Finding Your Best Fit School Spotlight on Barnard - Part 2

These Are a Few of Our Favorite Things... This week, our second Barnard College graduate tells us about her time at the New York City college. Read on for our Research and Data Analyst Katy's experiences at Barnard:My favorite thing about attending Barnard is knowing the legacy of strong women who graduated before me. Margaret Mead, Joan Rivers, Twyla Tharp, Anna Quindlen, Jhumpa Lahiri, and countless other amazing women benefitted from an education where they were welcome to contribute creative thought in an atmosphere that fosters confident, informed leadership. My peers were usually very poised and empowered in the classroom, but what I really loved was how meaningful discussions could and would happen everywhere – from late night chats in Sulzberger lounge to impromptu debates in Riverside Park. While attending a women’s college was certainly different from the experiences a lot of my friends were having at other schools across the country, the moments of pride that Barnard offered made for a unique and memorable experience. Running into a fellow alumna feels like seeing an old friend. There is always something special about the camaraderie that comes out of the shared history of being a â€Å"Barnard Woman.†Like most college students, Barnard women love to bond over food. The new Diana Center cafà © offers lots of tasty options, including thin crust pizza made-to-order. I spent countless nights in the Diana researching and writing my History thesis over Liz’s Place coffees shared with my sorority sisters. Anot her food-loving campus tradition is Midnight Breakfast, where the President of the College and several other administrators serve eggs, bacon, and pancakes to students on the night before finals. At Big Sub, Dining Services constructs a massive sandwich that spans the length of campus. This past year it was 712 feet long, included 90 pounds of cheese, 4 gallons of mayonnaise, and 182 pounds of meat. In just under 5 minutes, all 1,424 portions were gone. Of course, if the food you love can’t be found on campus, there are plenty of delicious restaurants in the surrounding neighborhood of Morningside Heights. Get late night milkshakes at Tom’s Diner, Sunday Brunch at Community Food and Juice, soul food at Miss Mamie’s, and pastries and hot chocolate at the Hungarian Pastry Shop. With the millions of dining and entertainment options outside of campus, one of my favorite pastimes was exploring NYC on the weekends to try out new restaurants.Insider tip: Go to the Barnard Career Development office often! Not only will you get resume tips from one of the best career services departments in the country, but you can also score a babysitting job from the Barnard Bab ysitting Agency, or find a great internship or volunteer opportunity. They’ll even loan you a suit for interviews! All four years, I was able to find meaningful jobs that actually aligned with my skills and interests and prepared me for the type of career I was looking for. Like most administrators I encountered at Barnard, the BCD staff makes an effort to get to know you and mentor you so that you are able to balance hands-on learning in your classes and still have time to explore everything NYC has to offer!