BY APARNA MEKALA '96

Last year I manned the booth at several college fairs in New Jersey. I knew parents and kids still follow the rankings pretty closely, so I asked Admissions last year about why Mount Holyoke ranked so low comparative to where it was ranked when I attended in the 90s. 

BY MARION MESSMER '13

This drop in Mount Holyoke’s ranking might come down to workforce preparation. It seems that a lot of effort goes into fellowship applications — which is great and meant I had a funded master’s at Cambridge as a “fallback” when I couldn’t get a job in the US before my visa ran out — but not that much into career preparation. 

BY KATIE PRINCE '19

Before arriving at Mount Holyoke College, I had never received any sort of accommodations for the conditions that I learned to cope with on a daily basis. In fact, I had never even been aware that I had any disabilities.  Like many others who suffer from disabilities that are not visible, I had learned that the ailments I faced everyday were ones that I had to personally learn to cope with, and adjust my life accordingly. 

BY SIDDHI SHAH '19 

“You are too smart to be religious,” someone told me when I was in the prime of my teenage years. To the rebellious young girl in me, this remark felt like a challenge, as though a choice had to be made between appearing intelligent and believing in a higher power. 

BY NORA BARON '18 

Someone recently asked me who I was voting for in this year’s elections. I knew they were a die-hard Bernie fan and I didn’t really feel like having a political debate so I told them that I wasn’t sure yet. I wasn’t going to lie to them and say I “felt the Bern” or even find common ground hating Donald Trump. However, they demanded to know how I did not know yet. They also went on to say how there wasn’t even a choice and how me not answering must mean I’m voting for Trump.