New Evidence Bolsters Women’s Colleges

[flowomo]

Source: InsideHigherEd.com

(snip)
Graduates of women’s colleges are significantly more likely than women who graduated from other liberal arts colleges or from public flagships to have graduate degrees, according to data released Monday.

The data were part of a longitudinal survey of alumnae of women’s colleges, other liberal arts college and of public flagship universities. On a variety of factors, the survey found that the women’s college alumnae rated their institutions more highly than did the women who attended coeducational institutions. Several previous studied have found that women’s college students demonstrate higher levels of engagement than do students on average.

But supporters of women’s colleges see the new data as significant because it provides separate comparisons of women’s colleges to other liberal arts colleges. Because most women’s colleges are liberal arts colleges, some have previously questioned whether the benefits attributed to women’s colleges may in part be a reflection of the more personal attention students receive at liberal arts colleges.
(snip)

Read more: http://insidehighered.com/news/2008/03/04/women

[Warpy]

1. Institutionalized sexism crushes our daughters

Who knew?

[aquart]

2. Sorry I didn't take that Hollins scholarship now.

But when they said, "No boys, " I said, "No way."

A 17-year-old girl does not always make the best decisions.

[flowomo]

4. where'd you wind up going?

n/t

[aquart]

10. Queens and Columbia.

Queens was the better school.

[Ordr]

3. Yep.

Good 'ol identity politics.

[lumberjack_jeff]

5. I'd be interested to know how this translates to earning capacity. n/t

[rmgarrette64]

6. I'd be interested if this applies to all-men's colleges

I teach second grade, and I've often thought it would be a good idea to separate the boys and girls - I suspect both groups would benefit. If the study shows this still applies to women up to the college level, I wonder if it would also apply to men? And would we support such a move?

R. Garrett

[lumberjack_jeff]

7. I think it might be of benefit k-12

But I'm less convinced of the benefit in higher ed. The OP is making the case that women's universities are better because the students spend more time there. A good argument can be made that they're staying there longer because there is no workplace market for their major until they've obtained six or eight years of education in the field.

As the article pointed out, most women's colleges are liberal arts colleges. Choice of a major and thus a career influences future earnings much more than any other factor.

[CTyankee]

9. There is also the class effect, particularly with the "Seven Sister" colleges,

traditionally the counterpart of the Ivy League (back in the day when Ivies were all male at the undergrad level).

My daughter went to Mount Holyoke, a Sister school, and her degree was a definite entre into classier jobs. She also met and became friends with women who were well connected already or became well connected.

She married "well" as the saying goes --another boost up the ladder conferred by Sister schools (sometimes, not always).

P.S. It didn't hurt that she is beautiful...

[Nikia]

11. Part of the reason that I enjoyed being in a sorority was that it was a single sexed organization

I think that it brought out our leadership and teamwork skills more than being in an coed organizations where men are more likely to dominate.

[Lance_Boyle]

8. see VMI case

Not only not supported, but litigated away.