<p>Okay, so yesterday I visited the campus, loved it, and definitely wanna go here. But... there are always, for almost any school, those stereotypes that hold you back. Some things I've heard about Lehigh which I was wondering how true they are, and if it really effects the overall experience
like:
-It's extremelyyy preppy and completely undiverse ( I mean, I'm white from a middle class NJ area, but I'm in noo way rich, snobby, or only wear Abercrombie).
-There's absolutely nothing to do but frat parties (and while I'm completely love that! I'm scared once it gets old I'll end up completely bored)</p>
<p>well, what was your experience yesterday as you walked around yesterday--did it seem preppy and undiverse? i am on campus about once a week (i live in the area) and i regularly see people who appear to be asians and hispanics. go a block off campus (and you will when you are a student, for housing, shopping, etc) and you will see as many hispanics as you see whites. it's not exactly california, but it's not montana either.</p>
<p>i get the regular lehigh emails about campus activities, and there are constantly activities hosted by the student center, there's music and drama, and what you'd find in more other smaller-size cities as far as shopping, dining, and entertainment. however, a current student would need to answer your questions about what the students actually take part in. your college experience is up to you--i have had students come back from various universities and visit me and say they worried too much about the surrounding area--they spend their time studying, hanging with friends, going to parties, going to friendly's at midnight--basically stuff you can do anywhere. </p>
<p>so if you loved it there yesterday, i'd take that as a good sign and let yourself be excited that you found a potential home for the next four years!</p>
<p>I graduated engineering in 2006, so I can give you a pretty good idea of the atmosphere. I am from rural PA, about 30 minutes from Lehigh. I came to Lehigh from a typical middle class family, Lehigh covered most of my tuition through financial aid.</p>
<p>It was definitely a bit of a shock in terms of how much some people flaunted thier money (BMWs/Audis...etc). After getting to know the campus there are many different groups of people from all economic backgrounds. There are the straight preppy kids (chi phi/figi), but there are also techies, artsy kids, athletes, stoners...it is actually a more socially diverse campus than many others I have visited. Everyone gets along pretty well, with the exceptions of a few of the frats/sororites. Dont worry about the preppy aspect...its not really that relevant after freshman year.</p>
<p>In terms of social life... I was in a frat, I would recommend being in a frat, but not required. I would say you should try to participate in some major activity in college. Whether it is a fraternity, varsity sports, club sports...etc. Freshman year is all about the frats, they are the parties most people go to and 30-40% of students join. Even if you don't want to pledge, make sure to rush a few houses. Houses usually have a lot of activites for freshman to do other than drink (sporting events, concerts...). After freshman year the fraternity aspect becomes much less of an issue. If you don't go greek, there are plenty of non-greek parties.</p>
<p>Personally I was big into the party scene, I also had friends that weren't, so when you don't feel like going out, there is always something else to do and other people to hang out with. Make as many friends across different groups as you can and you will have a great time. My junior and senior year I lived with a varsity swimmer, a non-greek english major, a brother in my fraternity, and an guy a year younger than us that we didn't know (brought him in since the other kid we were going to live with dropped out). Made for an interesting year, 5 different social groups coming together made for a good time. Lehigh truly has a work hard/party hard atmosphere, when I wasn't studying I was having a good time (most nights of the week) and graduated with honors.</p>
<p>Let me know if you have any questions, would be happy to provide some more info.</p>
<p>i am an asian student and right now i am really concerned with the "racism" that's supposedly going on in Lehigh. Do you think this is the right place for me? Also, based on your experiences in this University, how did you think the minorities went through their years?</p>