you still deciding. First, congratulations for making it through the college process! I remember how stressful and hectic life felt a year ago and it really is a huge accomplishment to find yourselves on this side of the college admissions spectrum. So bravo! Also, I am sure that those still deciding are choosing between excellent schools, so again, congratulations! A lot of these schools may seem really similar. Pretty much every college offers a fairly comparable curriculum and each probably presents some pretty incredible opportunities. However, I truly believe that a Barnard college experience is unlike any other.
Having a real college campus in the middle of New York City is really only a facet provided by Barnard and Columbia, and it truly provides the most unique experience I can imagine. I have been to visit friends at other schools and while each certainly offers its own adventures, I can't imagine living anywhere for four years except Barnard's campus. It serves as my intellectual alcove, my origin of academic guidance, my retreat from the city, my source of friendship, and most importantly, a basis for a community of incredibly powerful and enlightened women. It is my home. If you feel like this is a place where you could grow both academically, socially, and personally, then come join me!
Again, I want to applaud all of you on your great accomplishments this year, and I wish everyone the best of luck in the next two days as well as in the next year! If anyone has any questions about ANYTHING, please don't hesitate to contact me at cp2431@barnard.edu. You can even email me over the summer if any questions or concerns pop up! Good luck!!

A quick wrap up

Only 2 more days and you make the final decision of your college decisions. I'm sure most of you already gave in the acceptance letters for barnard, right? Haha, if not, I hope my last post can persuade you to (I hope so)!
Barnard has definitely change me inside out within one year. I remember the me in high school is different from the me in Barnard. Barnard allowed me to understand what is independence, challenges and a campus life. Barnard is my home and I totally love it.
First year was definitely difficult for me but I realized that everyone has to undergo this transition state. I remember that my 1st semester didn't work too well for me because of adjusting to college and grades. However, 2nd semester is so much better. I know how to manage my time for academics and at the same time have fun. When people often say that pre-med students don't have a life or won't have a fun college time (although I keep saying it to myself), you do! Its what you make out of it. There are alot of time asides from class time and those time are the time that you have to make a schedule for. One thing I find very very useful is the gmail task option. I write the times down and what I should do at those times. It gives me a feeling of how much time I have for each task. For example:
9-9:50: Biology Class
9:50-10: 30: Read chapter 1-2 of eng book
10:35-11:50: English class
12-1: Yoga class
1-2: Lunch
2-5: English essay draft 1
5-6: Dinner with roommates
6-8: Club
8-9: Workout at the gym
And exc. You get the point, that's how I plan my everyday and it works out just fine. College is bascially what you put inside and that's what you get.
Barnard is a great small community filled with wonderful people. The classmates, friends, professor, faculties are all welcoming people. I love Barnard, I am glad that I chose the right place for college.
I hope you make the same decision too because you will never forget it.
Drop me a question if you need and I will answer it asap. Take care and good luck in everything!

April 29

Good morning! Last week, I met several newly admitted students and their parents at the Scholarship Dinner, and their excitement and enthusiasm was palpable. It was wonderful. Some of you may not have made up your minds yet, and while I can't offer you advice, maybe I can offer reassurance.

Clearly, all of you are bright, motivated and talented in many, many areas. You are leaders. Your teachers and mentors recognize in you the shimmer of promise, something that as one gets older feeds one's hope for our world and our future. You have reached this point through hard, hard work, some sacrifice, maybe a little luck-- and by following your ambition, whether that ambition is specific ("I want to be a neurosurgeon") or more general ("I want to find out what I want and where I fit in this world").

Don't worry. Whatever you choose, you'll be fine. All of the things that have gotten you to this point are part of you and you will succeed.

So, why Barnard? Let me go back to that dinner last week. When you spend any time at all in the presence of Barnard women, Barnard faculty, Barnard administrators, you come away in awe (yes, really, truly) of the love they have for the College and of the ferocious loyalty they have to one another. Barnard students and alumnae engage in this world knowing that they are part of a community of excellence and pride, that their education was not simply an individual endeavor, but the product of a sisterhood of striving and encouragement. You will become your best you and you'll graduate as a member of another family--the Barnard family--that will always be there for you. And when you know that you have that kind of support, you will take chances and you will dare to do great things, whether it be in the professional world or in your personal life.

My best wishes to you all.

Last Minute Ramblings

Hello All!

