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FAVORITE COURSE: My Writing 125/English 120 class with Professor Hickey first semester was absolutely fantastic. Like all writing courses, it was a tiny class of all first-years, which made the class very conducive to discussion, which I think was good for me because it helped me to get more comfortable speaking up in class - something I'm still working on.

Also, because it's a required-for-the-major English class, many students were potential English majors, and at the very least, all of us enjoyed and did well in high school English. We learned a ton and had fun, too. And of course Professor Hickey herself was wonderful – such a quiet person, but every once in a while, she'd come out with a ridiculous joke or an off-the-wall statement, which sent everyone off laughing. Not to mention, she obviously knew her material incredibly well. And possibly my favorite thing was that she wrote so many comments on papers that it made your head spin. I turned in a five-page paper, and her comments ran all the way down the backs of three pages, plus notes in the margins. As a person who writes a LOT myself, I can definitely appreciate that!

Another class that I feel deserves mention is Wintersession Russian 101 with Professor Hodge. A friend and I took it on a whim, and although it was more work than I can even possibly begin to describe, it was incredibly fun also. Basically, Wintersession 101 is all of fall semester 101, but done in 14 days instead of 13 weeks. Now I'm taking Russian 102, and even though it messed up my perfect second semester schedule (8:30s three days a week, oh the horror!) and it's on the top floor of Founders, (to add insult to injury!), it's so much fun that I (almost) don't mind too much. The fun comes in large part from the fact that Professor Hodge is great, as well as very amusing. And I have to say, if you can make Russian grammar even endurable, much less amusing, that says something!

BEST PART ABOUT WELLESLEY (OR WOMEN'S COLLEGE): We get some of the most amazing speakers on campus! All my friends at other schools are jealous. I haven't gotten a chance to go to as many of the lectures as I would have liked, but I've been to a few. Gloria Steinem was certainly a highlight, and no matter what your political views are, you can't say it wasn't exciting when Hillary Clinton came to speak.

Also, I love how Wellesley gets us discounted tickets and transportation to events in Boston! Seeing Wicked on a college student's budget, and without having to deal with getting there, was one of the highlights of my first semester! The many wonderful student orgs put on fantastic events, which are just really fun to be a part of. I also enjoy participating in "WRITE," a program where I correspond with a penpal in an ESOL program in a NYC elementary school.

I wasn't sure that I wanted to go to a women's college, which naturally made me a little apprehensive. It didn't help that I, terribly indecisive person that I am, had some friends who said a women's college wouldn't be good for me, as well as others who thought I would thrive at one. Incidentally, the one friend who most wanted me to go to a women's college is the daughter of a Wellesley alumna. When she found out I had gotten into Wellesley, she chased me around school, yelling the names of famous alumnae, in a bizarre attempt to entice me to go there: "Hillary Clinton! Diane Sawyer! Madame Chiang Kai-Shek! MY MOTHER!"

Despite my initial hesitation, I really love the environment of a women's college. And it's not because of the absence of guys; it's because of the presence of women who would choose to not be around guys, not because they want to avoid them, but because it didn't matter either way, so long as they were getting the best education they could. Those are the type of people I want as my friends.

And other than the all-women's issue, there wasn't much about Wellesley that gave me pause. Gorgeous campus? Check. Giant library? Check. Small classes? Check. Fantastic course selection for such a small school? Absolutely check. Proximity to a great city? Check. And wonderful, hilarious, intelligent, insane-when-it-counts (like when you need to go rolling down Severance Green at two in the morning) women to hang out with? CHECK.