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The Mary Baldwin College for Women is a one-of-a-kind program focused on preparing women to be leaders. Drawing on the long legacy of Mary Baldwin as an institution dedicated to empowering women, the college for women offers women-centered programming relevant to current events, and experiential learning to build confidence and empathy.

College for women students learn within the co-ed community of ÏãÃÛÓ°ÊÓ but have access to unique experiences and opportunities to help them galvanize and uplift their community. It’s a distinctive community,  but also an integral piece of the larger university, shaping and creating the culture of ÏãÃÛÓ°ÊÓ.

A History of Success, A Lab for Leadership

For over 180 years, ÏãÃÛÓ°ÊÓ has empowered generations of women leaders. We’re incredibly proud of our alums, because they’ve been using the tools they acquired at ÏãÃÛÓ°ÊÓ to change the world for almost two centuries.

The college for women continues that legacy, serving as a lab for leadership. As a women-centered program at a co-ed university, it stresses equity while giving our students leadership experience in real-world environments that prepare them for the world that awaits after graduation.

We look for extraordinary students because we offer an extraordinary program. Leaders, renegades, and trailblazers will find themselves at home in the Mary Baldwin College for Women.

New Experiences, Exceptional Opportunities

In addition to the excellence of an ÏãÃÛÓ°ÊÓ education, students in the college for women receive benefits and opportunities to power up their already remarkable set of skills and abilities. 

• Distinctive first-year experience: Campus life at ÏãÃÛÓ°ÊÓ is special, but the first-year experience in the college for women is unlike any other. Right from the beginning, our program sets out to help you focus on self-efficacy and self-awareness and invest personally in the women-centered experience, helping establish lifelong friendships and a community of leaders.
• Women-only residence hall: College for women students live together in women-only housing, including the McClung Residence Hall that ÏãÃÛÓ°ÊÓ founder and pioneering women’s educator Mary Julia Baldwin once called home.
• Experiential learning grants: Thanks to a donation from alumna Angela Corley ’67, each year, the college for women awards 25 scholarships to support study abroad experiences, summer research, or paid internships. 
• Leadership portfolio: From your first day on campus, the college for women helps you develop resources to prepare for leadership roles on campus and after graduation.
• Mentorship program: The college for women dean, faculty fellows, upper-class peers, and a network of alumnae professionals develop unique and lasting mentoring relationships with students.
• Annual collaborative leadership symposium: Each year, students in the college for women plan, organize, and host an event that gives them a change to highlight their leadership experiences with the support and participation of their mentors.
• Support to pursue your passion: Students are eligible for a $3,000 grant to activate their experiences and follow their dream projects after graduation.

The Mary Baldwin College for Women is also home to some of the most vital and dynamic programs on campus.

Virginia Women’s Institute for Leadership (VWIL)

The only all-women corps of cadets in the nation, the Virginia Women’s Institute for Leadership pairs leadership training with military preparation, fitness improvement, academic success, and community service. Some students in VWIL commission into the armed forces, while others plan for a civilian career. All VWIL women thrive on discipline, camaraderie, and scholarship.