There are still a few days left until May 1, so I thought I’d do another post to answer a question and share a little bit more about the New Student Orientation Program, as you’ve already gotten a taste of move-in will be like!

Quinn asked whether I worked on campus and if that is the reason I stay at Barnard during the summer. To answer: yes, I do work on campus and that’s why I stay on campus during the summers. I’ve worked at the Pre-College Programs Office since my first year at Barnard and for the past two summers. If any of you are alumnae of our Pre-College Programs, you’ve probably gotten emails or phone calls from me reminding you to turn in all your forms! Working on campus is a great experience. You can find a variety of jobs on campus through the Office of Career Development (OCD). I have friends that work all over campus, from the Dance Department to the College Activities Office to Tompkins Hall, a nursery/day care. OCD is great not only for serving as venue for campus jobs, but also for internships and jobs all over the globe. I know of people interning for artists, Sesame Street, publishing companies, and museums. Not only does OCD post jobs, but they also want to make sure you get the jobs. They hold seminars to introduce students to what kinds of jobs are out there, improve resumes or cover letters, and teach proper interview techniques. They also happen to be some of the most patient people on the planet. I know from experience. As you might know, if you work you must fill out tax forms each year. Well, each year I have problems with it and Won Kang, the Assistant Director for Student Employment, sits at one of the tables in OCD and explains everything I’m supposed to do and fill out. Let’s just say he has to have a lot of patience.

Okay. Tax season is over so let me introduce you to the fine world of NSOP (New Student Orientation Program). Catherine gave you a quick preview of move-in a few posts ago, but I want to tell you about all the other things involved with NSOP. First of all: move-in can be incredibly stressful. I know from experience on both sides of the operation, as a new student and as an Orientation Leader (OL). Your car will arrive on Broadway and will get swarmed by people wearing the same shirt. They’re going to try to hustle all of your things into a square of the sidewalk so your car can move and make way for the other cars. While the entire process from the car swarming to the actual moving in and the anticipation of meeting your roommate(s) for the first time, you can’t help but feel a little bit special—I mean, they’re blocking off an entire lane of BROADWAY just so you can move into your first-year dorm!

I should preface the next portion by saying that the point of NSOP is to acclimate new students to Barnard, Columbia, Morningside Heights, and New York City as a whole. The other (unofficial) point is to bombard you with activities so you don’t have a chance to miss home. You’ll probably get incredibly tired of ice-breakers (OLs are pretty much required to do an ice-breaker with their groups each time they meet) and the questions: “Where are you from?” “What school are you in?” “What are you thinking of studying?” Yes, it gets a bit tedious, but it’s worth it. You’ll meet a ton of people going to various events such as Convocation (light candles and sing “There’s a College on a Hill Top”), the Alumna Book Luncheon (get a free book during the summer, read it, then meet the author during Orientation!), the Security Forum (free rape whistles, fun youtube videos, and safety tips!), Consent Workshops (consent is sexy!), and the NYC Event (past events include Coney Island, Ellis Island, Victorian Gardens, and the Central Park Zoo).

Those are just some of the events that happen during NSOP. This post is already super long and I know you all have decisions to make, if you haven’t made them already! As always feel free to comment on this with any questions you have! (You can also find my email if you click on my name in the sidebar to the right!)

Best of luck to you all (whether or not you choose Barnard)!

--Megan

Take a bow!

Hi all,

Last weekend I had the pleasure of meeting some of you during our Admitted Students Weekend--I even got to take some of you to the Met, where we saw some wonderful art and talked about Barnard's internships, study abroad opportunities and alumnae connections. I was so impressed by your thoughtful words, your enthusiasm, and your poise. At the luncheon before our trip, Dean Fondiller read some quotes from recommendation letters the College received for a few of you. One read, "She is on the cusp of greatness."

You are all literally on the cusp of greatness right now as the time draws near to make your decisions. I wish you the best of luck, and hope to see all of you at Barnard alumnae events in the future (you know, our classes are "sisters" in that we will attend reunions together--'09 and '14). I imagine you all as if you were peering out from behind some great curtain, the barrier between your current selves and the women you will be. I and all of my Barnard sisters are excited to welcome you out from behind that curtain, and cheer you on as you make your foray into college life. Brava!

A Move-In Day Preview

Hello, everyone! My daughter mentioned that today she goes to choose her room for next year, which made me think about move-in day. I figure I'll give you an overview and maybe a few things that we found helpful.

