<p>Hi everyone. I was recently accepted into BC and it’s my first choice. I was wondering: how are the students there in terms of friendliness? I have read and heard that BC students are known to be snobby, but have also heard that it isn’t a huge deal. If any of you could offer your input, that would be great. Thank you.</p>
<p>I mean, there is certainly a mix of people at BC, which is true of any university. Are there snobby students? Of course. But are there are lot of very friendly students? Certainly. It’s the same anywhere. Do I get a snobby vibe from the student body? Not really. But I definitely know snobby people, I just don’t choose to associate with them.</p>
<p>I’m a dad of a daughter at BC so I’m a bit “vibe deaf” and I can’t comment on friendliness (though my daughter seems to have right amount of friends) but my wife and I have noticed that BC is very homogeneous. I know that this is a gross overstatement (and I’ll probably get flamed) but most students look the same and seem to be from the same background. BC is primarily a white, upper middle class, predominately Catholic college and among the female students there is a fairly consistent dressing style.
Overall, there is nothing inherently wrong with any of that but if a student is sensitive to the “feel” of a school they should make their own assessment.
Regarding snobbiness, my older child went to a nearby Ivy League school and there you could definitely see some snobbiness (more overt than at BC) but there was also 10,000% more diversity and personal styles so overall it felt like a more “real world” environment than the BC cocoon.
Again, I’m not knocking BC but schools can have different cultures and each student needs to decide for themselves what’s right for them. I think as an accepted student you will pretty quickly figure out BC’s culture even during your “accepted student” visit. Trust your gut but even if some of your fears seem real you will still get a wonderful education and have a good college experience at BC (or any other school). It’s up to you more than the people around you.</p>
<p>One one hand, BC is (technically) big enough that you should be able to find people with similar interests. On the other hand, the stereotypes didn’t exactly come from nowhere on a random day. I’ll be very honest and admit that this was an issue for me - subtly, but it was harder for me to feel “at home” than I expected. Once again, it’s hard for me to pinpoint why.</p>
<p>If you need to get a feel, though, it’s definitely worth a visit. It’s an EXCELLENT school, don’t get me wrong - just probably wasn’t the best for me personally. My mistake was that I didn’t know how to pick the best college for me PERSONALLY at the time. “Different strokes for different folks” so to speak.</p>
<p>BC’s undergraduate population is 29% AHANA students (Asian, Hispanic, African American and Native American) and 3% international students. More diverse or on par with similar institutions. </p>
<p>BC is a Catholic college, but among the undergraduate population, the majority do not practice the faith (whether that is good, or bad, is for you to decide). </p>
<p>The student body is undoubtedly liberal (although no Brown).</p>
<p>BC is not perfect, like no school is, but it is becoming increasingly diverse by the day. Unfortunately it is plagued by old stereotypes that perhaps once were true but have little to no weight in 2013 (see OneDown&OneToGo’s comments). </p>
<p>Also, all private schools are primarily white, upper middle class schools.</p>
<p>^ Perhaps the stereotypes are less true than they were years ago, but my point is that they formed for a reason.</p>
<p>Not to disparage BC or anything, but “try before you buy”. For me, PERSONALLY, it had its ups and downs, and the social “feel” was one of the downs.</p>
<p>Being an average, every day Ohioan going to BC, I knew I was going to be in for a culture shock going to BC. Now a junior, I have never regretted going to BC. If anything, I take pride in my “unique” dress and style (by unique I mean not wearing collared shirts and salmon colored shorts everyday). My friends talk about Burberry, J Crew, etc. and I honestly couldn’t tell you where I could even find a store like that back where I live.</p>
<p>If anything, the girls at BC definitely like guys who don’t try to conform. Being yourself is the best think you can do.</p>
<p>Haha @ salmon colored shirts. That is so BC. There are definitely large swathes of students who dress similarly, attended elite high schools, and have a taste for the finer things in life. I wouldn’t label them as snobs though. BC cultivates a student body that is really committed to community service and social justice. That doesn’t make the school perfect, especially when you consider the racial profiling of the campus police, high rates of sexual violence, and the prevalence of substance abuse. I just think you can’t label thousands of people with just one word.</p>
<p>I had a fantastic experience at BC. I received an excellent education. There were some challenges, but that made the experience. I would encourage you to visit and make a point to shadow a student for a day.</p>