Heather

If I were to describe the stereotype of ND students, I would say we are athletic, wealthy, Catholic kids who like to study hard and play hard. We are intelligent, have a strong sense of family, and are not very diverse.

I would say the stereotype is fairly accurate. There are a lot of wealthy students here, but they are not the obnoxious kind of wealthy. They don't flaunt their money. Everyone is incredibly down-to-earth and students use their money to do amazing things for the global community, which they care a lot about.

85% of Notre Dame students are Catholic. That being said, I am not Catholic and I have never felt like the religion was shoved down my throat.

Notre Dame is more diverse than people think, and the University is trying hard to make it even more diverse. However, people tend to hang out with people like them, which is unfortunate.

ND students are incredibly intelligent and work really hard, even though they all try to pretend like they don't. Although there are no sororities or frats, most students party hard on Friday and/or Saturday and then stay in all Sunday doing homework.

Diversity is slim. Because of the Catholic nature of the University, the LGBTQ environment is not as good as I would hope. However, I have many friends who are a part of the LGBTQ scene who love it here. Different ethnic groups tend to associate only with each other, which is unfortunate, but it is also not always the case. Everyone here is pretty much Conservative, which can be pretty frustrating for me when I try to express my own opinions.

I am not Catholic, rich, athletic, or a genius and I still feel right at home here! College is what you make of it. I spent a lot of time worrying about not being Catholic and it held me back, but once I realized no one else cared, things were much better.

Students are from all over the country and all over the world. They are super into volunteering. Everyone wants to volunteer, and there is no doubt in my mind that, someday, a ND student will!

The first thing I should mention is dorms. What sets Notre Dame apart from other schools is our residential system. Compare it to being sorted into a house like at Hogwarts. Everyone thinks their dorm is the best, and there is a big rivalry to win "Hall of the Year." So along with that, popular student activities often are associated with your dorm. Each dorm has a signature event (examples include mud volleyball tournaments, chariot races, etc.) and they do lots of things together as a dorm community. You can also play pretty much any sport (from ping pong to football) for your dorm.

The marching band is huge here. There are tons of other musical groups - choirs, a capella groups, bagpipe bands - you name it!

I'm a little biased, but Student Government is also huge here, and very influential. They plan a ton of events for students and also create changes for students around campus.

There are many religious groups, academic associations, service organizations, etc.

Every year, in the first couple weeks of school there is an activity fair where over 100 student groups set up booths and you can find out more about each one!

For many people, weekends start on Thursdays. Probably because Sunday is a day of work!

Thursday: heading to Fever aka FEVE (if you're 21) or going to the ND nightclub to see a band play, etc.

Friday: Relaxing and lazing around until dinner. Hit up a few different dorm parties starting at 10, then heading off campus to a friend's house for a better party.

Saturday: Wake up late, get brunch in the Dining Hall, be lazy until repeating Friday.

Sunday: Wake up late again, and buckle down on all your homework!

There are lots of variations. I know people who go out 4 or 5 nights a week, and I know people who never stop studying. For me, I usually go out one night (Friday, typically) and stay in on Saturday with just a few friends to either watch a movie or get ahead on my work.

The 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The administration and Student Government coordinated a memorial mass. About 8,000 people attended the ceremony, and continued it with a candlelit procession to the Grotto at dusk. It was an incredibly beautiful and moving sight. Events like that, and the deaths of Declan Sullivan, Xavier Murphy, and other members of our Notre Dame family, are somber occasions and very sad. But there is this wonderful sense of community, hope, and genuine love and care that rises from them. We come together as a family to deal with the loss and hurt and it is a profound experience. In the midst of such sad occasions, this is often when I feel the most at peace with my college decision. I could never ask to be in a more caring environment than Notre Dame.

Parietals are a rule that at 2am on weekends and midnight on weeknights, boys must be out of girls rooms and vice versa. This is a rule that can be broken, but is strictly enforced if you are caught (read: BIG trouble). Students HATE parietals because they infantilize us. While the University sees this as vital to the Catholic identity, I really think they need to treat us as adults and let us make our own lifestyle decisions.

I do see the upside to parietals though. When you get stuck with that random roommate freshman year that wants to have a boy over EVERY SINGLE night, you can kick him out. It forces you to sleep, mingle with your dormmates, etc.

Also, I should mention that although parietals are annoying, it is still possible to hang out with people of the opposite sex "after hours." Every dorm has a 24-hour space where you can study, play ping-pong, or watch TV at any point with anyone. Our student centers and eateries are also open past 12/2.

upper middle class, Catholic white kids (probably Irish) who are smart but love to drink and love football.

I feel like at Notre Dame, boys either want to hook up with you once and never see you again, or they want to marry you.

Because of the single sex dorms, it is more difficult to just be good friends with students of the opposite sex. However, it is not impossible. You just have to work a little harder. And everyone wants to do the same thing, so people are very receptive. The problem disappears as you get through your freshman year.

Because ND students have a strong sense of family, and everyone wants one of their own some day, you get a lot of serious relationships on campus. There is really no casual dating. You're either in a committed relationship, or you are 100% single and doing whatever you want.

You'll hear a lot about "Ring by Spring" where ND girls who are in relationships with ND guys want t be engaged by the time they graduate. While that is mostly a thing of the past, I definitely know a few girls who have that goal.

We have no sororities or fraternities here.

What we do have is a strong residential system, like the houses at Hogwarts. All of our dorms are single-sex, so you live with about 200 other boys or girls. All of the housing is assigned completely randomly, but once you get placed in a dorm, 98% of students stay there for their entire college experience.

Each dorm basically functions like its own sorority or fraternity. Like I said, they are single-sex, so they are already similar. Each dorm has its own dances, social events, charity fundraisers, mascots, colors, etc. There are dorm rivalries and competitions and all kinds of fun. Because every single student is included in the residential system, there is no exclusivity or hurt feelings like those associated with Greek life. And, there is no "rush" cost - just room and board! No hazing. All of the benefits of a tight-knit community with none of the costs!

The Professors here are, for the most part, awesome. They love Notre Dame as much as the students do and are in touch with campus events. They take it easy on us on Football Fridays, since no one is really paying attention. Things like that. They love to see students outside of class -they never act like they have more important things to do. Students are their priority. I even have a professor who holds his office hours on Sunday instead of during the week since "let's be honest- that's when you all do your homework anyway." Professors are required to have four hours of open office time each week for student questions, but most have more than four.

Of course, we have some professors who are absolute duds (lots of Theology teachers ,for example - sad, since we are a Catholic University), but I think that is true of every school. It is definitely the exception, not the rule here.