I'll be the first to bite on this new thread, but in a general way.
Basically I'm wondering how I can assess the climate for women at any one department. Is there a unified source somewhere? In particular, my only accept right now is at Rochester, and it looks like they only have two female grad students (out of 20). I'm wondering if the best way to assess the situation is to ask for the contact information of one of them? Do you think it would be seen as an odd request of the chair to specifically have the info of a female student?
I'm worried about... well, all the usual worries.
Any advice on this would be appreciated!