<p>I have read reviews at theu.com studentreviews.com and some of them have been positive and some have been negative. I was mainly wondering about 2 things. Is the university really filled with preppy rich kids, who dress in $150 lacoste polos and drive BMW, and are shallow for looks only and therefore spend all there time working out , and are extremely politically conservative? (which results in a completely homogenous student body where according to the reviews it is nearly impossible to stand out and be liked) I really do like Richmond, but I am worried about going to a school where the student body is completely diffent than me. I am middle class and somewhat modest. My wardore isn't filled with many Abercrombie clothes, and definetely not any Lacoste, and I am not the best looking around. I mean I have a little extra stuff around my waist from summers of not doing much. I'm Politically moderate. I just really want to know it Richmond has a student body that does stiffle a lot of out-of-the-box-ness. Also, is it true that the university is actually trying to deflate grades and make it extremely diificult to get an A or a B? (I'd be fine if I got a B).</p>
<p>Starone, you have read one of the very exaggerated opinions of our student body, but I’m glad that you’re inquiring about it rather than just believing it right away. Yes, there are plenty of people here who wear Lacoste clothes. Yes, there are many people here who are skinny. As as far as the BMW’s - you’ll see tons of them. But not everyone is like that. And most of the people who do actually hold those traits do not act “rich”. Sure, some people do, but you learn to avoid them. And the rest of the things you stated are totally false, so please take them with a grain of salt.</p>
<p>Our campus is approximately 50% conservative. I don’t remember where I read that, but it seems true to me. You hear just as many liberal voices on campus as you do conservative, in my opinion. 50% IS a high number compared to most other liberal arts schools, but in no way does it make our campus extremely politically conservative.</p>
<p>I come from a simliar background as you - I hold moderate beliefs, come from a modest family income, and had never heard of most of the designer names some of my friends wear here on a daily basis. But does that bother me? No. In no way do I feel “different” because my clothes didn’t cost $300. Nobody really cares what other people wear. They just wear those clothes because they have the money to do so.</p>
<p>As far as not being able to stand out or be liked, that’s a really far-fetched statement and not true at all. While yes, a lot of students on campus do tend to dress the same and come from similar backgrounds, not everyone is like that, and we’re all very different people with different interests, talents, and the ability to accept others for who they are.</p>
<p>Oh, and p.s. - if a lot of students here work out, it’s because of our awesome, brand-new fitness center.</p>
<p>I agree with Kelly ^^</p>
<p>About the grade deflation thing… I suppose it depends on the classes you take. Sometimes, it’s easy to get an A or a B. Most of the time, I work my butt off to get high Bs/As. I am an English major, btw, but I’ve taken classes in history, theater, classics/latin, journalism…</p>
<p>I’m a lot like you Starone :p. A similar concern turned me off from another college that I had previously liked. I really like Richmond though. The students who I bumped into down there were all friendly.</p>
<p>i think iim a lot like starone and 1 sky pilot. im visiting the 13th for the realize richmond thing. im pretty excited. i really like richmond academically, but im not so sure about the social aspect. my dad knows 2 professors down there and he emailed them and one said i would hate it down there and only wrote like 2 sentences. he basically said everyone was rich, white, preppy, and conservative, and the other said she thought id be fine because the university’s diversity is primarily in international students, ethnicity, religion, and economic level. so im basically right back where i started. i cant make a decision until i visit.
hey, on the plus side, if we all three end up there and hate everyone, it looks like we might not hate each other =)</p>
<p>Wow. I’m sorry that a professor would say such a negative thing about our student body. That’s actually really depressing.</p>
<p>Also, I don’t mean to repeat myself, but don’t ignore that I am similar to you guys too… and I’m a student here at UR. So… I don’t know. If you want to let the stereotypes affect your decision go ahead but again I remind you to not believe everything you read…</p>
<p>which is why im visiting.</p>
<p>I am really excited that I got into U of Richmond everything was great until I realized something.
The campus is REALLY small (enrollment wise). </p>
<p>Since I am studying for international studies and such, I was hoping for a large and hopefully diverse student body. But furthermore, I was hoping for a decent gay population too cause that is a considerable deciding factor for me. All the other schools I have gotten into have decent number and I know are pretty accepting. </p>
<p>How does U of Richmond fare?</p>
<p>D187, how did you apply to a school and without knowing the size? Our daughter wouldn’t apply to any school over about 3,000 students b/c she wants to attend a small school, with small classes, etc. rather than feel “lost” in a large university (that’s just HER preference). I cannot imagine you did not figure this out before applying!</p>
<p>d187,</p>
<p>UR doesn’t have a large student body. It’s 2800-3000 students. I believe most of our diversity comes from international students. URAdmissions can talk more about that, I think, and there’s been a lot of discussion of diversity on campus in this forum, so you might want to look for that, too. There is not what I would call a “big” gay population on campus. The LGBQT community on campus is making itself known, though. There have been a lot of lectures/programs targeting that area of diversity and sponsored by the community to promote discussion. Check out our student newspaper thecollegianur.com to learn more about what they’re doing.</p>