On the morning of Aug. 27, the halls of Wellesley College were abuzz with fresh, excited faces –– members of the Green Class of 2029. After unloading suitcases, almost 600 wide-eyed students could finally begin to call Wellesley home. 

From the first day of orientation to the second week of classes, the Green class has finally had time to settle into Wellesley, explore the campus and start to build community. Brynlee Massey ’29, a prospective international relations major from Nashville, Tennessee, has already found her favorite activities on campus. From walking around the lake path to sitting in the “Spoons” overlooking Waban’s banks at night, she has grown fond of Wellesley’s beauty over the past few weeks.

“I appreciate the campus culture –– everyone here is very open and friendly. I’ve enjoyed getting to know so many new people,” Massey said. They’re not alone in immediately feeling like a part of Wellesley’s community. To Ivy Gong ’29, “the people on campus are easy to approach. Outside, I often feel uncomfortable asking people for directions, but here, everyone seems to want to help.” Being new to a historically women’s college, Gong has been enjoying the unique campus culture at Wellesley. 

As all Wellesley students can attest, acclimating to college life has its challenges. Although Punch Kongsomjit ’29 has enjoyed getting to know her peers and upperclassmen, the transition from high school to college has not been the smoothest. “I thought boarding school would prepare me for college, but adjusting to the new schedule with an increased workload is hard to balance with social life.” Taking advice from her fellow sibs, Kongsomjit shared, “First years are not alone in thinking they haven’t found their group of people yet. It takes time, and even though it’s hard, this is a shared experience.”

The Class of 2029 boasts a diverse array of students, hailing from 47 states and 31 countries. For many, Wellesley is the farthest they’ve been from home. “Adjusting to such an academically rigorous institution has been hard with my support system 1000 miles away back home,” Massey said. “But I’ve started to find people I really enjoy being around, and that has definitely helped.” 

Incoming students have come to enjoy the diversity on campus, not just in their peers’ backgrounds and ice cream flavors at Bates, but also in the wide variety of courses offered. “I’ve been blown away by the sheer options available to me at Wellesley. It’s amazing to go from being able to take only three electives in high school to taking courses from five different departments in just my first semester,” noted Massey, who was “mindblown” by the resources available to Wellesley students. Kongsomjit, too, is in enthusiastic agreement. “In Thailand, students take specialized courses from their first day in college. The concept of being able to switch majors from STEM to the humanities is unheard of.”

Having spent her high school years at a boarding school not far from Wellesley, Gong is used to dorm life. Still, she “like[s] the increased independence here.” What brought Gong to Wellesley was the self-structuredness of the curriculum and the freedom to hold oneself accountable. 

Coming from Thailand, Kongsomjit was unsure of how she would fit into Wellesley’s culture. After her few weeks here, they said, “As someone who is undeclared about their major, I really like the liberal arts nature of Wellesley. I want to explore different options before I pick my path.” Having arrived a week before most other students, Punch credits her Orientation Mentor at International Student Orientation for helping build connections and being her first contact point at Wellesley. “I hold the memory of an icebreaking activity where my group showed each other photos of what we hold dearly; it made me feel really connected to my peers.”

Taking inspiration from their orientation theme, the Class of 2029 is eager to become rooted in Wellesley’s community of curious, passionate and welcoming Sibs during their time here and beyond.

Contact the editors responsible for this story: Hira Khan, Chelsea Tarringer.