I just visited Gettysburg and I thought the campus was very nice. My oldest child is still a sophomore in High School, and she wasn’t with me. I was just in the area.
I was very pleasantly surprised, especially with the kids. I was expecting a bunch of rich, snobby kids, but from what I could tell, the kids seemed very down to earth. I was surprised by the diversity of the kids, too. Not racial diversity, but I did see more black and Asian kids than I was expecting to see.
What did surprise me was the diversity in the types of kids. I was mostly just observing, but I did talk to a few kids. I expected the place to be filled with beautiful people, and mostly jocky looking kids, but it seemed like there was a good mix. I saw a lot of kids that looked kind of nerdy. I asked one freshman girl for directions, and she talked to me for around 5 minutes. She was a very sweet and very mature kid. She was a non drinker and was in the coed service fraternity - Alpha Phi Omega.
I left there feeling really good about the school. I ate in the cafeteria and all the kids I saw go up and order food seemed like very polite, nice kids. I’m not sure why I was expecting otherwise, but I got a really good impression of the kids.
One other thing that surprised me was that kids seemed very dressed down. It was around 4 in the afternoon on a Saturday, so maybe that shouldn’t be surprising, but most of the boys were in sweats, and most of the girls were in very casual clothes.
Does anyone else have any impressions or direct experience with the students at Gettysburg?
Except for a very small number of schools, the attire you saw is very typical. Just saying. Times have changed. Your impression does not seem off base – but I have never had the impression that G’burg is full of beautiful people to start with, it sounds like what I would expect.
Thanks @intparent. Yeah, I don’t know where I got those expectations about Gettysburg, but it was a nice surprise.
As far as the dress goes, I think visiting Sewanee recently warped my my expectations of how kids dress on campus at LACs. I know the southern schools are more known for dressing up, but for some reason I thought Gettysburg might be preppy and dressy.
My son went to Gettysburg. Its an amazing place! I loved going to visit its a great town. They really do everything right.
Those 4 years go really fast enjoy every moment.
@WalknOnEggShells I think you saw a pretty typical Saturday afternoon at Gettysburg, at least in my experience. Nice kids. Nice manners. That is not to say that there isn’t a Greek, partying segment of the student body too. Swing past the frats on Saturday night and you might be surprised. There is also definitely a preppy group, they even sell Vineyard Vines in the bookstore! Mostly a well adjusted student body. Not very diverse now but I know they keep trying to diversify. Maybe by the time your daughter is ready to look at schools they will have improved on that! Best of luck with the search.
I attended GC for one semester and left. I come from a middle class town in NJ and I have honestly never met such snobby people in my entire life. Don’t get me wrong, there are some great people there, but the whole social atmosphere is based off of where you’re from and what your parents do for a living. Academically, I did pretty well, and finished with an A- GPA, but I just couldn’t take the atmosphere. These are real conversations I heard at GC:
“She’s pretty weird, but she does have a trust fund.”
“You don’t understand, you’re from the ghetto”
“She’s so poor… I heard both of her parents didn’t go to college”
“Did they teach you how to write a paper in public school?”
I look back and laugh now, but these people were 100% serious. I thank god I got out of that place everyday…
If you find your niche it’s a great place, but I’m just speaking from my own experience.
Also, as for the casual wear on a Saturday, that’s pretty normal. Everyone doesn’t get out of bed on Saturday unless it’s to eat or go to a day party. As for class attire, I literally never saw anyone wear sweatpants besides the occasional lacrosse player the entire time I was there.
I attend a very large private school now (Syracuse University) and could not be happier. The social atmosphere is amazing, and there is a ton of diversity. Almost everyone I know here loves the school.
Honestly, I really do miss all of my professors and the academic atmosphere at GC. It is such an amazing school filled with professors who genuinely want to see their students succeed.
Good luck to your daughter! My best advice is to spend a night and get to know the students at the school before making a decision.
At the end of the day, I learned a lot from my time at GC, and am beyond grateful to be at the school I am now.
Sadly, every school has some bad apples and I’m glad nj1818 has found a home!
S1 graduated from Gettysburg '13 and loved everything. The kids were overwhelmingly friendly, the professors were engaged and extremely helpful, the campus and services available were terrific. No school is right for every student, and although I can’t refute the horrible quotes above, my impression over a 4 year period mirrored the initial impression of the original poster: smart, kind, sporty, and relaxed student body.
Delayed reaction, but good for you @nj1818. I know two people who went to Syracuse and both loved it. It’s good that you made the move. I wanted to transfer almost the whole time I was in college, but never pulled the trigger.
Times have changed. Your impression does not seem off base – but I have never had the impression that G’burg is full of beautiful people to start with, it sounds like what I would expect.