Wabash College  -  Wabash

While one junior jokes that the worst thing about Wabash is "that there isn't an all-female college thirty minutes away," its students value the school's all-male status. Wabash is one of only four all-men's colleges left in the U.S., and, says one sophomore history major, he and his fellow "Wallies" wouldn't have it any other way. "Our college is special, and we feel that the all-male atmosphere stimulates a higher educational experience." The no-girls-allowed classroom and social environment has led to the impression that Wabash men are chauvinistic, but students deny that the stereotype holds true. Says a senior in the economics department, "Because there are no women around, I feel that Wabash men more often than not respect women and each other, more so than their peers at large, co-ed state schools." A sophomore adds, "Having only males in the classroom lets the students express themselves without fear of feeling stupid in front of the girls. Life outside the classroom is more boisterous and more tuned to male entertainment and male ways of doing things." Wabash ensures a tight-knit academic community by keeping the student-faculty ratio low, usually below 10-to-1. One alumnus says, "Not only did I know the majority of my classmates over the course of four years, when I tell people that I went to Wabash, they automatically appreciate the singularity of my college experience compared to someone who went to BigAss University."

"The education at Wabash is geared towards making you as well-rounded an individual as possible," writes a sophomore. "Between pledgeship, sports/intramurals, immersion trips, and the amazing atmosphere of learning all over campus, one learns just as much outside the classroom as within." But within the classroom, there's still plenty to engage students. "Most of our classes are discussion-based, rather than lecture-based," writes a junior majoring in English. "Students are actively engaged with each other and with their professors, which provides a learning environment in which the student is constantly learning and questioning." One alumnus writes that Wabash's academic programs are "difficult if you're doing it right," adding, "Because the professors know their students, they have an accurate understanding of what students can do, and therefore create courses and assessments which force students to improve upon areas of knowledge that are lacking." 

While some students choose to move off-campus into nearby apartments, most opt to stay on campus in one of the school's four residence halls or, better yet, in one of the ten national fraternity chapters.  The fraternities play a huge role in Wabash's social scene -- rush happens over the summer, snaring 65 percent of freshman men right off the bat.  According to one sophomore, "The biggest influence on social life is what fraternity a man is in (if he is in one). You'll see the same people over and over again for the next four years. Clubs and events get people out and mix them up, but when you go home to bed, it's in the same house as your pledge brothers who you've known throughout college."

While the majority of Wabash students come from in-state, many have noticed the administration is trying to increase diversity. One sophomore writes, "Although most Wabash students are from Indiana, no student should feel out of place here. In my pledge class of eight, there was a man of Hispanic background from Chicago, a man [who was] born in China, lived in the U.K., and then moved to North Dakota, as well as a student from Texas and Michigan. Now we are one big happy family [that] does everything together from IM sports to road trips to Wal-Mart runs at 3 a.m."

In addition to fraternity-run activities, the school makes an effort to provide on-campus entertainment, including "one or two acts [coming] in for a concert each year." He also explained the all-male campus doesn't mean that social options are limited. "It is true that there are times when you won't see a girl for a while, but you can't expect girls to be walking around campus during the week when they have class at their own campuses. On any given weekend, you can find girls somewhere on the Wabash campus." While women are a welcome distraction for many Wabash men, they have a hard time saying the same thing about the town in which the campus is located, Crawfordsville. "The town of Crawfordsville...is not the greatest of college town[s]," says one senior. "It is generally known for its drug-related reputation and its lack of things to do." For a more traditional college town scene, Wabash students often make trips to nearby Indiana University and Purdue.

Despite common perceptions about the social limitations of a single-sex college campus, the men of Wabash are generally satisfied with all the opportunities their school provides, both inside and outside of the classroom.