Many friendships at Mount Holyoke begin first year: Frequently one can hear alumnae, seniors and first years all talking about the people they met in their first and second semesters at college. Of course, this is not to say that every woman makes her best friends in that one year. But, the story of lasting first-year friendships is common enough to be a recognizable and important part of Mount Holyoke history.

I have researched one “crowd” from the class of 1930 that seems to be a fairly typical experience of the time. Emily Hucker ’30 wrote home throughout her college career and captured the story of her and her friends from freshman to senior year. But to show that the same first-year bonding still takes place at MHC, I have also talked to a group of graduating seniors, class of 2004, that have maintained intimate friendships that began in their first-year.

An important distinction made through out this portion of the site is that in 1930 the students would have referred to themselves as "Freshmen" and "girls." In 2004 the students refer to themselves as "First-Years" and "Women." This change in terminology marks the change in the two experiences.