Student Stories
Students come from across the country and around the globe to study at Bard,
undertaking a broad range of academic programs in Annandale. While pursuing their degrees, they volunteer in the community, develop their career goals, and bring their talents to the campus and the region. They share a love of learning and the leadership to make their mark on the world.
Why I Chose Bard
Why choose Bard College? The unique and rigorous curriculum, stunning campus, and close relationships with faculty are a few of the reasons our students decided to make Bard their home. Hear them talk about what drew them to the college in the beginning and the scholarly, creative community they've found on campus since.Student Stories
Matt Sprague
Bard senior Matt Sprague is studying food systems and inequality through the power of a sandwich.
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Catherine and Ben Baum
When Catherine Baum started looking at colleges, Bard was on her radar: her older brother, Ben, was already a Bard student. The two siblings grew up in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, home of Bard College at Simon's Rock, about an hour’s drive from Annandale.
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Sara Xing Eisenberg
Sara Xing Eisenberg grew up in Manhattan and attended the Bard High School Early College (BHSEC). After four years immersed in BHSEC's advanced curriculum, she knew Bard was the next step. Now she is completing a joint major in Environmental and Urban Studies and Asian Studies.
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Abiba Salahou
Bard senior Abiba Salahou—biology major, future doctor, and cochair of the Muslim Student Organization—on the importance of speaking up and getting involved on campus. "I like to ask challenging questions," she says, "and push people to rethink their assumptions."
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Tierney Weymueller
Tierney Weymueller works to make science accessible to all.
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Eva-Marie Quinones
Bard College senior Eva-Marie Quinones is invested in political dialogue and civic engagement. A double major in economics and global and international studies, Eva-Marie has been a leader in the Bard Debate Union and Model United Nations.
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Austin Lehn
Bard senior and political studies major Austin Lehn interned at EducationUSA last summer, a division of the State Department that helps international students and their families navigate the college admission process in the United States. Now he's considering a career as a Foreign Service officer.
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Julia Jardine
A native of Red Hook, New York, Bard senior Julia Jardine hadn’t planned on staying so close to home when she applied for colleges. But as early as her first tour of the campus, Julia loved Bard.
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Andrea Szegedy-Maszak
Andrea came to Bard intending to be a psychology major. It was in Citizen Science, the three-week science intensive for first-years, that she realized she wanted to study biology. Now Andrea is taking the next step to being a biology teacher: she's enrolled in Bard's Master of Arts in Teaching program.
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Jonian Rafti
Jonian is a joint major in economics and history, serves as the treasurer on Bard’s student government, and is a leader in student voter registration efforts. He came to Bard from a large high school in New York City, and was looking for a small college where he could get to know his peers and professors.
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