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Super Brilliant
The really critical thing with SBC -- or any small college for that matter -- is that you really want what they offer. I didn't understand how seriously SBC regarded its traditions, for example, or how politically and socially conservative the place was (late 80s). For that reason, it was the wrong choice for me -- I was lured in by the INCREDIBLE beauty of the place, in spite of the fact that the dean of admission expressed doubt I'd be happy. Long story short -- SBC is a great place, but not for everyone.
Preparedness: A, Reputation: D
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Dec 29 2006 Alumna Female -- Class 2000 
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Sweet Briar in academically challenging. There are other women's school in their area, but Sweet Briar is the most prestigious of them all. It's not racially diverse, though there is a good handful of international students, especially asian and students from India. The thing is, you get the feeling Sweet Briar wants to continue to diversify (even though in the will that brought the school into being, it didn't allow black women to attend, but the will was made illegal and now there's black women) so if you are a black woman, don't be afraid of going to this majority white school because they will make you feel wanted and embraced. Sweet Briar also won't let anyone not qualified get into their doors either, so your scores and leadership abilities have to be great. There is ample..ample and HUGE opportunities to get involved in the non academic activities. They make a point to have great on campus activities, clubs and things because the funnest thing to do off campus on a tuesday night is go to the Super Walmart. Don't fret, if you're a minority and want to see some color, UVA is an easy 45 minute drive and they love Sweet Briar women. Our brother school is Hampton Syndney and they're 45 minutes the other way and they love us too. Those other women schools I mentioned in the area travel to UVA and Hampton Syndney also, so you'll run into them and they're nice people. They say they are rival schools, but not really. A lot of people who apply to Sweet Briar also apply to the other women's schools in the area, but if you get into them all, they usually go to Sweet Briar because it's much more prestigious. You're going to want a car here, to have one if you can. If you want to grow your leadership skills and have confidence in the real world or preparation for ivy lead graduate schools, come to Sweet Briar. A lot of the students graduate and go to Johns Hopkins, Harvard, and Yale for grad school.

There are a lot of vegetarians and animal and earth loving ladies at Sweet Briar so they have pretty good Vegetarian meals every day and there's a lot of animal rights and environmental awareness on campus. Despite being in what we called "the pink bubble", you're much more wordly when you leave. We have an extensive travel abroad and exhange opportunies. At Sweet Briar, if they don't have an official program with a school you want to study abroad to, internationally or domestically, you can still do it here because its they have 700 students and cater very much to each student and their individual wants and needs.

One of the women schools nearby is Randolph Macon Womens and the guys say, "Sweet briar to wed, Randolph to bed." There's also another saying that's telling about the college, "Sweet Briar women don't drink, we just sip a lot". There a few wild ladies, but it seems to always be in good fun. Not a lot of drugs at all, but there is a bit of drinking on occasion, especially on the weekends when the men come down from the other schools.

Security is TIGHT at Sweet Briar. It's probably one of the safest campuses in the US. Being all women, if there's a guy roaming around by himself with an escort, he's going to be questioned and not let to roam about. Other girls will even call security of some guy they haven't seen there before, so ladies stay close to you man or he can be taken away and questioned. But the ladies get to know the faces of the regular guys and the other girls BFs, but if they don't recognize them, the guy will be gone. I've seen it myself and heard lots of stories. They even offer a rape agression defence class for gym.

There's hardly any grade inflation and you have to work hard for what you get. There are NO TA's and professors are so available, you almost can't avoid them if you wanted to, they're everywhere. Classes are small and if you don't do your HW everyone will know, so you better do it or feel awful as if you're letting your professor and class mates down. Not really competitive...maybe a little, but it's more competitive on an individual level. No sororities, but there are these "tap clubs' that are really corny, but if you ask those who are in them they will absolutely say they love them...so opinions on the tap clubs are varied. They can make a lot of noise during the year too...singing all over the place etc.

People who know about Sweet Briar will say great things about it, but because its a small school, not many know about it. The surrounding city is bare with roaming cows, but there is a mall and dollar theater 20 minutes away that's a great way to spend your free time. Come to Sweet Briar for the flawlessly beautiful 3,300 acre campus, strong academics, and extensive leadership preparation, not for partying day and night. People dress very lay back and casual. Some of the girls have parents with money...most of them. But there are a few on complete scholarship, but since everyone is casual it's hard to tell unless you take note on if they've combed their hair or not or have a car. If you leave something and go back to get it...it'll still be there or when you open your door someone would have left it outside of your door for you. The only thing I ever heard of being stolen was when someone use someones eles shampoo and didn't ask and never fessed up to it. If you're a recluse and don't like a whole lot of people and noise, this is a good college for you. But if you do like a lot of social stuff, you can find a little group at Sweet Briar too. Sweet Briar is only for women who want to make their mark on the world, if its being a stay at home mom after graduation or being a CEO somewhere or doctor from Johns Hopkins. Each year the college is getting harder and harder to get into. If you're trying to find a husband, you won't see too many men here, only some cute ones on the weekends. There's an active lesbian/gay/bi group/club at Sweet Briar too, so if you're that way you'll find other people openly like that too. There's college republicans and democrats, literary magazine, yearbook, an excellent....EXCELLENT riding and theater/dance club/group/majors. I loved going to the productions. Anyways I've said a lot and I hope this helps. The only real negatives are the cows and deer roaming around everywhere and that some of the majors are very small with only two professors...so you mighy not get too much diversity in classes or types of opnions. I heard of students switching majors if they didn't get along well with a professor because they'd be forced to take a lot of their classes with them if they stayed in that major. For class diversity, you can always take classes abroad or during your summers somewhere eles and transfer the credits. Sweet Briar is great about that if you get A and B's. If it makes you happy to take a couple classes elsewhere...even at Randolph Macon or other colleges in the area, then it makes Sweet Briar happy to help you be happy and meet your needs.
Starting Job: HR Professonal, Preparedness: A+, Reputation: A
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Mar 02 2006 Alumna Female -- Class 2000 
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Super Brilliant
I guess you could say I represent the silent majority . . . that doesn't wish to be silent any more. SBC is a unique school that blends a close and supportive community with excellent academics, a great faculty, a lovely inspirational campus, and a wonderful group of ladies . . . surrounded by 30,000 plus boys. What more could a girl want? The sciences, political science, and english departments are fantastic. Pre-med, pre-engineering, and pre-law programs will lead you into some of the best graduate schools. In the last few years there have been some bumps in the road as the school re-directed some of its programs and recruitment efforts. Some of the comments at this site reflect this. It is now an "up and comer" that should be closely examined. Go visit and see for yourself!
Preparedness: B+, Reputation: B-
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Sep 28 2005 Alumna Female -- Class 2000 
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