<p>I'm considering vandy for a really long time. But after going through the posts here, I'm thinking about what to do. Is there still segregation at vanderbilt? I know it is a long time since commons have opened. Have these really changed anything? I don't want to be left out by my peers. I'm outgoing and really like to meet new people. What should I do?</p>
<p>I think you just answered your own question of what should you do by describing yourself as outgoing.</p>
<p>But I’m not white. What happens then?</p>
<p>Hi farcry007. I wouldn’t rely wholly on the posts on this board, as well meaning – and often informed – as they are. I suggest a visit to the school – looking, listening, and speaking with current Vandy students. My daughter’s good friend happens to be Asian American, and she was just as concerned as you are – until she visited. It’s now her first choice school (she applies next year). My daughter starts at Vandy this coming fall, and we’ve both perused tons of threads and student reviews on CC and elsewhere, and you can lose your mind trying to find a realistic consensus – they range from the stereotypical frat member proudly proclaiming his love of day drinking, hooking up and other stuff that could turn this parent’s stomach, to conservative folks, religious folks, non-religious folks, progressive non-fraternity types, intellectuals, non-intellectuals, jocks…you get the idea, and they all seem to characterize Vandy as larger versions of themselves. It’s like reading a restaurant review on Yelp – even the best have tons of negative reviews, so much so that I end up more confused than when I started. Anyway, my daughter – like her friend – found it extremely helpful to visit. She, by the way, is a progressive, non-religious, non-sorority-pledging, open-minded friendly violinist from NYC, and she felt she could find a place for herself at Vandy. There are all types of people at Vanderbilt, and undoubtedly, there will be some self-selecting segregation (by ethnicity, by interest areas, by freshman dorm, etc.), as there is at most schools, but I’m hoping there’s enough give for broader interactions and friendships. My daughter will probably end up spending tons of time with musicians as a matter of course, but given the dorm situation and the necessity for taking courses outside of Blair, I hope her social circle grows beyond that, and so does she.</p>
<p>^thank you Sir. I was really shocked to find out that many people are talking about this self segregating thing. I talked to some faculty members, students and admission officers. They were just so friendly to me. It’ll be really hard for me to ignore this university if I get a chance to attend.</p>
<p>Farcry007 I had 2 sons at Vanderbilt and they both had friends from all backgrounds (ethnic, financial, geographical and political). One of the things they liked most was the way the student body treated each other with respect and how people were generally very friendly (there are always exceptions). We are of Hispanic origin from NY which I mention only to give you an idea of our perspective. I strongly suggest you follow StringPop’s advice and visit the campus. Vanderbilt was not our eldest sons first choice until he visited. Best of luck in your College search.</p>
<p>There’s self segregation everywhere and that will not change in the near future. As long as there’s not forced segregation (and I don’t believe there is), consider this your chance to make a difference at the school. GL</p>
<p>There is still self segregation. The thing about self segregation is that it’s a choice and its SELF imposed. If you choose not to limit yourself to friends of the same race, you won’t be segregated, that simple. </p>
<p>Self-segregation isn’t when peers leave you out, it’s when people choose to be left out.</p>
<p>There’s still the question of why there’s more self-segregation at Vandy than at other schools, of why Vandy has so consistently been rated as having one of the worst race relations of colleges…</p>
<p>many internationals I’ve talked to seem unhappy. maybe not unhappy but they look to build a group of people of the same race. mostly Asians. I’m freaking out. yes. I’m freaking out. but I’m looking forward to it.</p>
<p>Vanderbilt has been rated has having one of the worst race relations for no reason at all. Vanderbilt is historically stereotyped as a school for rich white kids and it very much used to just be a school where only rich kids could attend. Very lacking in diversity. Not true anymore. There have never been race relation issues as far as I know. There has never been any justification for that ranking.</p>
<p>I don’t think ranking is a very good idea. ranking is based on some stupid things i believe.</p>
<p>In my experience, the more diverse a university is the more self segregation they have. Schools with less diversity have more interaction of diverse students. The more students of “a subset” a school has the more likely it is for them to hang out together since they share common backgrounds.<br>
Unfortunately old false stereotypes are hard to break. Unfortunately some like to continue the old false stereotypes. It’s always the same BS: rich, white, dress code, greek lies, race issues, southern, blah, blah, blah…
Please go visit and make up your own mind.</p>
<p>To the person who just sent me a private message, I’m still a few posts short of being able to respond to messages…but getting closer.</p>
<p>I think most of the posters here have it right. If a minority chooses to self-segregate, there is little to be done about it. I think what you are asking is: are they forced to self-segregate because the rest of the students won’t “let them in”. That, I feel exceedingly confident, is absolutely not the case. The VAST majority of college students these days don’t particularly care if you are gay, straight, pink, purple or blue, conservative or liberal, religious or atheist, as long as you are personable, accepting and respectful in return. Being outgoing and fun to be with goes a long way, but even the more introverted will be easily accepted by others if they are just plain good to be with. In the end, that’s pretty much all it really takes. Everyone comes to college looking to make new friends.</p>
<p>I would argue that there is relatively little self-segregation because there simply aren’t very many large, homogeneous minority communities at Vanderbilt (with the exception of the Malaysians). To quote someone on Overheard at Vanderbilt, Asians make up only 8% of Vanderbilt students, and that includes brown and yellow. There is a decent sized black community and some other smallish ethnic groups, but most minorities end up making friends outside of their race because they would otherwise be rather limited. Most Vandy students are both outgoing and very accepting, so race just isn’t much of a problem. Like any student body, Vanderbilt is divided into hundreds of smaller communities, but Vandy students are probably more divided along non-racial lines than racial ones.</p>
<p>One additional thought about self-segregation. As people have noted before, it’s the “self” part of it that makes all the difference. On all college campuses, people self-segregate – which is just another way of saying that they form cliques, formally and informally. I think there are good reasons why there are Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, political, LGBT, African-American, Asian and other organizations on campus. Such organizations, or informal groups formed around whatever criteria, can serve as a source of support and comfort – kind of like home – that can be really important and positive, especially when it’s paired with an openness to new people and new experiences.</p>
<p>I agree that self-segregation hinges on “self.” If you don’t segregate yourself, you won’t experience self-segregation. My D’s roommate was African American, and she had a diverse group of friends … no AA students among them, though. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to be with other AA students. Rather, she chose her friends based on common interests, and her friends just happened to not be AA.</p>
<p>I’m curious as to what their percentage of Hispanic students are. I have not been able to find any statistics with this data.</p>
<p>According to the common data set, there are 538 hispanics out of 6,753 degree seeking undergraduates for the 2012-2013 academic year.</p>