<p>so im a VERY liberal sometimes atheist (depends on the month) girl from birmingham and was sort of unofficially offered full tuition to richmond and sewanee. sewanee is OFF the list. it was way too southern and conservative and alcohol-based for me. i dont really drink that much, but i love partying (even if there's drinking there). i come from a really small high school (74 people in my graduating class) and i sort of hate it. i know everything about everyone there and its just old now. im hoping any type of increase in size would be an improvement, but i cant really know. im really liberal and such but i actually love having intense discussions with my conservative friends. im really not all that judgemental. also, i LOVE my gay friends. like a lot. im not gay, but gay boys just make my life better. hows the gay life at richmond? my parents really want me to look at richmond due to the money and i was wondering if anyone knew if i would enjoy richmond at all?
any advice is good advice =)</p>
<p>jcool, I'm not sure what "unofficially offered" means exactly, but if you could potentially save ~$200,000 by going to UR, I think it's definitely worth the trip up from B-ham to do an overnight visit. Try coming up Thursday after you get out of school. Crash with your host Thursday night, then go to classes with them Friday so you can get an idea of what a typical day is like. If you're not interested in the courses your host has, see if they know anyone that is taking something you're interested in and tag along with them. If you're able to swing it, stay until Saturday, so you can get a better idea of what the social scene is like on Friday night (and, depending on your host, you'll get a taste on Thursday night as well). Fly back Saturday.</p>
<p>I can't really speak of the gay scene at UR too much. I'm not a homophobe, but I only knew of two that I ever hung out with. Given the unofficial opportunity you have, I really think that spending a little bit of cash to find out first hand if you think UR is a place you could spend more or less every day for the next four years of your life would be a wise thing.</p>
<p>One thing we do have at UR which is really pushed hard by the admin is Allies (formerly College Town). The</a> Allies Institute It's a four day retreat to have real conversation on "touchy" subjects such as ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, and class. May be something to inquire about further.</p>
<p>thanks! i'll definitely be visiting soon, as long as school doesnt get in the way</p>
<p>To UR Admissions:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Under what circumstances is a prospective applicant for admission "unofficially offered full tuition to richmond" before they apply as posted above by jocool26? </p></li>
<li><p>Has the economy slowed the number of applications to ED1?</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Good luck reading this years stack of ED1 applications.</p>
<p>Otis--ED1 applications are actually up 14%.</p>
<p>I had heard they were up, but hadn't heard an actual percentage. Last year was a record year for admissions and the number of early decision applicants, so perhaps this bodes well for another record admissions year.</p>
<p>Otis, I have to say I wondered the same thing when I read this post. We don't ever do that BUT I know that people interpret what admission people say in ways we don't intend from time to time. It is possible that this student heard one of us say that she is an excellent candidate or a competitive candidate or something like that and drew a straight line from that to "unofficially offered". I certainly don't want to call her out about how she got this offer, but I would caution any readers out there that Richmond Scholars is highly competitive and even with the strongest stats, all I would be able to tell a student is that their numbers would get them into the running. The award decisions, though, are made based on things other than numbers and they are made by faculty, not admission officers. That said, this student could have had intense interaction with a member of the faculty committee, I suppose, that could have led her to this conclusion. </p>
<p>Good luck to all as you prepare your applications! </p>
<p>As an aside, I read an application today where a student noted that she was an all-American in "other varsity sport" (I presume a drop-down menu option on the Common App) where no further information was given. No one mentioned her sport anywhere on the app. I'm really wondering about that but I don't have time to contact her and ask about it. Please proofread your applications. . . . I'm begging you. . .</p>
<p>Yes, ED's are running ahead of last year and it was 14% the day that the reporter called a week or two ago. I don't know that I think we'll have another record large applicant pool because of the economy, but I think we'll have a plenty large, plenty strong one in any case. This is going to be a wild ride of a year for us as well as for students.</p>
<p>When choosing to list a sport on the Common App, no line is provided for further information. But the candidate should have noticed that in UR's viewbook it states that while not required, a resume is encouraged.</p>
<p>hey UR Admissions...
