LMU v Chapman? Socially, academically, class of 2024

Hi there,
My son is grappling between both LMU and Chapman, his top two choices…which is a good problem to have. He is very creative, is seeking a great, engaged, friendly and fun community , and is entering as an Undeclared major. I think he prefers Los Angeles and its environs to Orange, tho he really liked the town of Orange when he visited. We were going to return to see both schools and do a shadow visit…but then COVID-19 hit. I do wonder if schools will even be in session this year…but that’s perhaps another discussion. Would love to hear from students/parents, those who have made a similar choice between these two schools.

There is one current thread on this subject, although not very active I’m afraid. You may want to do a search on both LMU and CHapman (separately) to try to get some details.

My D attends LMU and couldn’t love it more. She’s in the Theater program and has definitely found lots of creative and collaborative people both inside the program and out. She has varied groups of friends, which I like (meaning they aren’t ALL from her program or all from her freshman dorm for example). I would say that LMU students are definitely engaged friendly and fun, that was our visit experience, my D’s experience, and we can even see it when we go to parent weekend. Other things she (and we love): great connections with professors and mentor relationships. She enjoys and appreciates the Jesuit influence of philosophy and service even though she no longer practices our family religion. She really does not have any complaints. She’s a junior.

We visited Chapman but my D wasn’t accepted into Theater there. It was great too! Orange so cute. D knows acquaintances there who are happy. My only caution would be to think that it is “close” to LA…with traffic, I bet getting to LA from Orange is a huge deal. My D honestly doesn’t even get outside her surrounding area of LMU that often because the traffic makes it so hard.

Congrats to your son on two great choices! You can PM me for LMU information if you want.

I am a current freshman at LMU and I love it so much. I didn’t apply to Chapman but I’ve visited and I’m fairly familiar with it. One of the main reasons I chose LMU was because of the community and now that I am finishing up my first year, I can definitely say the people have made such an impact on me. It was easy making friends (and this comes from someone who usually struggles in that area lol) and there’s always something to do or somewhere to go on the weekends, being in LA. It’s really easy to get involved in student organizations and you will find that most students are a part of multiple things on campus, The small class sizes are wonderful and the professors are always available for help. Overall, the LMU community is really supportive and welcoming. I love that the student body is so engaged and passionate about social justice issues as well as it makes us think more critically about the world we live in. Best of luck to your son with making his decision!

He picked LMU! Thank you for sharing your wonderful experiences!