"You're cool for a Saint Mary's girl."
"Oh, of course you're with an engineer... ugh Saint Mary's..."
To say comments like these are bullshit is an understatement. Yes, I go to a small, Catholic, women's liberal arts college...and guess what?
It's amazing.
A big reason as to why I chose Saint Mary's College in Notre Dame, IN is because it was small. I love the fact that not only do I know my professors, but I have the ability to build strong relationships with the faculty and staff. Not only does that make for amazing letters of recommendations, but it also helps me really grow as a human being. I love the fact that I know I have multiple professors whose offices I can go to when I just need to talk about life. It's also amazing to know that not only do these professors care about how I do in school but they genuinely care about how my life plays out and they want to be there for me and support me.
Another reason I love Saint Mary's is the fact that it's an all women's college. A lot of people may be turned off by this fact. Honestly, women's education has so many benefits that I can't even start talking about how amazing my small, liberal arts women's college is. I love that I can talk about anything in class without the fear of a male's opinion coming in and diminishing mine.
I'm sure people will read that and think, "Well, why are you letting a male's opinion diminish your's?" The truth is, you can't really help that. I know a lot of people don't want to admit that sexism is an institutionalized reality, but the truth is that most women explicitly experience it every day.
Being at a place like Saint Mary's helps you learn that sexism isn't acceptable. It teaches you a level of confidence that is harder to achieve when a male's opinion goes up against yours. It teaches you a level of self-awareness and self-love that is different at an all women's college.
Being at an institution like Saint Mary's has given me not only a deeper understanding of feminism, but it has also taught me what it truly means to be a strong, independent women. I'd be lying if I said it didn't hurt me when people talked badly about my college, but the skills this place has taught me are indescribable.
I love it. It has made me into the woman I am today, and I will always be thankful to have gotten the opportunity to attend this institution.
