The Notre Dame party scene seems to be evolving pretty rapidly. Full disclosure, I was more focused on work more than the social scene of my first two years. However, I’ve had enough experiences directly or amongst my friends to share a little.
Parietals and their strictness really vary by the dorm. No one of the opposite sex is allowed in the dorm after midnight during week nights, and 2AM on weekends according to the rules. In my dorm, that was effectively ignored. As long as they stayed in your room overnight, you wouldn’t have a problem. If you roommates don’t mind you bringing someone over, you should be fine. The key is that it is much easier typically to break parietals in a boys dorm.
The workload can be intense, but I think anyone can make time to go out if they want to. Business majors usually can go Thursday/Friday/Saturday, but even the time-strapped architecture students can escape for a night or two on the town. During freshman year most people go to “dorm parties”, which are held in guys dorm rooms. Sophomore year, people usually get fake IDs and go to certain bars that allow them (unofficially of course). Seniors then typically all go to certain bars and house parties, with probably an 80%/20% split.
Notre Dame is just like any other college. Lots of people hook up with each other. There might be more judgement by some people, but it depends on the group you spend your time with. I know lots of people who went wild, and I also know lots who are waiting for marriage. Where Notre Dame is different is that certain people are more openly “judgey”, but those people don’t go out much anyways normally. There won’t be a witchhunt, but like any college word can get around about anybody.
The major downside based on what you’ve asked about with regards to potentially going to ND is marijuana. Notre Dame is tremendously strict. I would recommend that if you ever consider smoking marijuana, it is nowhere near campus. They tolerate and turn a blind eye to drinking in the dorms, but drug use is very strictly prohibited (and that is enforced).
On the student personality front, I was surprised by how similar a lot of the students are. It makes creating a sense of community easy, but if you are different you can struggle to adjust. Most people are from upper-middle class and lower-upper class families. They went to strong private schools. They work hard, and are looking for jobs that are professionally secure and respected (read: risk averse). They know how to work very hard for extended periods of time, but due to their upbringing they are also very social. They easily handle social situations with new people, and embrace being part of a group.
There is very little interaction between South Bend and ND. There’s going to be new construction south of campus during your (potential) time here that might help, but unless you make an effort you won’t get out except to go to bars and off-campus houses.
I would take all of this keeping in mind I’m biased. I’ve always put a heavy priority on school, and many of my comments come from secondhand experience shared by my classmates. If anything is a “worry” you should be thinking about, it would be the use of marijuana. Doing that on campus has caused a lot of problems for students.
Hope this helps!
