How conservative is Notre Dame really?

I was just accepted to the class of 2022 REA, and Notre Dame has been my top school for years. However, I have heard that some aspects of life there are very conservative and strict (parietals, other dorm rules, etc.) I, personally, am relatively liberal, but I live in a very conservative community in Wisconsin. I feel like college is a time to get out and explore the world around you and experience something new. I don’t want to feel suppressed like I do here for being more liberal. How much of an impact does conservatism have on daily life? Will I feel like an outcast for being more liberal in Notre Dame’s conservative community? (By the way, by conservative I mean socially and politically.)

We worried about that as well, sending a kid who has spent his whole life around Seattle to a Midwest Catholic college. Our older two went to one of our in-state choices and many of their friends went to a variety of privates so we have something to compare.

  1. The student body is really white, notably so, given our son came from a 40% white high school. 80% chance your roommate will be white.
  2. It's largely traditionally straight. There is an LGB (don't know about T) presence, but you will not be asked your preferred pronoun during introductions.
  3. Everyone is smart, and ND seems to make it their mission to find kids who are kind. Whether they are conservative or liberal seems a lot less important when they are nice about it. Get super-drunk at a party? The likeliest scenario is a couple of people will walk you back to your dorm and make sure you are OK. Housing does random roommate assignments yet they have fewer issues than most colleges.
  4. Catholic. We are, and raised our kids Catholic, but drive out of our way to attend a church where their mission is more aligned with our values, supporting orphanages and migrant workers. There will be groups like this on campus. There will also be groups sponsoring busses to march against abortion rights. So far, our son skips Mass but his favorite class was Theology. ND has developing the spiritual side of its students as one of its core values, something we were really hoping for with the boy, but it is not forced on him. 80% chance your roommate will be Catholic.
  5. Parietals and single sex dorms. People talk about this all the time, but it works that parties have to have a clear end point. I wish they had better rules at our kids' state college. Do you really want your roommate fully involved with their Tinder date when you have to wake up for a test the next morning? Our other kids have their horror stories, our ND student has none (so far, knock on wood).

We took our son to Admitted Student Days during his spring break in April just to make sure. I suggest you attend then decide. From the hotel after the first day (same day FA came out), he committed and turned down his other offers.

It’s true that most of the students are white and Catholic. I don’t know if that necessarily translates into an overwhelming amount being conservative. Personally we know plenty of Catholics on both sides of the political spectrum. So in terms of other students having a similar mindset to you, I’m not sure if you’ll know that until you get there. And either way, you will find your people, everyone does.

In terms of the University’s mindset, yes it is conservative and the “most Catholic” of the top Catholic schools. But you will not have their views shoved down your throat. Even the required Theo and Philo classes have a flavor for everyone on the religious/non-religious spectrum. But check out their Center for Social Concerns and it’s mission for social justice. Lots of ways to get involved (education, research, volunteering). — “The aim is to create a sense of human solidarity and concern for the common good that will bear fruit as learning becomes service to justice,” Mission Statement, University of Notre Dame.

Re parietals/same sex dorms – my husband is an alum and my daughter is a current student. My husband said it is a way to dial down the energy in the dorm late at night, so people can sleep/study, which isn’t a bad thing (no one cruises through a school like ND without being a serious student). My daughter has found this to be the case in her dorm. Also, I don’t know if you’re male or female, but ND is much less strict with the men’s dorms with parties and alcohol.

As far as the mass goes, many kids don’t go, either because they are not Catholic or don’t practice. That won’t be something you will feel left out of, and you won’t stick out by not attending. But mass is readily available to those who want it.

Definitely go to the accepted students day and ask questions of the students you come across. But not the tour guides, who basically say what they are supposed to say, like at any school. My D was torn between ND and another school, and this is how she finally decided for ND and against the other school, by the answers she got from students walking around on accepted students day.

@waitingmomla Given her experience so far, is she happy with her choice of ND?

@Magnetron and @waitingmomla , thank you so much for your quick and thoughtful responses! You definitely helped me understand the atmosphere/community at ND and I feel a little more settled now. I toured a few years ago and loved it, but this was something I was kind of worried about.

