<p>Now don't get me wrong, I enjoy hanging out with everyone. I'm from California and I go to a school with mostly white people and I have no problem. But a lot of people warn me that IU will be different, that I will face prejudice and it is very segregated. I don't like to think these things as I have never experienced. For you students of either race, how is life at IU for a minority, do you get along with them? Or is it very segregated?</p>
<p>No issue in applying, but make sure you do an overnight before you decide if you want to go there for school. By doing the overnight you can determine if it is the right fit for you.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>junior64… I am not African American but I also live in California. My high school is very diverse and liberal so I also have questioned if I will “fit in” at Indiana. You might want to contact your admissions rep for your area. I talked with mine and she was very candid about the pros and cons of IU.</p>
<p>
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<p>Such as . . . ?</p>
<p>Cons:Large school, a lot of in-state students, expensive for out-of state, cold winters (for California students), conservative</p>
<p>Pros:OK racial/religious diversity, a lot of clubs, groups that can make large school seem smaller, good number of international students, good merit aid, solid academics, good housing options</p>
<p>Will dig up email and see if I missed anything</p>
<p>Thanks for sharing yankees…These are the same concerns my D has while not African American, her group of friends is very diverse (religion, ethnic background, and sexual orientation) We are in the Northeast. She attends an urban magnet school. She loves the thought of IU but has some of those same concerns. </p>
<p>I personally think her current school is a bit of an outlier in how accepting and integrated the students are.</p>
<p>Yup, agree, thanks. Very helpful.</p>
<p>I definitely wouldn’t label IU as conservative, despite being in a ‘red’ state. We’re extremely accepting, and have a very lively GLBT community</p>
<p>Any time you choose to go to an OOS public university, you should be aware that there will likely be many kids who all know each other coming from various high schools in that state, and you may well feel lonely. My son was warned about this being the only one in his class to go to his college choice. At any number of his other choices, he would have known some folks or had some degrees of attachment if not primary with a number of people. When you go several states away, and more than 4-5 hours drive, that is no longer the case. He has found the social scene tough as a result as he has been used to knowing most of his classmates for a very long time. He’s found that others seem to know everyone or have a lot of points in common with each other whereas he is the new guy in town.</p>
<p>I guess conservative is a relative term. Like nellieh my high school is very diverse. I think that when you come from either the West Coast and East Coast there is going to be an adjustment period. </p>
<p>Soccergurl you posted that IU has “a very lively GLBT community” that is fantastic but I believe the concern lies in how the people who are not part of those types of communities treat others. </p>
<p>cptofthehouse thank you for input/insight. I am also a little worried about the social aspect of being OOS</p>
<p>Junior64 I am going to give my honest opinion about IU and address your questions, keep in mind that these are only my opinions. First and foremost I must say that Bloomington is not conservative in any since of the word. Trust me. Both Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama visited during the democratic primaries back in early 2008 and it was called the most gay friendly town or city in the US. As far as race plays a factor it will be a change for you. There are very few African Americans on campus, very few. Coming from a high school that was over 50% African American and Latino I was shocked when I go to IU to see very little diversity in those areas. That is not to say that neither is represented well on campus or that neither has an impact on IU, but that the numbers are very small. IU touts that we have great diversity, and we do, but only in breadth not depth. On the other hand the African American community here is fairly strong for its smaller numbers, with multiple groups and societies and the same goes for all ethnic and diversity groups. That is not to say that you have to do any of those programs or that others won’t accept you but that there exist many opportunities outside the majority white population. The atmosphere at IU and Bloomington as a whole is very accepting, its just that not enough people attend who are not part of the majority. As for being OOS honestly if you are willing to look this far then I’m guessing you are social enough to fit right in. I’ve come in contact with easily 20 people from California this year and countless from else where. 80% of IU is in-state but that means that over 6,000 undergraduates are not from Indiana, quite a few I would say. In reality you have to visit IU if you want to get a good glimpse of the many things that make IU great and some not-so-great.</p>
<p>mrlinkcc…“As for being OOS honestly if you are willing to look this far then I’m guessing you are social enough to fit right in.” </p>
<p>Very good point</p>
<p>I think the percentage of Indiana residents is closer to 65%, and non-residents make up about 35%. This is according to the info we received a few years ago. That’s a larger number of out-of-state students than you’d find at some other large public universities.</p>
<p>If I am not mistaken a large portion of the OOS come from Illinois and Ohio</p>
<p>The common data set has OOS at 29% for the most recent incoming class. That’s a significant number for a state university. Certain schools (Kelley) are probably closer to 45-50% OOS. </p>
<p>Illinois, not Indiana, was the most represented state at the Kelley DA weekend last Spring.</p>
<p>Per the common data set, counting international students, IU ugrad (including the 502 part time students) is 62.4% instate and 37.6% OOS+International students. For some reason, the 69% instate figure from the common data set excludes counting international students.</p>
<p>Per the 2011-12 cds, a lot of international students are part-time.</p>
<p>Part time ugrad percentage within each group
Aliens 8.9
Hispanic 0.8
Black 0.4
White 0.7
Asian 1.6</p>
<p>Honestly, I think that if you’re coming from any location to ANY school (be it California to Indiana, or Florida to Oregon, or whatever), you’re going to find that that location is different from what you were used to. Just because it’s different doesn’t make it bad.</p>
<p>Bottom line: IU is extremely accepting of all ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, and personalities. Just because the state tends to be more conservative doesn’t mean that IU is.</p>
<p>I’m an OOS, African American student from Georgia and I had no problem being at IU. I got made fun of more in high school for being “white” than I do now. The only thing that happens to me if because I’m “white” people make jokes saying that I fit the African American stereotype and like I said they are joking. Trust me when I say that you may be the second black friend that some of these people have. A guy told me that he only had one black friend and it’s not his fault it’s just the area that they are from.</p>
<p>You will be in good shape. The people are nice and the education is top notch.</p>
<p>Mom of OOS student here–(we ARE from a nearby state, tho). My D is very liberal. (VERY). She initially resisted idea of even looking at IU because to her mind Indiana was very conservative. She LOVES b-town. Lots to do, and lots of different kinds of people. She has friends from all over–Chicago, Texas, east coast, and of course neighboring midwest states and Indiana itself.</p>
<p>She has found a niche at IU, loves the alternative music scene, outdoorsy pursuits, etc.</p>
<p>That said, there is also a huge frat scene, party scene, etc–she didn’t want that and IU is big enough so students with different social preferences can find a niche.</p>