<p>I think the name "Northwestern" itself (which refers to what used to be the Northwest Territory) contributes to the perception of the school as bold and pioneering. Further, the syllables and letters reinforce that image. "St" and "rn" are very strong sounds IMO. It's interesting that Northwestern has attracted bold, smart students for generations and has come to be known as a school for popular, if not popular and jockey, nerds-- indeed the bold, the wise, and (in many case) the beautiful. Many take pride in wearing purple baseball hats, a metaphor for our brawn coexisting with our brains :)</p>
<p>This is a random post… but I’m going to have to disagree with you on the jockey part (that’s if you meant jock-y). I think the vast majority of NU students are not athletic. Just take a look at some IM sports games that aren’t fraternity/sorority teams. Or even easier, is just take a look at Sheridan road between classes. Let’s be realistic about the student body, and not too overzealous.</p>
<p>Sure, when the popular HS kids get here, they aren’t popular anymore. There’s really nobody here who’s popular on a campus level unless they’re ASG president or something. </p>
<p>People like you will fit in nicely in south campus–the people there are very homey. I’m up north and people here are homey too though.</p>
<p>re: the popular comment. You should only respect that title if you come from a HS with people who value education and the humanities, e.g. New Trier, Andover, Brearley, etc. If you’re popular there, it probably means you’re nice, kind, smart, and likable. Being popular at an inner-city school is a different matter, so of course you needn’t be popular coming from such a school (the popular kids there might be into gangs, drugs, etc. unless it’s a magnet so it’s definitely a different ballgame for those schools). Also, if you’re the type of “popular” kid who’s attention-seeking, don’t come to NU. Attention-seeking “popular” kids won’t fit in well here nor would they be happy because they will not get any attention. Instead, the people who gravitate here are those who are popular without trying and can take the fact that when they get here, nobody is popular because they realize being popular in HS is nothing special.</p>
<p>The truth is funny sometimes. Life, if you think about it, is one giant comedy. Comedians actually often capitalize on obvious truths about life because life is just naturally funny that way if you stop and think about it.</p>
<p>There’s nothing pompous about what I said. It’s quite democratic actually. My point was that people who think they’re better than others won’t like it here.</p>