Bard College
- 4 Year
- ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, NY
CollegeGrad School
Bard College Reviews
Rating 3.64 out of 5 692 reviews
Like with most colleges, at Bard it is truly up to individuals to craft their experience. Being active on campus, joining clubs, and participating in class will significantly add to your enjoyment and ability to learn at Bard. There are some administrative difficulties, but if you are persistent with your needs they will have to listen. There are some campus location difficulties, hard to get to town, and Bard is really a bubble but it is a beautiful campus and location and there are ways you can make it work. Stay busy with classes and activities.
In essence, I was a transfer student who came up from a Bard High School Early College setting and thus far, it has been interesting. I have met several new people from all walks of life who have paved the way for a lot of new experiences. From taking part in events hosted byt the office of equity and inclusion, to seeing students take part in activism, everyday, community members remind me why I chose Bard in the first place.
Bard has very, very good academics and not enough money. I’m certain there are multiple LACs with 10-20% acceptance rates whose academics aren’t as good as Bard’s, and at the same time our main dining hall is so bad and the housing is anywhere from alright to doesn't-have-AC. If you are looking for an LAC with excellent academics but probably won’t get admitted to, say, Vassar (which has similar academic quality but better living conditions), I would absolutely recommend Bard.
Other details: The music and creative writing programs are two of the best in the country (seriously), and the art/film/social science departments are all very strong as well. The campus is also very beautiful, especially if you love nature, but is also very rural (2hr train from NYC and nothing to do nearby campus). Many very interesting students here, also a lot of hippie/grunge, and rich kids who didn't try in HS.
Application tip: be genuinely really passionate about Bard or something else in your essay.
Other details: The music and creative writing programs are two of the best in the country (seriously), and the art/film/social science departments are all very strong as well. The campus is also very beautiful, especially if you love nature, but is also very rural (2hr train from NYC and nothing to do nearby campus). Many very interesting students here, also a lot of hippie/grunge, and rich kids who didn't try in HS.
Application tip: be genuinely really passionate about Bard or something else in your essay.
It’s very isolated a good 10 minute drive from the nearest town. having said that the campus is on over 1000 acres so i don’t tend to feel stuck.
Nestled in the woods right along the Hudson River, Bard College thrives as an institution that pushes the thinking of its students. While you can find parties with bumping New York City DJs and musicians, this isn't a school you want to go to if you are looking to party. Students at Bard opt for more sophisticated dinner parties, and adventures in the woods. Bard College is two hours from the city, making it the perfect distance to focus on your work while also occasionally popping down to the hustle and bustle of the Big Apple. I loved my attending Bard, but mainly because I was ready for university. The students here are brilliant and focused. Often you can find students organizing art shows, performances, or events outside of the classroom setting. Students at Bard truly believe in the work they produce, and you can often find yourself in riveting conversations both in and out of the classroom. I recommend Bard for students who consider themselves forever learners.
Bard is an amazing Liberal Arts college. I really learned to be happy and confident in myself more here because everyone is so friendly and different. Because everyone is so different, it makes living life a lot easier and it also creates a judgemental free community.
During my freshman semester I encountered the richest meanest people with absolutely no moral compass. These students came here to chain-smoke and pretend to be artists until they eventually live off a trust fund. Bard counseling services is actively unhelpful. There is a massive housing shortage on campus and many students are assigned trailers or dorms with intense mold problems. The dining hall is disgusting and unsanitary. Party scene is really terrible. There is really no sense of community and the campus center is foreboding. The transportation services across the Hudson are non-existent. Also, Freshman students are required to spend 3 weeks in the summer and 3 weeks in the winter at boring on campus programs that create an intense feeling of burnout during finals and foster isolation from family.
