Professor Van Ry

Julia Zelinger didn’t plan to attend a women’s college. As a high school senior, the suburban Cleveland resident visited several colleges across the country. After visiting Columbia University, Zelinger went across the street to Barnard College, a private women’s liberal arts college. She was instantly smitten.

“­They have an incredible women’s studies program and amazing professors,” says Zelinger. “Once I got there, I saw that there was a ton of incredible benefits for women and lots of opportunities for women’s leadership.”

Now a junior studying sociology, Zelinger says she’s glad she chose Barnard.

“­The classes tend to be a lot smaller,” says Zelinger, founder of “FBomb,” a blog and online community dedicated to women’s rights that is targeted at teenage girls. “­The professors are incredibly engaged. ­They really do care about education and invest in their students. They make an effort to get everyone involved in the classroom.”

Zelinger adds she loves that co-eds at women’s colleges don’t have to compete with men, particularly for high-profile leadership opportunities such as student government.

But women like Zelinger are an exception. <Read more.>

Via Lekan Oguntoyinbo, Diverse Issues in Higher Education.