The Seven Sisters is a group of colleges created when the Ivy League schools were all male. They served as a way to offer an equally rigorous and elite education to female students.
Of the original Seven Sisters, five still remain as women’s colleges: Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Smith, and Vassar. A sixth, Wellesley College, still exists but went coed in 1969. The final Seven Sisters school, Radcliffe College, became part of Harvard in 1999.
All of the Seven Sisters are selective private colleges located in the northeastern United States. They have a reputation for being academically rigorous and producing successful graduates.
They have also picked up a number of stereotypes over the years: some true, some embellished, and others completely off base. This guide breaks down the stereotypes of the remaining Seven Sisters colleges.
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Seven Sisters Colleges Stereotypes
There are six remaining colleges of the Seven Sisters, and one of them has enrolled both men and women for more than 50 years. The seventh was rolled into Harvard more than two decades ago.
Like the Ivy League, the Seven Sisters is awash in stereotypes. This guide covers the common stereotypes associated with each college in the group. We discuss which ones are true and which aren’t.
Here are the most common Seven Sisters college stereotypes.
Barnard College Stereotypes
- School location: New York, NY
- Enrollment: 3,442
- Acceptance rate: 9%
- U.S. News ranking: #11 in National Liberal Arts Colleges
If you ask a student at Barnard College what the stereotype of a Barnard student is, they’ll probably say something along the lines of “smart,” “academic,” and “ambitious.” After all, the school has an acceptance rate of only 11 percent — the lowest of all the Seven Sisters — and its incoming students have an average SAT score of 1,490 and an average ACT score of 33.
So, not only do you need a heavy dose of brain power to get into Barnard, but you can’t be allergic to hard work, either.
That said, Barnard’s location in New York City attracts more than just all-work-no-play bookworms. The school’s Upper West Side campus is a major draw for students wanting more of a cosmopolitan lifestyle than a typical college experience centered around Greek parties and the football team.
Which leads to another Barnard stereotype: It’s a school full of sophisticated city-dwellers.
Just like any other school, Barnard has its share of students who party hard and those who study around the clock. It has women who can’t get enough of the NYC nightlife and others who are happy spending most of their time within the confines of the campus.
There are also athletes, artists, and activists on campus. Along with its parent school, Columbia, it was featured heavily in the news during the spring 2024 semester as many of its students participated in protests regarding the Israel/Gaza conflict. As a result of these protests and what many felt was a lackluster response from the administration, the college president received a vote of no confidence.
Bryn Mawr College Stereotypes
- School location: Bryn Mawr, PA
- Enrollment: 1,425
- Acceptance rate: 31%
- U.S. News ranking: #30 in National Liberal Arts Colleges
There are many stereotypes about Bryn Mawr College students. Some people think that they are all wealthy, snobby women who are only interested in getting married and having children. Others believe that they’re all lesbians or bisexuals.
Both, obviously, are ridiculous generalizations. And unfortunately, Bryn Mawr isn’t the only women’s college where these tropes are pervasive.
There are also those who think that Bryn Mawr students are all geniuses who got perfect SAT scores and were valedictorians of their high school classes.
This one is a little closer to the truth. For Bryn Mawr’s most recent incoming class, the average SAT score was close to 1,400 — not perfect, but well above average. The average ACT score was 32, also an elite score. Nearly seven out of 10 Barnard students ranked in the top 10 percent of their high school class.
The truth is that for all the tropes and stereotypes, the student body at Bryn Mawr is actually quite diverse, with students coming from all different backgrounds and experiences. There are straight women, queer women, rich women, poor women, and women from a variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds.
Many women choose Bryn Mawr because of its location outside of Philadelphia and its membership in a consortium with several other elite colleges in the area, including the University of Pennsylvania, Swarthmore College, and Haverford College.
As far as politics go, Bryn Mawr is thought of as a school that leans hard left. When you consider the student body as a whole, this stereotype happens to be true — the majority of women on campus identify as liberal Democrats. But not all of them. Conservative students (though not of the MAGA variety, which doesn’t seem to be represented at all at Bryn Mawr) do occupy a small but vocal niche.
One thing that is definitely true about all Bryn Mawr women is that they are strong, independent women who worked hard to get to where they are.
