Hey guys, I am a high school junior from New Jersey. I’ve been looking at colleges that I plan on applying to and Villanova is definitely on my list. I really like the business program at nova. However, I have been looking at a lot of posts here about how Villanova is very “Vanilla”. I am Indian (although born in Jersey) and I don’t know how well i am going to fit in. I am a liberal atheist as well but I am very lax and open minded and I don’t care if there are theology courses or crosses on every buildings as long as I am not discriminated/ostracized. My question is are the races divided at Villanova. By that, i mean whether or not the Indians mostly stay together as a pack when hanging out, or is there a lot of social interaction between them? (Also, this is not just for Indians but other races as well.) I really would like the latter. Would I be able to find a niche at nova?
side note: By Indian I mean south Asian Indian, not Native American Indian 
Hey-- incoming freshman at Villanova, so maybe not the reliable source as this is all second hand info. The majority of the school is white and Catholic, but I think is very accepting in general in terms of racial and theological differences. I do not think you’d have issue with fitting in racially, but I am not sure how well represented Indians are at Villanova (I did see a decent amount when I visited numerous times, but that’s anecdotal evidence). I would try to visit the campus and see if it appeals to you.
Thanks! I definitely plan on visiting somtimes in the summer. Hopefully it’s not as bad as some of the people on this forum make it out to be
Ha, well I am going in as a freshman, so I sure hope not, but I also went to high school in a very similar environment, so not too worried.
Hey, current Nova student here. I’m going to be honest, you will have to come to terms with the fact that the school is predominately white and you will be in the minority. However, that being said, I think there are social groups for everyone and I know Indian students who had no trouble finding friends and fitting in. If you do not mind being in the minority, you will be fine and certainly not “shunned” for your race.
Current nova student here who is also a minority. Fact of the matter is, Villanova is a very vanilla school. And It’s really sad that most of the Indians hang out with the indians. most of the east asians hang out with the east asians. Most of the whites hang out with each other. The blacks hand out with each other. And of course, the very large group of Puerto Ricans who speak Spanish all the time with each other tend to hang out with each other.
Yes, you will find a good group of friends, but bear in mind, Villanova is a very segregated school. You will probably be friendly with each other, but there are always those slight cultural/ethnic barriers that prevent close interracial relationships. Granted, there are exceptions…
I disagree^^ you are being extreme. I definitely do NOT consider Nova a “very segregated school”. And I currently go to Nova. Nova is predominantly white, and some people of the same race hang out together, but I would say that for the most part, people do not group socially based on race.
I am a minority and my group of friends literally contains many different races. I don’t think this is an exception. Your comment “there are always those slight cultural/ethnic barriers that prevent close interracial relationships” especially concerns me. That is not a view I believe many people at Villanova share.
@goku77689 , regarding your initial concerns…Villanova is mainly white. As a minority, it’s something I noticed by observing, but never how I was treated. If you don’t specifically only seek out other Indian students as friends, I guarantee you will end up with many friends of different races. Nova is definitely not segregated.
Oh, and as for religion, a good chunk of Nova is Catholic, but I wouldn’t even say the majority. I personally am not. People are very accepting of other religions and beliefs. I’ve never felt ostracized for not being Catholic.
Hope that helps