University of Notre Dame Top Questions

The student body at Notre Dame is very homogenous. Most students are from well-off, white, Catholic families that were raised on basically the same values. It makes it easy sometimes to relate to people, but it greatly hurts the attitude of the student body because they are not exposed to a wide range of races, religions and incomes, which is what the nation is really made up of. I feel it would be hard for a minority in any of the three previously mentioned catagories to feel entirely at home on this campus.

Very homogonous. There is no diversity, and everyone is relatively similar. This is a huge positive, but perhaps an even bigger negative.

people are too conscious and affirmative action sucks. probably a gay student would feel out of place here, unless he/she were comfortable with him/herself and willing to make normal friends. students wear jeans and sweatshirts to class. we joke that it's the "uniform" of girls at ND. different types of students interact. about 1/4 of the students are from the midwest, and then 2/3 of the rest are from elsewhere in the US. the rest are international. financial backgrounds: mostly middle class, but its not uncommon to meet someone aboslutely loaded. students say they're politically aware, and someetimes they know what they're talking about. no. students joke about their future jobs because we all know we're going to end up rich if we just follow the conveyor belt with our super ND diplomas. if only we could make it to graduation.

Like I said before, it's conservative and religious. Of course, not every student falls into these categories, and you can seek them out, but they're not the norm. Most people are catholic, but the degree to which they follow their faith is all of the place. A ton of people are permiscuous on Saturdays and religious on Sunday. Some people are able to really embrace their faith though, and find others who have similar views and "higher morals". Students don't dress up for class, period. Maybe like 3 girls do. Sweats/Jeans/Sweat-shirt is the norm. Theres a stereotype that ND girls are ugly, and that they only look good on Fridays. To some extent that's true, because they go from sweats and no make-up to a skanky top and lipstick on Friday night. Everyone is athletic, there is always someone jogging by, and as a whole everyone is healthy. Although a conservative school, people arent really aware of whats going on outside the ND bubble. There aren't protests or political action, and if there is, only like 3 people participate. Minorities generally stick together, but everyone is friendly and interacts with one another.

One downside to the background of Notre Dame is the overpopulation of conservatives. I don't mean republicans, but I mean those who are so afraid of losing our tradition (which does define the college) that they don't want to grow. Individually, students are open minded, but as a mass, there are some general moods that are possibly homophobic and anti-non-Catholics. I, of course, push the liberal view as much as possible, as a Devil's advocate. Students love to think they'll be loaded some day. It's funny that the Bible is so against that..

I can understand why any minority group could feel out of place on Notre Dame's campus because there is not huge diversity on campus. Like I said before I have never felt like there has been racial or socioeconomic issues/tension at any even I have been at, however, I have heard that it exists. I know some people find it almost surprising at how many black people I know or hang out with and I thought it was bit of a sad commentary because I had never noticed before. I feel like for the most part people are very welcoming and open to other people's thoughts and cultures and for the most part respect them as long as they get a chance to learn about them. I feel like there certainly is an effort to support events that will encourage open talking and action, people just don't always take part in them. I feel that most Notre Dame students are predominately from upper class or higher middle class white families. I feel like part of this is due to legacy, what types of people originally came to Notre Dame, but I also feel like Notre Dame caters to a specific type of person. I do feel like students are politically aware. I can't say that I know whether people are truly predominately in one direction, but there certainly is a significant amount of conservatives on campus that definitively control the direction of things on campus. But discussion is certainly encouraged and I do think that people are welcome to discuss controversial topics on campus. I think that people do occasionally talk about how much they'll earn one day, but more so students are known to compete with each other rather than talking about what kinds of jobs they hope to get.

my faith has increased surmountably ever since coming to ND. the religious environment helps me cement my faith, learn more about it and find my place within my religion. i've learned a lot after to coming to ND. because i have become more knowledgeable about my religion, i'm able to support and argue for it well. the dorm masses really inculcate a spirit of inclusion into the faith life and community life. masses truly inspire us. praying "our father" and holding hands really had a great psychological impact on my life. and for that im truly blessed and greatful.

Notre Dame is a somewhat homogenous community, but I don't think that differences are suppressed here. Many people tend to be politically right, but a good amount are also liberal. There is a fair amount of political apathy on campus, however, which is frustrating. Students tend to dress casually, but there are those girls who were dresses and heels to class. In the dining halls, people often sit with there dorms at their dorm's table, especially boys dorms. Otherwise, there are the different athletic teams that tend to sit together and often times different ethnic groups will sit together. We have very few people who are out-of-the-box, most tend to try to dress in similar ways and there are few who are eccentric. People set their goals high and some talk about making a solid living in order to be very comfortable after they are settled.

they are okay

Diversity at ND is limited, at best. Sure it's there, but for the most part, if you're white, upper or upper-middle class, Catholic, most likely Irish, and have conservative leanings, most people here are like you. There is a huge geographical range, though, which is fantastic for meeting people. I'm from Chicago, and my three other roommates are from Seattle, Detroit, and Buffalo. Also, a HUGE percentage of the students are athletic, either at the college level, or they varsity lettered in high school and now play intramurals. The gyms are always a hopping place, and it's a little intimidating for those of us without perfectly defined muscles.