I would be interested in hearing from any current students how the campus climate is, in terms of different groups of students getting along. We were impressed with how diverse the student body is, but have also heard that there is not a lot of mixing among different groups of kids. A related issue would be the role of greek life on campus – obviously, the administration has been working to de-emphasize it for quite some time – so whether that is a focus for social life etc.
I’m a recent graduate and absolutely loved my time at Denison! I chose it over several higher ranked liberal arts schools and, while I was worried about my decision at the time, was very happy with my Denison experience.
You’re right, Denison is pretty diverse and that was one of the things that I appreciated about it when I was looking for a college. A lot of students complain that there isn’t enough diversity, and while I agree that it can do better, Denison was more diverse than the other private liberal arts colleges I was considering. You’re right, the mixing of different groups is something that needs to improve, but I do believe that is a major focus of both the administration and student body. Honestly, all it takes is joining some new organizations and making an effort to connect with people that are different from you in your classes. At Denison, people often talked about the difference between “being diverse” and “embracing diversity”. While we might not be quite there yet, Denison is pushing to be the sort of place that embraces differences.
In terms of Greek life, there’s no denying that it has a large presence on campus. When I was a prospie, the admissions office tried to downplay Greek life, but approximately 40% of women are involved and I think like 30ish% (could be wrong…) of men. That’s a large chunk of the student body. At the same time, however, Greeks are not allowed to live in their houses, which keeps Greek life from becoming overwhelming. I ultimately decided not to rush, but lived with people who were in sororities for two years. It’s pretty common for people to live and be friends with people either not in Greek life or in other fraternities/sororities. Also (at least in sororities), pretty much anyone who rushes gets a bid from one of the houses, so it’s not really exclusive in that way. I seriously considered rushing but ultimately decided not to and I don’t feel like it affected my social life. But you should be aware that there is a fairly large Greek presence on campus.
Hope that helps! I had a great experience at Denison. I’d definitely recommend doing an overnight to decide if it’s the right place. I wasn’t seriously considering Denison, but when I did an overnight visit, it just felt right.
I’d also add in that Denison is really focusing on raising visibility and desperately wants to be known was one of the “top” liberal arts colleges, so they give away a ton of merit aid to bring in top students that otherwise would have gone to better ranked LACs. Weinberg, the new president, seems to have a strong vision for the college, and I’m excited to see where the school goes in the next few years!
@cats1290 Thank you so much, that is very helpful! I appreciate hearing that there is movement to “embrace” the school’s diversity, as that is encouraging direction, for all schools. As a parent, I’m very impressed with Denison, and my son was very comfortable on campus, could really see himself there.
I agree with another parent poster somewhere who mentioned that, for a kid who has to get from Bryant to Mitchell, they can skip the stairmaster until after graduation . . . . As a middle-aged set of parents, we were huffing our way back up the steps from Bryant.
We visited a lot of midwest LACs, and there is much to love about many of them. Our sense was, Denison is on the move (as well as Wooster, but that’s for another board . . . .).
Glad to hear he liked Denison! I also briefly considered Wooster, but for some reason it didn’t make much of an impression on me (though I know plenty of people who disagree lol). Both are great schools that are often underrated.