I'm wondering why UR's ED applicants are up in this crises?
suppose they know they can't afford it anyway so they can drop out after they got accepted?
thnx</p>
<p>smalllab--I don't think that ED's are up becuase more are applying and thinking that they are unable to afford it and just plan to back out of the contract. Instead, I think that many have been attracted by our on-going commitment to need-based financial aid with packaging that guarantees to meet 100% of need with mostly grant money (for U.S. citizens and permanent residents). I think that the public is worried that this is going to be a very uncertain admission year and they are hoping to get the process over with. They've heard that other some other schools are wavering in their commitment to financial aid so they are willing to commit to us without getting to comparison shop for aid packages. But the truth is that it is hard to know what everyone's motivation might be. This is all conjecture on my part.</p>
<p>This is in response to the question of whether a liberal student will enjoy going to UR.</p>
<p>I am a UR alum -- but I graduated in the mid 1980s. I was one of a few progressive and outspoken students at the school. I was a transfer into my junior year. I felt like my best friends there were professors who liked me for being different and serious about my politics. (And I like Richmond for those polisci and journalism profs.) But I had a lot of good experiences there, and was very glad to be there even though it was so conservative and Republican. I co-founded a group called the Campus Peace Forum that a lot of faculty and staff supported, and some students got involved with. </p>
<p>Looking back, though, sometimes I don't know how I stood it. I wrote so much in the Collegian about the conservative & business orientation of the school that the paper labeled me "Public Enemy No. 1" in one of its lists and said, "Would you please stop complaining?" But the things I wrote probably were appearing daily in a school like Oberlin's student paper. (Some professors congratulated me for the honor of being so criticized.)</p>
<p>So if you really do like arguing with conservatives (and if Richmond is still much like it was, which I suspect may be true), then you will have your fill at the school. Otherwise, I'd stay away.</p>
<p>I think there's still an Amnesty International chapter there.</p>
<p>Also, I never heard of or saw anyone ever identify themselves as gay while I was there. Diversity of any kind was not to be found there, as far as I could tell.</p>
<p>I took my daughter on a tour of UR this summer and felt like Rip van Winkle. Physically it has changed a fair amount. But it still seemed much the same. I could be wrong, though. I am thrilled at UR's international studies program.</p>
<p>Rickenbacker, while I can't comment on how UR was back then, I think there are definitely more people who speak out now. I see controversial opinion articles in the Collegian all the time. These articles and their responses might be interesting to you:</p>
<p>[url=<a href="http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/11/20/open-your-eyes-and-look-around/%5DOpen">http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/11/20/open-your-eyes-and-look-around/]Open</a> your eyes and look around | The Collegian<a href="Controversy%20about%20bringing%20female%20dates%20to%20sorority%20socials">/url</a>
[url=<a href="http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/11/13/a-white-multicultural/%5DA">http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/11/13/a-white-multicultural/]A</a> white multicultural? | The Collegian<a href="Richmond's%20MOVE%20program">/url</a>
[url=<a href="http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/11/13/where-does-the-gop-go-from-here/%5DWhere">http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/11/13/where-does-the-gop-go-from-here/]Where</a> does the GOP go from here? | The Collegian<a href="Republican%20speaking%20out%20against%20his%20own%20party">/url</a>
[url=<a href="http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/11/06/richmond-students-are-not-classy/%5DRichmond">http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/11/06/richmond-students-are-not-classy/]Richmond</a> students are not classy | The Collegian<a href="Comments%20on%20female%20behavior">/url</a>
[url=<a href="http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/10/30/the-world-wants-obama/%5DThe">http://www.thecollegianur.com/2008/10/30/the-world-wants-obama/]The</a> world wants Obama | The Collegian<a href="British%20student%20speaks%20out%20about%20Europe's%20feeling%20on%20our%20election">/url</a></p>
<p>To any current UR student, would you classify the student body as largely conservative? Was there a lot of support for Obama or is there an active student Democratic organization?