Bard College provides the small liberal arts school experience and offers awesome classes and professors. They also have a somewhat wide range of unique majors. It is not for everyone, however. The social scene is pretty homogenous and therefore cliquey. The student body consists of mostly wealthy "artsy" city kids really milking the lower-middle class aesthetic. Cigarette use in dorms especially is out of control, unless you are able to get substance-free housing. Food is another issue entirely, which I know students are trying to change right now. Important to note: there is ONE dining hall. Prepare to wait a while on line. Most of my other qualms with my experience can be linked to lack of reliable transportation (Bard is rural), lack of proximity to anything, really, and the dreary upstate NY weather. I think Bard can provide a really good experience for specific people, but generally it's problems are majorly exacerbated by unhelpful, dispassionate administration, and its size.
Bard College is the perfect place for a liberal art's education. I found it easy to fit in, and the environment was very easy to learn in.
I really like the environment and the community but lack of resources makes it really hard to survive here. Even a grocery store on campus would help but there's none. There's always issues with the dorms but love the classes and professors here.
My experience at Bard, so far, has been wonderful! Bard takes a unique learning approach for first years. We get to campus 3 weeks before all other students to do a Language and Thinking work shop. These three weeks together allow first years to really bond.
If I could see something change, on top of these wonderful required courses like Seminar, Citizen Science, and L&T; I would love to see a mandatory financial literacy course for first years on campus. It would set Bard farther apart from other liberal arts colleges and also give much education to my current majority finically illiterate generation.
Over all I have had a wonderful experience at Bard, have made so many friends and have had so many opportunities in just a few months. Never a dull moment at Bard and there is always some club, band, concert, or event to attend on campus!
If I could see something change, on top of these wonderful required courses like Seminar, Citizen Science, and L&T; I would love to see a mandatory financial literacy course for first years on campus. It would set Bard farther apart from other liberal arts colleges and also give much education to my current majority finically illiterate generation.
Over all I have had a wonderful experience at Bard, have made so many friends and have had so many opportunities in just a few months. Never a dull moment at Bard and there is always some club, band, concert, or event to attend on campus!
Students are passionate and academically oriented, ambitious, and set on the stars. There's a huge Humanities focus here- if you're interested in literature, philosophy, classics, music and art- you have a place here.
There are great opportunities to seize on campus- be it teaching or research. The campus is gorgeous though some older dorms need renovating. Sports and party life aren't like at a state school- the school is centered around academics- anything else is secondary.
Make connections and seize the opportunity around you.
There are great opportunities to seize on campus- be it teaching or research. The campus is gorgeous though some older dorms need renovating. Sports and party life aren't like at a state school- the school is centered around academics- anything else is secondary.
Make connections and seize the opportunity around you.
The experience at bard college is outstanding, beautiful environment. I recommend bard college to everybody.
Bard college is a wonderful university with so nice students. professors at bard college are very helpful to the international students . I recommend bard college to everyone.
Bard College is amazing and the tutors are very welcoming. The students at Bard college are so friendly and easygoing.
Bard is a wonderful school full of amazing faculty and beautiful views. The dining here is awful tho! But overall a great school with lots to offer.
Due to the events related to the COVID-pandemic my "Bardian" experienced has been severely limited. Yet, without prejudice of these limitations, I would categorically affirmed that I´ve had a positive experience.
The motto of Bard is "a place to Think," and both the faculty and the students abide by this rule. Bard students are knowledge-seeking individuals - although sometimes they can be a little-to inquisitive regarding this endeavor - they are always there to discuss the ins and outs of class materials. Simultaneously, the professors are constantly looking to spark the flame of discussion in the classroom, and they often celebrate this dialogical process.
This quality is what makes me attracted to Bard, i.e., to not be afraid to think and to have a community that is as passionate about knowledge as you are. It is through this lens that I understand my Bard experience, one of a constant sharing of idea between my pears and my professors.
The motto of Bard is "a place to Think," and both the faculty and the students abide by this rule. Bard students are knowledge-seeking individuals - although sometimes they can be a little-to inquisitive regarding this endeavor - they are always there to discuss the ins and outs of class materials. Simultaneously, the professors are constantly looking to spark the flame of discussion in the classroom, and they often celebrate this dialogical process.
This quality is what makes me attracted to Bard, i.e., to not be afraid to think and to have a community that is as passionate about knowledge as you are. It is through this lens that I understand my Bard experience, one of a constant sharing of idea between my pears and my professors.