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<p>reading all of this makes me pretty sad, I think I may have made a poor decision in applying to Oxy. I hope things improve for you.</p>
<p>How would you rate the intellectual climate - in terms of desire to learn, and taking classes/education seriously. Are students interested in current events etc.</p>
<p>quebueno3, please tell me more about the bio program at Oxy.</p>
<p>The students at Oxy are very driven! There are a lot of intellectuals, it’s kind of what they pride themselves in. Everyone is very motivated to learn and almost everyone knows what’s going on in the news as it happens! There all geeks! But in a cool trendy way! Thats actually one of the things I like most about Oxy. :)</p>
<p>As for the bio program, I don’t know too much about it. I have two friends in it and they say its pretty challenging and a lot of work. But if you dedicate the majority of your time to it you will become successful. My doctor in california graduated from Oxy majoring in bio :)</p>
<p>quebueno, </p>
<p>I’m just wondering if you can give us some background on yourself - nothing too in-depth 
but just what kind of environment you grew up - I’m really having trouble putting your posts in context. </p>
<p>I’m biracial - and your comments about diversity on campus are worrisome to me ( I applied to Oxy RD) - but to be completely honest they kind of rub me the wrong way - to me it seems like you are saying because there aren’t many students of color on campus that means that you can’t make friends/date (aka you don’t date/make friends outside of your race) PLEASE correct me if I’m wrong - I am not trying to be combative at all (seriously!), I am just trying to clarify. </p>
<p>Personally, I have friends of every race, but all of my best friends are white (I’ve gone to the same predominantly white school since I was five) - this is not a problem for me. </p>
<p>Do you think that I would have the same trouble at Oxy that you have experienced?</p>
<p>I really did not see a lack of diversity at my visit. 40% of Oxy students are minorities, which is one of the best numbers you can get. I saw African Americans, Asians, and Caucasians eating together today, although not many people were there today. I asked a recent grad what het favorite part of Oxy was, and she said diversity (as an African American). So I’m a little confused. And it makes me sad that one person’s bad experience is turning a few people away from a great school.</p>
<p>I went to a basically all white private school and had a great time! So I know what your talking about but there seems to be a different climate at Oxy. There definately is a divide and if you want to be blinded by what a tour presents you go ahead I was blinded too.</p>
<p>You can use your own judgement. If you’re visiting campus as a prospective student no one is going to say anything negative. There are only a handfull of black students at Oxy and almost all of the ones in my class are applying to transfer this fall.</p>
<p>As for the dating seen it just so happens to be that of the black guy at Oxy 75% of them are gay. So that can be a little tough.</p>
<p>But don’t be discouraged, you all know what’s best for you and your college education. Its your choice, I’m just being honest. But my three best friends who are minorities share the same concern. We all party at USC where there’s diversity and a more accepting atmosphere.</p>
<p>And for the record I’m a black latina and almost evryone at Oxy thinks I’m Indian lol. So I’m coming from a pretty diverse perspective. :)</p>
<p>Oh and while you’re there ask any of the black students about the white student who burned an African flag and placed it on an Afrian American professor’s front lawn or ask how many students had the “N” word and “N-Lover” word written on their dorm. </p>
<p>There is a group called the Coalition who is trying to bring attention to the administration but they refuse to do anything about it.</p>
<p>Occidental:</p>
<p>2% American Indian/Alaskan Native
18% Asian/Pacific Islander
6% Black/Non-Hispanic
16% Hispanic
53% White/Non-Hispanic
3% Non-Resident Alien</p>
<p>Let’s talk diversity</p>
<p>Percent Black/Hispanic Students</p>
<p>California
26% – Loyola Marymount
25% – Univ. of Redlands
22% – Occidental
22% – Pepperdine
19% – USC
19% – UC Irvine
17% – Pomona
17% – Univ. of San Diego
17% – Chapman
17% – UCLA
14% – Claremont McKenna
14% – UCSD
8% — Harvey Mudd
7% — Caltech</p>
<p>Other States
22% – Amherst
19% – Swarthmore
18% – Williams
17% – Wellesley
17% – Vassar
13% – Colgate
12% – Hamilton
12% – Skidmore</p>
<p>I was not “blinded by my tour”. I was actually looking for any reason to believe that what you said was true, so I walked around the campus by myself. I saw a lot of Asian students and quite a few African American students, and of course some Caucasian ones. There was a huge group of people in the dining hall, and all of the races were interacting. You are going to get racist people everywhere. That is inevitable, unfortunately, and I absolutely hate racism. As for the flag, that’s ridiculous and horrible but I refuse to believe that the entire white population at Oxy is racist, except maybe a small, small figure.</p>
<p>The thing is I never said the entire white population is horrible at Oxy. There are some really great people there. The question was how is the social life, and it depends on how much you care about it. </p>
<p>I love Oxy as an institution, but based on some of the things that happened this year and last year, they have some work to do. </p>
<p>But again the stats are trying to sell the school. Its ok you can go to Oxy and see for yourself I’m only a student answering questions. Yes there are racist people everywhere its just strange that at the college level at a private liberal arts school it seems to continually happen. But good luck! Wish you the best in your college endeavors. :)</p>
<p>This is a stupid question not pertaining to much, just something I’ve been wanting to know.</p>
<p>I have a friend who goes to Oxy, and he told me that people there commonly refer to transferring as “Pulling a Barack.” I feel like he’s messing with me; is this true?</p>
<p>We had a student protest about the racism last fall and it was published in our local newspaper and the local news station was there interviewing students.</p>
<p>But I will no longer answer any questions about this subject. If you have anymore questions regarding anything else at Oxy I’ll be happy to answer them.</p>
<p>@ BillyMc Yess!! This is sooo true everyone says that! Especially if your transferring to Columbia like how I am! hahaha if anyone talks about transferring they just say “Yeah I’m gonna pull a Barack!” Its pretty funny!</p>
<p>Ah, good to know I wasn’t lied to! And funny, you’re doing it just the same as him.</p>
<p>Oh really how ironic! The people who transfer from Oxy because they don’t like it also say. “You gotta wonder why Barack left Oxy, it’s not like he actually graduated from here, he must of seen something bigger and better!”</p>
<p>“Him” meant Barack, haha, not my friend. Well, I’ve generally heard good things about Oxy, but no school is for everyone, obviously.</p>
<p>I recently read an article written by his roommate; apparently, they both transferred to Columbia from Oxy, along with a few other people they knew.</p>
<p>Oh lol I though you ment your friend! Yeah it’s kind of cool to see his dorm and pictures of him on campus. I heard about them both transferring I thought it was really cool! Its rare that you get to transfer with your friends!</p>
<p>Thanks! I just searched for and read the article that the student wrote about racism at Oxy…the Cowboys and Indians party. I also did some digging on “insider” websites, i.e. College *******, who have said that there have been a few racial slurs due to ignorance, and that there could be better interaction between the races. Again, I think you’ll find that anywhere, but the administration really should do something about it. I did not see that on my visit; in fact, I saw the opposite, but obviously I can’t know unless I’m actually a student.</p>
<p>Anyway, I really hope you’ve found a school to transfer to that suits your needs much better than Oxy does. Best of luck to you, and thanks for answering our questions honestly.</p>