We would also like to get a better idea of whether a liberal would fit in or would be the exception.</p>
<p>I might be going out on a limb here, but at least among my friends, there was just as much support for Obama as there was for McCain - and I'm a conservative. My roommate is very liberal. To me, at least, I felt like there was a significant amount of Obama support on campus.</p>
<p>There is a Young Democrats organization, and throughout the months before the election, they had a booth in the commons (the building everyone walks through on their way to class/the library/dinner/etc.) selling "Democrats Are Sexy" t-shirts.</p>
<p>I personally don't feel like the school is overwhelmingly conservative. It may be conservative by majority, but definitely not overwhelmingly. And I definitely don't think that a liberal would feel out of place here simply and only because of their beliefs. </p>
<p>If, however, you factor lifestyle/wardrobe/etc. into that scenario, and a person is not the "Richmond" norm in all of those categories, along with being a liberal, then they might feel as if they don't fit in. And that's simply because UR has a very cookie-cutter, homogeneous student body. Again, I'm not saying that person would be shunned and have no friends, because that's not true - it's just that it would be easier for them to FEEL like the odd man out. But for the most part, I would say students here aren't afraid to be friends with people who aren't like them. It's just rare to find people here who are truly radically different in many different ways, rather than just one or two.</p>
<p>But as far as beliefs go, people with all political beliefs, from very left to very right, can be found here.</p>
<p>Sorry if that answer was confusing. It really just depends on the person, I guess, as to whether or not they would be totally comfortable here. Visiting campus is your best bet.</p>
<p>kelliebm, your insights are always so insightful and you represent the school quite well. Are you in an official capacity with Admissions or simply a student who likes to blog about it? In either case, thank you!</p>
<p>My daughter and I had similar reservations about the college being too conservative a couple of months after she decided on UR. She now has just finished her first semester at UR and I haven't heard the first thing from her about the college being too conservative for her. And this is coming from a young lady who wouldn't even vote for Obama because "he's part of the problem"; she likes Ron Paul better. That's okay my wife and I helped to make sure N.C. went for Obama anyway. </p>
<p>Yes, my take is that UR is more conservative than most colleges but <em>there is</em> room for other points of view and one will find other students who feel like you (whew!)</p>
<p>These articles in The Collegian may help answer your questions. According to a recent Collegian survey, there were about an even number of self-identified Democrats, Republicans Independents on campus.</p>
<p>Most</a> students favor Obama, poll shows | The Collegian</p>
<p>Collegian</a> survey shows political divide on campus | The Collegian</p>
<p>Spiderfan, I am glad to see those headlines. </p>
<p>One fall Sunday morning outside my dorm, I found my car covered in shaving cream for the Mondale/Ferraro bumper sticker and, I admit, campaign sign in the window, and "Reagan '84 War '85" bumper sticker on it.</p>
<p>252525, nope, I'm not affiliated with admissions in any way, but I do try to help (via internet, haha) as many prospective students as I can. I relied on this forum a lot when I was applying, and since I'm only a freshman, it wasn't long ago at all that I was having these same questions and worries. That being said, I realize how important it is to have someone that can give a realistic point of view on things.</p>
<p>This particular issue ("Will I fit in on this campus with opposite political views?") is an important one to me, though, because it was a big deal when I decided where to go. I'm conservative, and was accepted to... a particular well-known liberal arts school up north I'll leave unnamed that was great academically and gave me awesome financial aid, but very, well... liberal. I kept trying to get student's perspectives on whether or not I would feel like a total outcast, and I felt like everybody was lying to me or just avoiding the question. So, I came here instead, and I'm very happy I did.</p>
<p>Thanks, Kellie, your insights really help! I think our D would be a great fit and like you, wouldn't particularly do well at a very liberal school. She loves diversity, but the fact remains.....she's from the south! I have been concerned that UR might be a northern LAC in Virginia, based on the demographics. But after several visits, and talking with lots of students while on campus, it seems to be a great fit. Thanks again.</p>