Move-in day will go more smoothly than you imagine, but it does require some patience. We came by car and had been informed at some point of the window of time allocated for arrival. When we arrived at Barnard, the police had cleared the area in front of nearest the main gates on Broadway, and Barnard staff were directing the cars over to the curb for unloading. We waited a short while, but were unloading pretty quickly. Everything out of the car and into specified areas on the sidewalk. Then you have to take the car to park it somewhere (the garage at Riverside Church is pretty convenient) so it's helpful to have an extra body to stand with the baggage and to stay in constant contact by phone. My daughter ran and did whatever sign in she needed to do and then a student volunteer came with a rolling cart, which we filled with as much of the baggage as would fit. That went up to the room with my daughter, then the cart came back and we refilled, and so on until everything was up in the room. It's a surprisingly efficient process.

Chances are it will be hot--a hot day and hot in the dorm room. Get the window open immediately. Bring an extra shirt for later (you'll want to change if you're going out for lunch, trust me). Send someone out for cold drinks. Bring a door stop and leave the door open while you're in there so people can stop in and say hi, which they do!

We found it best to have all of the cables, power strips, painters' tape, scissors--anything you need to put stuff together--in one bag. The bedding is the bulkiest, so we got the bed made up first (you'll want an egg crate and a mattress pad under the sheets). This year the pillows never made it into the car and we needed an extra power strip, but there are stores nearby (and Bed, Bath and Beyond a cab ride away) and everything is solvable in no time. Closet space varies from room to room, but it's not lavish, so skinny hangars are a must. The dresser is a decent size. Don't bring a ton of towels. The first year, you'd have thought we were outfitting the entire floor (6 or 8 towels, 10 washcloths, what were we thinking?) and you actually need three or four towels and one of those nylon poufs and a few washcloths. There just isn't room for a huge quantity of stuff.

In terms of the big items, rather than splitting the cost of a refrigerator or a tv among the roommates, for us it worked out better to divide the list itself. That way, there's no confusion if the rooming group changes the following year. We brought curtains and a tension rod, and my daughter's roommate brought a rug. (There are window shades of course, so the curtains aren't necessary, just nice.) If the roommates want cable television, you'll need to contact Time-Warner.

If anyone has any specific questions, please ask! I'll happily poll my daughters and their friends for their opinions, too. Best wishes, Catherine.

Barnard and Columbia Women

Lucia wrote in with a great question and I thought I would use this post to respond. She wrote,

"Hi Anna! I love Barnard but I'm still feeling a little unsure. Can you comment on the relationship between Barnard and Columbia? From what I've heard, Columbia women tend to look down on Barnard students..."

Hi Lucia. Your question is not uncommon. When I was a prospective student, I also had heard rumors about tension between Barnard women and Columbia women. My experience here has been the opposite. I have friends who are women that go to Columbia in my classes, extra-curricular groups, and social circles. I have never felt tense or inferior to them because I am a Barnard student. I feel that they are my peers, classmates and friends. But let me step back a bit and talk about the general relationship between Barnard and Columbia.

Officially, Barnard College is partnered with Columbia University. This means that while we have our own endowment and Board of Trustees, and we hire our own faculty members, we share facilities and a degree with Columbia. So, if you graduate from Barnard, your degree will say Barnard College of Columbia University on it. How does this translate into everyday life? Essentially all clubs, organizations, and classes are open to all students. For as many Barnard students that take classes at Columbia, Columbia students take classes at Barnard.

I think that perhaps if the schools were less integrated, there may be more tension between Barnard and Columbia students. But because you are in classes and clubs with students from both sides of the street (and you can’t tell who is a Columbia or Barnard student unless they are male, or they tell you), you will realize quite quickly that Barnard students get top grades in all classes, as do Columbia students. Your classmate from Barnard and Columbia will be more concerned with trying to complete all the readings for class, or finding the time to study for your midterm while going out to a sweet concert, rather than if someone is from Barnard or Columbia.

You will stay up late with your study group composed of Barnard and Columbia students one night and stay up late partying with a similar group the next. I understand the concern, especially because I know there are rumors out there. But, and I can safely speak for myself and my close friends here, the rumors are not true. Students and professors at both Barnard and Columbia don’t really care about who goes to Barnard or Columbia. There are much more important and interesting things to spend your time on here. I hope this helps. If you have any more questions, please right in. I promise to respond more quickly!