Vassar College.... I'd have to say that I love the school despite it's drawbacks, which actually are not drawbacks, but a few things that students need to be aware of in order to love the school.
Here, I'll mention the little cracks in which some students may fall, and by avoiding these cracks, Vassar will be the best decision one could make.
The first would be the fact that Poughkeepsie can be a mind-numbingly boring place to live. The reason for this is the fact that THERE IS NOTHING IN THIS TOWN. Now, in order to bypass this little problem, the answer is quite simple. Get involved with clubs, go to campus events (which are virtually every weekend), and try to have a vehicle. Now, I didn't have a car my first year at Vassar, but my friends and I used the local cab service. For $8, you can cram as many people into the back of a cab as you can, and 15 min later, you will be able to see a recent movie for only $2.50, (student discount). There also is a train station close by, and for ten bucks and and hour and a half of your time, you can be having fun in New York City.
The second potential "crack" is the highly praised "lack of core curriculum". I am not saying this is a negative thing, because it definitely is not, but a student must have a "game plan" of their own, or they will find themselves somewhat lost come sophomore or junior year. Frequent appointments with pre-major advisors are recommended, as well as the constant realization that you do need to chose a major, and a major has MANY requirements. With these two things in mind, the freedom one has with regard to class choice is somewhat, kind of, almost, endless.
In my experience, Vassar College is an amazingly beautiful school, with a very close knit community, and challenging but exciting academics. If you dislike the fact that your professor knows who you are and if you came to class or not, than Vassar is not the school for you. Otherwise, life at Vassar is a very rewarding and enjoyable experience. (And the food is not bad either!!)

---I was also asked to elaborate on my comment dealing with the "lack of core curriculum". Below, you will find a brief description, but the Vassar website, www.vassar.edu, contains a course catalog which may explain far better than I.


There are very few requirements at Vassar....the only requirements are:

-You must take 1 semester of a language, but this can be bypassed by taking the school's placement tests and getting above a D. By achieving this grade, (an easy task, you are basically tested on 1st year language), you can eliminate this requirement, or go to a 200 level course.

-You also must take one semester of a math based course, but this also is made easier by the fact that such classes as philosophy and psychology fulfill the math requirement. (These classes utilize very simple math, i.e. addition, subtraction, mult., and div.)

-Lastly, each freshman must take a 1 semester course referred to as a "freshman course". These classes range in topic from the arts to Russian Literature, but have emphasis on developing writing skills.

Those are your basic requirements. You can choose any other classes, but need to fulfill the requirements of your chosen major.



Recommended: Yes