"Preppy"

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I see the word "preppy" thrown around on these threads a lot, and I'm not quite sure what the word is referring to.</p>

<p>Are you considering "preppy" to be a large population of students from Exeter, Hotchkiss, Choate, and other private prep schools in New England? In that case, I think Harvard, Yale, and Princeton are the "preppiest" school around.</p>

<p>Or are you considering "preppy" to be polo shirts, popped collars, pearls, Mercedes Benzes? In other words, it's more of a fashion style? And if so, do you need a lot of money to be preppy?</p>

<p>Or is "preppy" a holier-than-thou attitude, a life of luxuriating at golf clubs and vacation resorts and talking about it constantly with your less fortunate friends?</p>

<p>Using these definitions (or supplying your own), which schools are, in your opinion, the "preppiest" schools?</p>

<p>I ask because I went to an elite prep school myself, know a lot of students who went to prep schools, and I don't think I've met anyone whom I would define as "preppy." Sure, at my high school, there were some kids who liked to look nice and spent amazing amounts of money in the process (money I didn't have), but that didn't bother me or take away from my high school experience.</p>

2

<p>I doubt that the mere presence of students from Exeter makes a place preppy.</p>

<p>And some people aren't preppy and don't want to be at a school where the majority of the student body is like that. I refused to even consider Princeton because of the atmosphere there.</p>

<p>It's a personal choice. It didn't bother you, but it could certainly bother others.</p>

3

<p>For a campus to be genuinely preppy two things have to be present: 1) lots of money AND, 2) a general indifference to how that might look to other people. Lots of colleges, especially back east, are full of wealthy kids. But, they generally try hard not to flaunt it. The ones that do, IMO, are preppies.</p>

4

<p>"Or is "preppy" a holier-than-thou attitude"</p>

<p>This. It doesn't bother me in the least when people have money. It doesn't bother me when they spend that money on really nice, expensive clothes, cars, or whatever. What makes someone preppy is thinking that they are better than someone else because they have those things. THAT bothers me.</p>

5

<p>Well, when I describe a college as preppy, I usually mean: Preppy attire in abundance, lots of country club kids, lots of BMWs. They don't necessarily flaunt it, but they don't hide it either. This is, I think, the standard definition. </p>

<p>"Preppy" is not a synonym for snotty. I'm not talking about mean girls here. Just a preppy student body. It's not a bad thing - but the style isn't right for everyone. </p>

<p>Vanderbilt, for example, is very preppy. So is Wake Forest. Both have really nice people, but they're defnitely preppy.</p>

6

<p>yeah i adhere to world changer's definition.</p>

<p>i think of it as a dress, a style, if i meant it to be an attitude, i would probably call a place "elitist."</p>

7

<ul>
<li><p>University of Miami in Coral Gables is quite preppy.
the area around campus does foster that country club/preppy atmosphere as Coral Gables has about 5 country clubs in the area, 3 of them a few blocks from campus. On campus you see BMW's, Benz etc.. </p></li>
<li><p>Boston University: I have a few friends who have gone there. some love it and one transferred. I like the ritzy atmosphere but not everyone does. well BU is really preppy. you definately see it in the student body. thats what everyone who has gone there has told me.</p></li>
</ul>

8

<p>I see these different definitions... and I agree that "preppy" isn't necessarily a bad thing (flaunting money to the point of being insensitive, yeah) and might even be a derogatory term for "normal."</p>

<p>I have to agree, though, that "rich" and "preppy" are not necessarily the same. A lot of my friends are wealthy, are Exeter grads, but if you met them at a party you would never know it. Then again, I know a few kids who like to think that they are the best, most perfect, most precious thing that ever happened. And these kids are not necessarily the ones that have had zillions of dollars to spend.</p>

<p>Do preps look alike? Dress alike? Act alike? Do you consider a "prep" to have a certain kind of personality?</p>

9

<p>
[quote]
Vanderbilt, for example, is very preppy.

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</p>

<p>Do you attend Vanderbilt? Have you even been there? Or are you just repeating a stereotype? I'm asking because this is the opinion I, and my son, held until a few months ago. Then, we visited three times and found the stereotype to be untrue. I don't doubt is used to be true, but I think the appearance--and even the make up--of the student body is changing.</p>

<p>Sure hope so, because my son is headed there, and he is as unpreppy as you can get.</p>

10

<p>
[quote]
Do preps look alike? Dress alike? Act alike? Do you consider a "prep" to have a certain kind of personality?

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I think "preppy" is fundamentally an attitude: people who were born with a lot of money and advantages and move through upper-class spheres their entire lives without ever acknowledging their privilege. Plus the people who concern themselves with image and prestige in order to emulate this group.</p>

<p>This attitude manifests through behavior that's entitled, elitist, and exclusive. I also associate "preppy" with a focus on following name-brand fashion trends, and expensive clothing and accessories, though that isn't universally true by any means.</p>

<p>Of the schools I've visited, Williams struck me as overwhelmingly the most preppy.</p>

11

<p>midmo, does your thoughts on "preppy" run the same way as previously stated?</p>

<p>I have to say that the students I know at Vandy are a mixed bunch in a great way. Some are more superficially concerned than others, but speaking as somebody who buys everything from the Gap to be as indistinct fashion-wise as possible, I would be extremely comfortable around them. They are smart kids who don't turn their noses up at people who act, dress, or think differently from themselves.</p>

12

<p>Where I'm from, preppy = the popular, A-crowd people. Simple as that.</p>

13

<p>
[quote]
I have to say that the students I know at Vandy are a mixed bunch in a great way. Some are more superficially concerned than others, but speaking as somebody who buys everything from the Gap to be as indistinct fashion-wise as possible, I would be extremely comfortable around them. They are smart kids who don't turn their noses up at people who act, dress, or think differently from themselves.

