Every year Playboy magazine compiles a list of the campuses with the best looking college coeds. Once again, Tufts failed to make the grade.
This year, the magazine ranked the University of Arizona, University of Florida, UCLA, Arizona State, and University of Texas in its top five. But regardless of what Hugh Hefner thinks, male students have formed their own opinions about their female counterparts at Tufts, and not surprisingly, the results are mixed.
The Playboy list is not far off, according to freshman Danny Gold, who says Hefner and his judges have accurately assessed college girls. "The reputation of [Tufts girls] is that they're unattractive," Gold said. "But I don't think that's true. There are no University of Florida girls, but there are no MIT girls either," he said.
Gold has heard outsiders' descriptions of Tufts girls since he arrived in Medford in August, and says the University's undergraduate women are not what their reputation makes them out to be. His conclusion: "I think they're underrated."
Sophomore Michael Stanton-Geddes also evaluates Tufts girls in comparison to females at other schools. "I think there are some really good-looking girls at Tufts, but they don't dress up in the same way as at other schools," he said.
Boston University girls are perhaps more attractive, Stanton-Geddes added, saying they wear more make up and dress up in fancier clothing for parties than do Tufts girls.
The perception of girls on campus can vary from class to class. One freshman, who asked to remain anonymous, said he heard from a male sophomore that the girls in the class of 2004 were not as good looking as those in the class of 2005. The freshman, however, disagreed. "I think they're pretty attractive. I don't have any complaints," he said.
"I'd say that there is a high percentage of attractive people at Tufts - even though it's what's on the inside that counts," sophomore Aaron Weinstein said.
Tufts girls are just as eager to talk about their perceptions of the men on campus. "The majority of Tufts guys suck," one female sophomore said. "I don't really care so much about looks. I feel that most of the guys here are stuck up. I think that of the guys around here, even the good looking ones are not all datable."
One female sophomore said that although Tufts guys are "a little dorky," they are a better-looking group than Tufts girls overall. Another freshman said her negative impression of guys at Tufts comes not from their appearances, but from their behavior. "I think a lot of freshmen guys just want sex and they'll try anything to get it," she said, adding that she doesn't consider whether or not she'd date a Tufts guy because dating does not appear to happen on campus.
Just like the men, women seem ready to compare the opposite sex to students at other schools. "There's always the exception to the dork generalization, but on the whole, other schools tend to have better looking people," one freshman said, adding that her high school was more focused on athletics than Tufts and had better looking guys.
As for her guess as to how the guys perceive the girls, this freshman was equally pessimistic. "I think that they perceive Tufts girls to be somewhat bitchy... and generally shy away from dating many girls at Tufts for that reason."
For many female students, judging the opposite sex was less of a question of physical attributes, and more an issue of whether or not they would date Tufts guys. One female sophomore said her decision not to date here has nothing to do with her perceptions of the male population, but rather her own commitments to other activities. "I feel like I could be dating if I made it a priority in my life to find a boyfriend," she said.
Stanton-Geddes agreed. "There are definitely many datable Tufts girls, but most people have relationships with Tisch Library and Eaton computer lab, rather than with people," he said.
Freshman Emily Turmelle tried to solve the mystery behind how Tufts students view the opposite sex. "I think that both [genders] like to say that the girls here suck or the guys here suck, but it's just an excuse because they're not getting any."
