Ask a Lafayette freshman!

When I was applying for college this forum helped me a lot, especially current students answering questions, so I thought that I’d start my own forum for all the prospective student this year. Feel free to ask me anything, and I’ll try to answer as best I can (or ask a friend who may be able to answer)!

A little about me:
I was an EDII candidate (didn’t apply anywhere EDI) and was deciding between UoRichmond, AmericanU, and, of course, Lafayette.
I don’t mind talking about my scores, however I have a few unique parts to my application that I feel weighed more than my scores usually would, so I think I’d be a bad applicant to compare to.
I’m a hopeful Gov&Law major (maybe International Affairs), and I’m currently involved in lots of clubs on campus (ex. speech and debate, Alpha Phi Omega, Model UN, and more), like most freshman, but no sports - although I frequent the gym classes.

What is the social life like there? Do the frats dominate social life?

@parent34 there’s a lot to do on campus, both run through the school and not. The school sends out an email every week telling us about what events are going on, and there’s typically something every day. It depends on the weekend on how many people go out to parties, but I would say maybe around 50% go out every weekend (although not necessarily get drunk - my friends and I go to parties but most of us don’t drink), it’s a hard thing to gauge. There’s always people that choose not to and everyone is so inviting you could certainty find someone to chill with if you don’t want to go out. For parties, frats do tend to dominate that, with a little bit or sports and senior’s houses mixed in, but that hasn’t been an issue for me or anyone I know. Overall, I love the social life because if I want to go out I can, and if I want to stay in I can - there’s always something to do, and everyone is very accepting of whatever decision you decide to make (like staying sober).

Random questions for you:

How intense/difficult is the coursework?

Is is easy/hard to get classes.

How are the academic advisors?

Are professors accessible?

Is the environment more competitive or collaborative?

Are the students more down to earth or pretentious?

The intensity of the course work is very dependent on major, professor, class, etc. Overall, I’d say it’s not easy, but I don’t know anyone who feels like they’re drowning or is unable to keep up - point is, if you can get into Laf, you’ll be able to keep up with the tough coursework.

I personally haven’t had any issues with getting classes, however I have friends who have had bad experiences with class signups here - Laf’s system is far from perfect. However, I will say that many professors are willing to accept you if you are really passionate about taking a class, especially if it’s a requirement.

I could not be happier with my academic adviser! They’re assigned based on FYS, a new thing they’re trying, except if you’re engineering in which case you have an engineering one. Mine is a Math professor, very different from Gov and Law, however she has been nothing but understanding and helpful through out my entire process here. On a similar note, one of the things that drew me to Laf is the amount of support and advisers we get - a writing aid (WA), a “PARDner” (helps you adjust), academic adviser, career counselor, and so many more, especially if you’re an athlete. Some people have had bad experiences with these, and some have had amazing, but that’s just how life goes.

Accessibility of professors is dependent on said professor. However, on the whole professors are very accessible - if you can’t meet during office hours they’ll gladly meet outside of those hours, and they often are quick to reply to emails. I have heard of exceptions to this, but I’ve never heard of a professor I’d call completely inaccessible, and I’ve certainly never experienced anywhere close to that.

Again, environment is probably a friend group dependent thing, but in my experience it is very collaborative. I came from a VERY competitive high school, so take that as you will. Most people find regular study groups and aid each other through homework every night (and I’m not alluding to cheating, student really try to better and help each other). My upperclassmen friends have offered to help me with everything I could possibly need and I have felt very supported in my transition process.

On the same note, how students are is a friend group dependent thing. I’d call my friends, and the people I spend my time with, all down to Earth and they’re are plenty of people I’d say fit this category. There are a few people I would call pretentious, and there’s an entire half and more of the class I’ve yet to meet who could fit this as well. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if a good portion are actually pretentious, but it absolutely in no way an over whelming amount, I’d dare to say it isn’t a majority either - you’ll always be able to find a large amount of down to Earth people.

@RookieCollegeMom

Does the school feel small? I am considering Lafayette but one of the main things I want to do in college is meet alot of people and I don’t want to see the same faces all of the time.
Are you continually meeting new people even a few months into your freshman year?
Also how is the scene for going to parties at other nearby colleges such as Lehigh? Do you/many people do it?

