Hey everyone!
So I just got accepted to Fordham with the semifinalist scholarship, so there’s about a 99% chance I’ll be attending! 
I know there are a lot of posts about Lincoln Center vs. Rose Hill, but I was wondering more about the overall college experience at each of the campuses… I will be visiting over spring break but I know I can’t get the full college experience from just one visit. Anything you can say about the subject would be helpful!
PS: I’m not Catholic and although I know that Fordham doesn’t push Catholicism on anyone (there have been several good threads about that) is one campus more religious than the other? Or are they about the same?
Thanks!
You’re more likely to have the stereotypical “college experience” at Rose Hill. It is a much bigger campus geographically. It’s bigger than 80 acres when LC is about 8 acres. Buildings are more traditional as well, with lots of green spaces and stuff. I’m guessing all outdoor sports are only available at RH and none at LC. Both are beautiful though, it just depends on what you like.
Lincoln Center still has a small green space but it’s nothing compared to RH’s. Lincoln Center is more about living in Manhattan, with Central Park two blocks away from campus and all the restaurants, shops, theaters, etc.
RH is still NYC and the Bronx isn’t as bad as it is portrayed to be. But have in mind the trip from RH to LC is about 45 minutes, so most students only go to Manhattan about once or twice a week. RH is located really close the the Bronx zoo and many restaurants as well, but obviously the city life there is not comparable to Manhattan.
I chose LC. The typical “college experience” is just not very appealing to me for some reason. I don’t like sports or house parties, but if you do, RH is probably the right choice! LC seems to be a very small and tight-knit community though. As you see, it depends on your preferences. I’d say LC is more liberal and less Catholic, since there are many theater/dance majors there, but I’m not sure.
Good luck making your decision! Either way you’re going to have a great college experience!
Thank you that was super helpful! I really like the idea of living in the city, so I’m leaning toward LC… of course I won’t know for sure until I visit.
^^^ good advice.
Everyone is different and has different aspirations and desires and visions of college life. LC is a mini NYU. URBAN. Rose Hill is the best of both worlds, a collegiate experience, beautful campus with gothic buildings (and movies made there…several of them recently). RH has sports. A pool. Dorms. Excellent programs and professors.
LC is a very good school. Very small. Very artsy. Less religious. Very urban.
Being non catholic is not a problem. A lot of non catholics even major in THEOLOGY! I am not kidding. My daughters best friend (among several) was Jewish and a Theology Major who ended up at Harvard Divinity School.
The Jesuits teach and help you explore and discern. Nobody will proselytize ever. Its not a seminary or a one dimensional denominational experience with thumpers and narrow minded people.
You will be challenged and given an opportunity to learn and explore and find what is right for you.
The Pope is Jesuit. His message is spot on and right up the Jesuit line of thinking. Its not about liturgical restrictions, its about helping the less fortunate and sharing Gods gifts with all.
Both campuses have beautiful churches and they are both sacred and safety zones. Where you can go and reflect and contemplate. But its all voluntary.
Welcome to Fordham.
@undecidedac96 has a good description (I chose RH to get a more traditional campus experience with Manhattan nearby) and there are many other posts on the topic if you go through old threads. But weren’t you accepted into one of the two campuses? It may not be so easy to change at this late date – if you decide you would like to switch campuses I suggest that you contact admissions asap. Also I know of a couple of people who transferred campuses after a semester or a year.
My daughter is currently at RH but did a summer session at LC. You must also look at what you are majoring in, since some things are available at one campus and not the other. If you are more into the performing arts, then LC is for you. Some of the sciences are available at LC also. To give you an idea of what is offered at both campuses, go to the my.fordham page and on the upper right hand corner you can look up classes. Just plug in “Fall 2015” and choose a major. Anything that says “L” is for LC, and “R” is for RH. Check out the course catalog also.
As for the campus “feel”, depends on what you like. The LC campus is, like stated above, is very urban. Like NYU, there is no “campus” per se. There is McMahon Hall and a new freshman dorm. I have no knowledge of the new dorm, but my daughter stayed in McMahon over the summer and when it rained, she didn’t have to go outside, just took an elevator down and walked down the hall to the Lowenstein center and took another elevator up to her classes. There is a great deli across the street that has very reasonably priced food that caters to the Fordham crowd. Central Park is a few blocks away, as is the subway.
