Bryn Mawr clarifies transgender/intersex admission policy

Bryn Mawr College has clarified its admissions guidelines on transgender women and "intersex individuals who live and identify as women at the time of application," the college said Monday.

The board of trustees at the women's college voted Saturday to admit those individuals, accepting the recommendation from a campus group that had been studying the issue for months.

More than 60 Bryn Mawr students and alumni in September signed an open letter to administrators asking that the campus be made more welcoming to transgender students and that they be encouraged to apply.

A faculty and staff committee will review and update the college's admissions policy to reflect the board's action, and those changes will be in effect for applications received for the fall 2016 class.

Intersex individuals - people born with both male and female genitalia - who do not identify as male also are welcome to apply under the guidelines. Females who have taken medical or legal steps to identify as male are not.

"In cases where an applicant's gender identity is not clearly reflected in their application materials, the college may request additional information, which could include verifiable legal or medical steps taken to affirm gender," the college said.