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<p>unalove, I think my son came away with the same impression.</p>

<p>What I half-expected to see: lots of polo shirts and pressed khakis, females who took and hour and a half to get dressed for the day, hair just so, superficial people who placed academics a distant second to socializing with the right people.</p>

<p>What I actually saw: students who looked like students anywhere, acted like students anywhere and took their studies seriously.</p>

<p>Here's an anecdote that might be relevant: at summer orientation, a slide was shown of the rather formal ceremony at which all incoming students sign a pledge to abide by the school's honor code. In the slide, many of the students were wearing sports coats, ties, girls in nice dresses, etc. I asked about this at a Q&A session with students since my son only dresses like that if forced to do so, and the students told me that slide was way out of date, and most students would wear normal clothes. At that, a well put-together middle aged mom spoke up loudly and said her alumni group told her she should send her son to VU with a tux because there would be 5 or 6 occasions that required tuxes. The student panel burst out laughing. I think the alums of a certain generation might be surprised at some changes that have occurred over the last few years.</p>

<p>I'm a little sensitive to the Preppy talk because I support Vanderbilt's attempt to broaden its appeal and attract the very best students from across the nation, and I think that effort is harmed by old stereotypes.</p>

14

<p>"Do you attend Vanderbilt? Have you even been there? Or are you just repeating a stereotype?"</p>

<p>I've been on campus once, a few years ago. I did see a lot of polos, but who knows? Things may have changed since then. I love Vanderbilt though. It's actually one of my top choice schools.</p>

15

<p>"Where I'm from, preppy = the popular, A-crowd people. Simple as that."</p>

<p>That may be the way people use the word, but it's not the correct definition. Preppy is a style, characterized by polos, argyle, J.Crew...the kinds of clothing traditionally seen at prep schools, hence the name.</p>

16

<p>The definition of a word is based on the majority of the use of the word, not on what it "should" be. In essence, it's description, not prescription (just like most dictionaries). To high school students, "preppy" means the A-crowd, but it is indeed derived from the rich students who attend prep schools.</p>

17

<p>an accurate definition from urban dictionary:</p>

<p>
[quote]

"preppy" has come to mean the opposite or "punk" or "goth"-meaning unoriginal and stuck up, which is completely unfair to the true meaning of preppy.
(so yes, those of you who define preppy as:LOVES A+F, PINK, MAKEUP,MAKING FUN OF GOTHS and CHEERLEADING!!!!! are wrong)</p>

<p>the definition:
"preppy" is a lifestyle; that of many well-to-do and often "waspy" families of New England and New York; most preppy teenagers have been preppy since birth; have attended private/boarding schools in New England all of their lives; enjoy sophisticated, lifelong sports such as (but not restricted to)tennis, sailing, skiing, and golf. Many live in classically preppy areas such as New Canaan, CT; the North Shore, MA; Westchester County, NY; and Greenwich, CT. Many also have second or third homes in Vermont for skiing, or Nantucket/Block Island/Cape Cod for summers.
Many are legacies at boarding schools/colleges in the North East, many are talented but party as hard as they work; Most are old money (see wasp) but there are "nouveau riche" preps who may prefer more modern customs (ie. abercrombie etc) than the timeless classics of the "wasp" lifestyle.
Preppy clothing designers include (but are not limited to):
Lilly Pulitzer, Ralph Lauren, Petit Bateau, J.Crew, Anthropologie, Patagonia, Birkinstock, Brooks Brothers, Lacoste, C.K. Bradley, L.L. Bean, the North Face, etc.
Preppy Designers do NOT include:
Abercrombie and Fitch, Express, American Eagle, The Limited, Guess, Aeropostale, etc.
HOWEVER: preppy items may be found at many of these locations (ex: nantucket red girls chinos at American Eagle)
Preppy (girls) essentials include:
ribbon belts,minimal makeup (or better, none), minimal hair styling, pearls, oxfords, polos, chinos, birkinstock clogs, sauconys, headbands, cableknit sweaters, brightly colored pants, cropped pants, jack rogers sandals, lilly pulitzer sundresses, longchamp/herve chapelier/vineyard vines/ll bean totes, patagonia fleeces, reef sandals, JCrew bathing suits, rainbow sandals,moccasins/topside rs, and many more.
preppy (boys) essentials include:
brightly colored baseball hats, rainbow sandals, Ralph Lauren polo shirts (in ALL colors- the brighter the better), nautical rope bracelets, nantucket red khakis, messy/unkempt hair (or minimal styling), other brightly colored khakis/shorts, crewneck sweaters, flannel/plaid oxfords, rope belts, striped ties, vineyard vines ties, LL bean boots, patagonia fleeces, navy blazers + khakis, topsiders, and much more.</p>

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18

<p>Well, that obviously isn't accurate. By that definition, there are very, very few preppies out there (in comparison to the total # teenagers), and if that were true, the word "preppy" wouldn't be so prevalent across the country in public schools.</p>

19

<p>aeropostale and abercrombie are one definition of the word, but post #17 is another.</p>

20

<p>It actually is very accurate. That is the true -- or at least original -- meaning of prep.</p>

<p>It is in fact a lifestyle; however, the definition has become distorted so much by the "nouveau riche" and even by the middle class attempting to emulate the wardrobe. </p>

<p>Sadly, people fail to understand Ambercrombie is NOT genuine prep</p>