Rose Hill is the typical big college campus with gothic style buildings. The Botanical Gardens are across the street from the main gate (free for Fordham students) so it’s nice to go there when the weather is warm just to walk around and maybe get a little work done. The zoo is also nearby. Along Fordham Road there is shopping (Best Buy, Walgreens) and Fordham Plaza has TJ Maxx, Party City, Applebee’s, Pizza Studio (most kids go to Pugsley’s also), and opening soon (if not already) Chipotle. For transportation, Metro North is right outside the gate, and you can easily take the subway. Buses are right out the gates also. I lived in the Bronx as a teenager until I got married, so I know this area, as I didn’t live far away from it. I’m a native NYr, so I know the areas. My daughter knows which bus to take to the train. I believe LC is most likely the less religious of the two, though there is a beautiful church (St. Paul) right across the street which I used to go to when I was in college (NYIT, just down the street).
My daughter has friends who are atheist, and different faiths. No one judges. It’s all good and they don’t shove it down your throat. You do need to take Theology as part of the core, but it’s really nothing to worry about. Look at the course catalogue and see.
Like I said, check out both campuses and see which one suits you. And please look at the course offerings for each campus. You can RamVan it, but it can be a long commute with traffic.
Thank you all so much! That was some great advice :))
Congratulations, Tellingtime! My kids are having the time of their lives at Rose Hill, where the overwhelming majority of students live on campus, contributing to a strong feeling of community and being “in this together.” The Ramily is a real thing. Rose Hill also offers freshen learning communities – The Wellness Community of Queen’s Court, Manressa at Loyola, and the Science Integrated Learning Community at Alumni Court South. There are regular formal social activities, such as dances, as well as those activities offered within the dorms and by various clubs. Lots of students participate in student performance groups, including theater, improv, singing, and dance, and seem to always be putting on some show or another; students are supportive in attending these. Many Rose Hill students are doing volunteer work in the Bronx community, as well.
For those who are, or aspire to be, physically active, Rose Hill offers a lot – running on campus or at the Botanical Gardens, swimming in the indoor pool, dance, zumba, self-defense, intramurals. As Undecided noted, the gym and sports fields are on the Rose Hill campus, so going with your friends to games is easy. While the campus is large for the city, it relatively small, compared to some we visited, particularly those in the western US. This is actually an advantage, in that the cafeteria, the library, friend’s dorms, etc., are not very far away, even on a snowy evening.Then, too, the population size is good – about 6,000 undergrads, if I remember correctly – large enough so that you don’t always see the same faces, but small enough so that familiar faces are an everyday occurrence. The campus is fenced and gated, with restricted access, so you don’t see many non-Fordham people on it, as a general rule.
Agreeing with Mom - the necessities of life can be found just across the street, also on Fordham Road – Walgreen’s, TJ Maxx, Starbucks, and Best Buy. Pizza, pastries, Italian food, cafes, on Arthur Ave. There are several on-campus eating alternatives, other than the caf.
With the train station and the Metro North line some – what? 25 yards from the Fordham Road gate, Grand Central Station is an easy 25 minutes away, which is also about as long as it has taken my kids to get to Lincoln Center via Ram van on the weekends. From Grand Central, you can navigate to anywhere in the City. While at Rose Hill, one of our students has been to 5 Broadway plays, an opera, and a ballet performance – all before Valentine’s Day.
We are not Catholic, or even Christian. My kids do not feel like the campus, itself, is “religious.” They do have friends that go to Mass regularly, and there are religious symbols on campus, including a large cross on one of the dorms, several attractive statues and some stained glass.One has a priest that lives in her dorm and is an administrator there. A goodly number of students previously attended Cathoic prep schools. Of course, Fordham is unapoligetically Catholic and Jesuit, and that’s how we like it!
Best wishes to you. Enjoy your visits!
LC student here:
LC is not very religious. The only times I remember I go to a religious school is when I can’t have girl guests overnight (which makes no sense because I live with girls in the same floor as me, but that’s a rant for another day) and when I have 5 day weekends because of Easter. My theology class taught Judaism, Islam, and Christianity.
LC does lack some traditional college things. The clubs here are mostly service, ethnic, and education oriented. There are some other ones but definitely not the hundreds of clubs most colleges brag about. Personally I don’t care about that. Not many dorm parties either.
LC also has a great location, mostly because of the Columbus Circle station a block away. Very, very easy to get to and from anywhere.