Mount Holyoke College Stereotypes
- School location: South Hadley, MA
- Enrollment: 2,193
- Acceptance rate: 40%
- U.S. News ranking: #34 in National Liberal Arts Colleges
Like all of the Seven Sisters colleges, Mount Holyoke has a reputation for being an academically rigorous school. Students who attend Mount Holyoke are often stereotyped as being very intelligent and driven. They are also often seen as being more mature than their peers at other colleges and less into the carefree party culture that dominates on other campuses.
(That said, UMass Amherst — often referred to as Zoo-Mass for its legendary party scene — is a short drive or bus ride away, and a small but notable contingency of Holyoke students often makes its way over to partake in the festivities.)
In addition to being smart and driven, Mount Holyoke students are also often considered to be very passionate about social issues. They are known for being active in causes such as gender equality and environmentalism. As such, the campus is known as having a left-wing political bent.
It is certainly true that the majority of Holyoke students identify as liberal in their politics and vote Democrat. It’s also true that activism and social justice are huge on campus. That said, Holyoke isn’t a monolith, and just as the women on campus have different hobbies and pastimes, their political views are varied, as well.
Overall, Mount Holyoke students are typically seen as high-achieving women who are serious about their studies and also care deeply about making the world a better place.
Smith College Stereotypes
- School location: Northampton, MA
- Enrollment: 2,523
- Acceptance rate: 16%
- U.S. News ranking: #16 in National Liberal Arts Colleges
Smith College is an elite academic institution, ranking in the top 15 among liberal arts colleges in U.S. News. Therefore, like all of the Seven Sisters colleges, it’s known for attracting smart, ambitious, academically minded students. And this stereotype is absolutely true.
Unfortunately, the women of Smith College are also subjected to several of the same generalized tropes foisted on the students of other women’s colleges. Namely, that Smithies are all rich, spoiled girls who’ve never had to work a day in their lives. Also, that most of them are lesbians.
To be sure, Smith has students who come from money and are awash in material possessions, and the LGBTQ community is also well-represented on campus. But Smith has just as many women who came from modest means and rely on financial aid. And like the population at large, the majority of Smith students are heterosexual.
Vassar College Stereotypes
- School location: Poughkeepsie, NY
- Enrollment: 2,459
- Acceptance rate: 19%
- U.S. News ranking: #16 in National Liberal Arts Colleges
There are many stereotypes about the students who attend Vassar. One is that the school is full of brilliant, talented students. Another is that the campus culture is one of the most left-wing in the entire country.
Both of these stereotypes have an element of truth to them, though it’s never fair to generalize an entire student body, as there are always plenty of exceptions. Vassar students come from all different backgrounds, and they all have different experiences and stories to share.
Some students come from wealthy families, whereas others come from more humble beginnings. The majority identify as Democrats, support liberal causes, and take activism and social justice seriously. But that doesn’t mean the entire student body is in lockstep on every political issue.
And while being smart, talented, and accomplished is a definite prerequisite just to get into the school — something only one out of every five applicants manages to accomplish — there’s some definite variance in how committed students are to their coursework.
The bottom line is that while a definite Vassar archetype exists, there’s ultimately no one type of Vassar student. They’re all unique individuals with their own thoughts, feelings, and experiences.
Wellesley College Stereotypes
- School location: Wellesley, MA
- Enrollment: 2,447
- Acceptance rate: 14%
- U.S. News ranking: #4 in National Liberal Arts Colleges
There are a few common stereotypes about Wellesley College students. One is that they’re all rich and spoiled. Another is that they’re all super smart and academic. Finally, some people think that Wellesley students are snooty and stuck-up.
Of these three stereotypes, we rate only the second one as true. Wellesley is ranked by U.S. News as the fifth-best liberal arts college in America, it has only a 16 percent acceptance rate, and the average incoming student made over 1,500 on the SAT and 34 on the ACT. Also, more than 90 percent were ranked in the top 10 percent of their high school class.
These data points make it pretty clear that Wellesley is only admitting smart, academic, talented, hard-working students. But the other two stereotypes presented above are overgeneralizations at best and just plain lame at worst.
Yes, many Wellesley students come from privileged backgrounds, but just as many utilize scholarships, financial aid, and work-study to afford tuition, room, and board. And while every college campus has entitled and unappreciative students, this contingency isn’t any larger at Wellesley than at a typical college.
