Wellesley College - Student Life

Student Life

Wellesley's 2,400 students come from more than 62 countries and all 50 States of the United States.

Approximately 98% of students live on campus. Some cooperative housing is available, including a sustainable living co-op and a French language house located slightly off-campus. Wellesley offers housing for Davis Scholars as well, though not for their children or spouses, which is a point of frequent debate on campus.

For more than 30 years, Wellesley has offered a cross-registration program with MIT. In recent years, cross-registration opportunities have expanded to include nearby Babson College, Brandeis University, and Olin College of Engineering. To facilitate cross-registration, the Wellesley College Senate bus runs between Wellesley and the Harvard University and MIT campuses in Cambridge, Massachusetts; the college also operates a shuttle to the Olin College campus in Needham, Massachusetts.

The college has approximately 180 student organizations, ranging from cultural and political organizations to community service, campus radio, and club sports.

The college has five dining halls, one each in Pomeroy, Tower Court, Stone-Davis, and Bates Halls, and another in the Lulu Chow Wang Campus Center. Additional food options on campus include a convenience store/coffee shop in the Campus Center, a bakery in Claflin Hall, Collins Café outside the movie theater, El Table, a student-run sandwich shop located in Founders Hall (an academic building housing many of the humanities classes), and Café Hoop, a student-run cooperative cafe in the basement of the Campus Center that is known for its late hours and queer-friendly environment. Next to Café Hoop is the pub, Punch's Alley, which serves alcohol to those over 21.

Wellesley College does not have any fraternities or sororities; it does, however, have a number of societies, technically social and academic clubs that fulfill many of the same functions as sororities. These include the Shakespeare Society, Alpha Phi Sigma Lecture Society, Tau Zeta Epsilon Arts and Music Society, Society Zeta Alpha, the Literary Society, and Agora, the Political Society. The five societies sponsor many lectures and events on campus, and contribute funding to events sponsored by other departments and organizations. Shakes, Phi Sigma, Tau Zeta Epsilon, Zeta Alpha, and Agora hold a process similar to "rushing" a sorority that is called "tea-ing," and throw on-campus parties.

Parties are also held by many of the multicultural student organizations, and the Wellesley College radio station, WZLY 91.5 FM, also holds a party every semester. Dyke Ball, one of the most well-attended parties on campus, is a "creative black-tie" event hosted by Spectrum, Wellesley's LGBTQ organization, intended as an alternative party option and safe space for the college's queer community.

There are several a cappella groups at Wellesley. These include the Wellesley College Tupelos, known for their red and black attire; the Blue Notes, known for their black and blue clothing and their more jazzy style of music; and the Wellesley Widows, known for wearing all black. Awaken the Dawn, a Christian a cappella group, is the newest group on campus, and the only one with a religious affiliation. The Wellesley/MIT Toons provide an opportunity for co-ed a cappella for Wellesley students.