<p>Can anyone tell me about politics at Fordham? Anything you know would be good to hear... for example, how often students discuss politics, rough percentage of students who are conservative or liberal, how involved students are, how tolerant students are of other viewpoints, etc. Politics is a great interest of mine, and I'd just like to know whether I can expect to find many similar people if I choose to attend Fordham.</p>
<p>Its all anecdotal as the school does NOT track that information, nor really care. Its a very diverse school. The overall temperament is apolitical. Most kids more concerned with grades and social life than some burning issue. However, there are very active Democrat and Republican clubs on campus. </p>
<p>Lincoln Center is more center left. Rose Hill, my guess would be more center right as a high percentage of kids come from Long Island and Connecticut. </p>
<p>All views are tolerated at Fordham, including by faculty. My kid often submitted controversial (in the sense that they were not always in line with the professors agenda) papers and only one time was that detrimental…and it was dealt with appropriately. Many professors would often say they didnt agree with the position, but since the paper was extraordinarily researched, well argued, logical and written beautifully they assigned an A grade. That was very very encouraging. Nothing worse than a horses behind professor with an agenda who grades according to who provides the biggest amount of kiss the behind information. And downgrades those who dare to have an alternative view. </p>
<p>Fordham is a tolerant school. My kid had friends from all over the place, with divergent views. They are friends to this day. </p>
<p>So long as YOU are tolerant and YOU treat people with respect, they will respect you as well. </p>
<p>Best of luck.</p>
<p>Thanks very much sovereign. Very helpful answer.</p>
<p>Our elites get about as well as you might expect. The Republican and Democratic clubs hold regular debates. Pleasant working friendships between diehard liberals and diehard conservatives are common, as are both dispassionate and heated debates.</p>
<p>Rose Hill is center left. There are some Catholic conservatives, including a hilarious bunch of Italians who think they’re in The Godfather Part IV; since it’s college there are a handful of socialists and a good number of informed, idealistic liberals. Many students keep up with politics in the states they’re from, and many others get involved in various causes here in the Bronx. That said, I think a majority of Rose Hill students will be 2040’s model gentry/Catholic liberals–they don’t seem to care much about politics but shun Republicanism because it’s the Right Thing To Do.</p>
<p>The fact that so many students at RH are upper-middle-class Catholics makes political discourse a smidgen less interesting and varied here compared to at Quality State U. If you’re into politics, though, you will make friends here who are equally involved, and you will have some great debates. Like sovereign says, it’s very diverse if you look past the Catholic majority.</p>
<p>Completely off-the-cuff: LC students seem to be more involved politically, probably because they’re more liberal.</p>
<p>I don’t agree. Sorry. I don’t have any stats, but just anecdotal reports. Gabelli School is at Rose Hill. I think they clearly lean center right. A high number of students at Rose Hill come from conservative catholic schools around the country. </p>
<p>If I were to guess, I would put the ratio at near 50/50. But in any respect, Fordham is largely apolitical…most kids just focused on their classes and socializing. But its no hotbed of left wing politics to be certain.</p>
<p>I am at RH currently. I agree with sovreigndebt that the campus is not particularly political although there are active Democratic and Republican clubs. However, I have to agree with anglegrinderman that the overall politics of students lie a bit right of center although there are probably more conservatives here than you will find on many campuses across the US. </p>
<p>My friends in Gabelli are not making a lot of money (yet) so I don’t see where they lean towards conservative politics more than other students (yet).</p>
<p>spirit…</p>
<p>I dont have any stats, as stated. Its just anecdotal based on my personal experience and my kid. I will note that many people, particularly conservatives, often keep their views fairly close to the vest. So its hard to make an assessment based on club membership. Young adults are often liberal in the heart and quickly change (as you intimate in your post) when they are in the working world and paying income tax, property tax and so forth. Not a political commentary, just a statement of fact.</p>
<p>However, the feeder schools which have provided Fordham with outstanding and brilliant catholic kids over the years in the tri state region tend to be center right overall. I wont name names as that only prompts ugly epithets. </p>
<p>I am not saying Fordham is a hotbed of conservatism either. Its mostly centrist and apolitical. And tolerant. </p>
<p>The Gabelli students my kid and friends knew in Gabelli were definitely not center left. Gabelli feeds wallstreet and wallstreet is the world capital of capitalism, so that would make NO SENSE at all. </p>
<p>All in all, compared to Columbia and NYU and Hunter College, Fordham is quite conservative (including some faculty.) Its decidedly more conservative than Georgetown and Holy Cross and to some extent BC from what I have been able to glean.</p>
<p>I welcome your comments.</p>
<p>Oh ya, FCRH is definitely more conservative than BC/Georgetown/NYU and vastly more conservative than CUNY or Columbia. Barely left of center. Gabelli kids are generally towards the right and FCRH kids are generally towards the left. (And sovereign, if you’re talking about the fine young men of Ch******* High School–gotta love 'em. Some of the best center-right Catholics in the state.)</p>
<p>@sovreigndebt - I am currently a junior at RH. My experience is what I noted above–overall there is a bit of a liberal bent but Fordham is more conservative than many other campuses (I think we agree on that). Personally, I don’t really see a difference in political leaning with my friends at Gabelli – my friends political leanings are based on underlying beliefs rather than their major. I can’t really add anything else. </p>
<p>As with everything, the best way for the OP to answer his/her question is to come to campus, talk to students, and maybe try to talk with or meet members of political club.</p>
<p>spirit: I agree…nothing like a visit when the students are in session to get a feel for a campus and its life. The biggest point I was making in response to the OP was that Fordham is not a hostile and “angry” campus…but a campus of tolerance and relative quietitude politically. </p>
<p>Recent incidents notwithstanding, a huge majority of students are just not that interested in one’s overall political bent, and more interested in internships, jobs, grades, social life. </p>
<p>Angle: There are many feeder schools who have provided Fordham with very strong and able students, male and female, catholic and otherwise. A good number of them are center right. But not all. Even at institutions with reps for being center right to …ahem…even far right theologically speaking, some of their graduates have been liberals. </p>
<p>I am a huge supporter of diversity in thought, social strata and theology. College is about growth, and one grows best when the student body is lively and diverse. </p>
<p>Merry Christmas to all.</p>
<p>I am a current Fordham freshman and I believe the student population leans towards the left. 90% of the people I know are Democrats and a lot are actually members of the College Democrats. From my experiences over the past semester, I would say a decent amount of students are poitically active on campus. Maybe I just see it more as a freshman because when kids first get to college they are eager to break out and try new things. But in my experiences kids lean left and are a good amount are politically active.</p>
<p>Of my friends that come from Catholic High Schools in NYC, Massachusetss, Florida, and California, 3 lean to the far left and 2 could not care less about politicals. I do not think you can base Fordham’s political affiliations off of where kids went to high school.</p>
<p>People are quick to attach political views to people based on their wealth, where they come from, religion, and so on, and most of the time these things are not accurate measures of political views. Especially when someone is 18 and just starting college they are going to be trying new things and testing new beliefs out.</p>
<p>On the subject of politics at Fordham:
I didn’t realize until recently that Fordham’s Poet in Residence is Daniel J. Berrigan, S.J. In my humble opinion he is one of the great Americans of the 20th century and it says something great about Fordham that he is there. Hopefully he is in good health. All future and current Fordham students would do well to learn about this man and his life.</p>