(I’m a white female, by the way)

@GeronimoAlpaca yes, she is very happy at ND. Her final decision was between ND and another top 20 school that is in a city, so big lifestyle choice between city amenities and top sports school. But the deciding factor for my D was school spirit and feeling of community. That was the question she asked on accepted student days at both schools, because she had heard that the other school had a very exclusive club situation. The answers she got from students at the other school were VERY telling. Meaning – when you ask multiple people if there is school spirit/feeling of community, and many responses are lackluster, that kind of tells you something. Versus at ND, when you ask that question, it’s clear people are drinking the green kool-aid and loving it. I think that’s why it’s very important for all of you applicants to ask questions of current students other than the tour guides. No offense to them, because I know they have a job to do, and I don’t mean they are being disingenuous. But a tour guide at any school is “selling” the school. Remember that. That’s why it’s a good idea to stop other students walking around to get their opinion also.

My D was also very afraid of parietals and the same sex dorms. As a girl with a lot of guy friends, that was a big question mark for her going in. I have to say, it does not bother her at all. Guys are still allowed in the common areas after hours (the lounges, kitchens and study areas), and I think she does appreciate the relative calm in the dorm at night. If you’re out all night studying or at a party, it’s less frenetic to come home to, rather than walking into more mayhem at 12am/2am, like the dorms at some schools.

I don’t think she feels anything is extreme in terms of tone at the university. She goes to mass, along with 3 of her friends, but another 10 friends don’t. There is no holier than tho pressure to attend mass. Politically, she is relatively in the center, not too conservative or liberal, and I don’t think she feels pressure from anyone in either direction.

I am personally glad that Notre Dame is relatively conservative. I would say that from what I’ve heard the vast “silent majority” of the student body is conservative but the “loud minority” of the student body is liberal (see, walking out on commencement b/c of Mike Pence). There are many pro-life marches throughout the year though but I’d say the student body is socially conservative when it comes to abortion but probably split about 80-20 in being accepting of gays. Religious freedom free from government is also important to many students.

In terms of politics, ND is conservative…for a college campus. Which means it is liberal, rather than very very liberal.

Last year the ND mock election was 59.3 percent Democratic, 24.0 percent Republican.

Pence, Obama and Biden all got protested when they were the graduation speaker.

I think last year’s real election was unique in terms of the candidates on both sides of the aisle, so I would hesitate to use those mock election results as a barometer for the Dem/Rep split on campus. I would be curious to know the results of prior mock elections, don’t know if that info is available. I would guess the student body actually swings toward Rep. The protest of Pence, in particular, was a small fraction of the graduates (altho the media played it up to be much more than it was, and downplayed the boos towards the protesters coming from most of the graduates). Again – I never get the impression from my daughter that the students are “in your face” with regard to pushing their political or religious views on others. The school does not have that reputation, which was important to us as parents with the culture on some college campuses these days.

I think @howdy99 is probably correct about the split on social issues, with most students being pro-life and pro-LGBT. A few years ago a group of students petitioned the university and worked hard to establish an LGBT organization on campus. I don’t know how high that population is at ND, but I know the organization is officially sanctioned, which is a substantial change from 5 years ago. I think it speaks not only to the views of the student body, but also of the flexibility of the university in terms of tolerance and inclusivity.

2008 Obama 52.6, McCain 41.1.

Basically center/left, but with a lot of pro-lifers.

Not that conservative. Just more conservative than most other college campuses.

This is one reason my D who is a junior there loves this school: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2016/12/08/a-twist-on-controversial-professor-watchlist-notre-dame-academics-want-their-names-added/?utm_term=.9d49d9b590e9

We are neither Catholic nor conservative. She finds the place more liberal than conservative.

And you can get around parietals.

ND’s students are 73% white and 80% Catholic. Those demos trend Republican/conservative, although Catholics are actually not all that much more conservative than the USA generally.

But more importantly, 100% of the students are young. The 18-24 year old demo is not very conservative or Republican. Especially if the kids are coming from the metro areas that send large numbers of kids to ND – NYC, Chicago, LA, DC, Boston, Philly.

For someone’s D who’s considering sending an app to ND, thank you for the information. Much appreciated.

@northwesty Thanks for the data. Interesting though, I would consider that to be yet another unique election and still wonder if it is representative of the actual split. First African-American candidate and first female candidate are both pretty historic. Too bad 2004 and 2012 don’t seem to be available, at least that I can find with a quick search. I think you are correct though - if it’s not conservative, it is more so than most other college campuses.

In my opinion, students at ND are concerned about the individual rather than what identity group they are in.
It is the people on the outside who are trying to parcel people up into different groups.
Skin color and sexual orientation are not what make people different.

Disclosure: my wife and I went there. We have a son who is a junior there and a daughter entering in 2018.