@TimexRosegold the school doesn’t feel small, and I’m definitely still meeting people a few months in - there is a couple hundred people in my class alone! I know that some of the upperclassmen have talked about knowing most people, especially within their major, by the time they reach senior year, but certainly no one is complaining about it. It doesn’t feel big, however, you will typically pass one person you know on your way to class, you don’t really feel lost in the amount of people, and most classes are so small that professors will know when you’re gone. Overall, this isn’t a big school in many aspects, but in the still getting to know people aspect, you will probably be meeting new people all the way through senior year.
As far as I’m aware of, people don’t typically go to other colleges for parties, although I know people that have. I think the issue is that getting to Lehigh requires a car which not a lot of people have. Also, there are a variety of parties here for all kinds of people, so no one really feels a need to go and look for a party somewhere else. I personally have because I have a friend that goes to Lehigh (shh don’t tell anyone), but I’m certainly an anomaly.

@HSSenior2018 I am interested to know what stats got you in lafayette?

I am a guy who is currently considering applying to Lafayette. I an not an athlete and have no interest in Greek Life. Will I like Lafayette? Can I ask what clubs you belong to? You said you are in Alpha Pi Omega, is that a sorority? Do they pledge freshman year? Also how is the gym? I am not an athlete but I would like to go to the gym as well as take classes. Does Lafayette have two gyms (one just for athletes) if not are there times when the gym is occupied with the sports teams?

@tripleomega I am not the OP but I want to answer your questions based on my experience at Laf. I spent 3 semesters at Lafayette before transferring. I had a bad time at Lafayette so I’m naturally biased against it, but your situation sounds very similar to mine so I thought I’d comment. As a male, non athlete, with no interest in Greek life, Lafayette was a really bad fit for me. Being a guy really limits your social life. Girls are able to get into most parties, but it’s a completely different story for guys. Despite what the school claims, the majority of the eligible students go greek. If you are not on a sports team or a frat, you may feel left out. If you do attend, I’d recommend joining as many clubs as possible to give yourself social options. Lafayette has two gyms, one for the football team and one for everybody else. Yet for some reason the football players love to congregate in the regular gym. The gym is crowded at all hours because the athletes have scheduled team workouts, so there were many times when I wasn’t able to get a full workout in. The best time to go is after 9PM or on weekends. Also, no offense if you’re from Easton, but it is a HORRIBLE college town. It is full of abandoned store fronts and pan handlers. Not to mention, the locals hate the college for their constant expansion down College Hill. Not the community you’d hope for if you are paying $60,000+ per year. Again, I had a poor experience at Lafayette but transferring out was the best decision that I have ever made.

Our expereince is vastly different from the above. My D had many many guy friends who did not go Greek and were not part of a sports team but who did have a great expreince at Lafayette. There are tons of ways to find friends and have a busy social life – be it through freshman year dorms, activities on campus (which are very easy to get involved in), classes, living-learning communities etc. My D used the climbing wall at the gym a lot and didn’t have issues – not sure about the rest of the gym. She also thought the town of Easton was a fine college town offering a number of restaurants, a farmers market, movies, a theater etc. I guess to each his/her own – no college is the right fit for everyone and if the above poster above is happier elsewhere I’m happy he found his niche.

Hi. My daughter has applied for ED1. How are the students notified, by letter or email? Also, since Dec. 15 is a Saturday, will emails be send out then? Thank you!

@Amy408 What was the SAT score of your daughter and grades and extra curricular…

Amy408 - Domestic applicants are always notified only by snail mail. Your daughter will receive a highly personalized letter that clearly demonstrates that her application was carefully reviewed. International applicants are notified by email a few days after snail mail decisions are mailed so that the time of notifications are roughly the same.

@devil07 Instead of asking individuals about their stats (which many people don’t like to give out on a public blog) you can get that information from the class profile https://about.lafayette.edu/lafayette-at-a-glance/class-profile/

@happy1 Thank you :)>-

As the parent of a freshman… I think the town of Easton is really great for a small college town. There are restaurants and bars, a weekly farmers market, a Bacon Festival, a Garlic Festival, etc… there is cool place that reminds me of a mini version of Philadelphia’s Reading Terminal. But honestly many of the kids just love to stay on campus.

There are buses to Philly and NYC. bC nobody can pledge a fraternity until sophomore year, the pressure is off to decide if that’s the route you want to go. Yes, it is harder for guys to get into parties. But my freshman daughter says she has a large group of co-ed friends that have smaller dorm parties.

As with most smaller schools, joining clubs becomes almost like alternative Greek life. If you find a group that you really like, the social world will open up for you.

Do you hear of instances where athletes struggle academically? Do many athletes stop participating in sports in their junior or senior years so they can focus more on academics?