Emerson: The Big Picture
The best thing about Emerson is that no matter how weird you are, you're never the weirdest one. I could show up to school in a potato sack and a shower cap, and people will still be talking about the girl who glues the strip of mesh over her eyes.
When I tell people I go to Emerson, most people either 1) Don't know of the school because it has no sports teams (and the rest of Boston is incredibly sports-centric), so I have to say "you know, that theater school near Suffolk. or 2) Back away, and ask if i'm straight.
I don't spend any time on campus because there really is no good congregational space. I'm a commuter, and I don't have a meal plan so I never go in the dining hall. Though there is no hardcore campus scene, it is in a vibrant city filled with culture. You have theater, concerts, sporting events, readings, museums, tastings... tons of stuff to do.
Emerson is in one of the biggest college towns- you've got BU, BC, MIT, Suffolk, Berklee, and the MA Institute of Art. So once you're sick of fellow Emersonians, you can always go to some jazz club and find eccentric Berklee kids, or go to a college hockey tournament and find Boston University bro-dudes. And then there's the outskirts of Boston, Allston "rock city." If you don't get housing at Emerson (only 50% do), and love the hipster scene... move here. All-night parties of pot smoking and PBR drinking, Daft Punk dance parties, basement punk shows, everything hipper-than-thou. And this is why the working-class of Boston hates when school is in session.
School Pride: There's always mixed feelings about Emerson. Everyone likes to make fun of it, and the hipster scum that attends it. But secretly, everyone that makes fun of it ARE the ones wearing leggings and taking blurry, out of focus, black and white Myspace pictures. They ARE the ones who name-drop obscure literary or film figures. They ARE the ones who love Post-Modernism (or Po-Mo).
Emerson Academic Life
I must say, as much stupid scenester drama that there is at Emerson- it is a great Academic school. Most professors have real-life experience, they have written, published, or designed books and magazines. I've had a current playwright, a former editor of Boston Magazine, a prize winning poet, a science fiction author-in-residence... just tons of real writing experience.
Some professors really care about you, they offer themselves after-class, and have meetings with students to make sure they're really getting everything. And some teachers just don't care- it's their job, they go in, teach, leave, and don't talk to you ever again. For the most part, the teachers have real passion about their field, and you can tell.
Class participation is extremely common- Emersonians love to hear themselves talk, and love to state the obvious. This is especially prevalent in Ethics, Philosophy, and Literature classes. They often take these conversations outside class, to the local Starbucks. Not because they are sincerely passionate about the subject, but because they are hoping that someone will hear them name-drop Proust and either ask them out because they're so deep, or offer them a job so they won't be homeless when they graduate.
One thing I'd change- Emerson makes it super-easy to get out of having to take any math, science, or foreign language requirements. I didn't have to take any of those classes because I either scored well on my SAT, or took four years of them in high school. Because of this, many Emersonians lack basic quantitative reasoning skills, and can't do basic math.
The education at Emerson is definitely NOT geared towards getting a job- it leans more towards the "enlightening" a young mind side of things. Everyone knows that writing, film, and theater aren't very practical studies, and it will be tough to break into these fields post-graduation. There's even a Facebook group called "I'm going to Emerson so I can be homeless when I graduate."
Emerson's Student Body
Emerson College, though it may be super liberal and "tolerant" (we have trans-friendly bathrooms), is quite possibly, the least diverse school in America. Especially for being a campus in a major city.
Oh, and they're tolerant to everything except conservativism, and un-pc humor. You'll feel out of place if you've ever been in the military or right-winged. They will scoff at you if you like Fox News. You're beneath them if you're Republican. Even tolerance has its limits at Emerson.
When students go to class, they dress as if they are going to Chateau Marmeunt with Mary-Kate Olsen- giant sunglasses, giant bags, leggings- all the latest hipster trends. And guys dress like they're the next scene band- tight jeans, long sideswept bangs, impeccable eyebrows. They compensate for lack of individuality and personality by wearing outrageous, tacky, and loud clothes.
Emerson is a giant campus of trust-funders who hide it by wearing Salvation Army clothes. About 90% of Emerson are white kids whose parents are putting them through college so that they can become the next big actor or E! News correspondant.
Emerson Student Activities + Social Life
Biggest groups involve gay, lesbian, trans, women's rights. They're totally into "open-mindedness" and being progressive.
Athletics are virutally invisible. There's a shirt that the bookstore sells that says "Emerson Football" on the front, and "still undefeated" on the back, which is funny because we don't have a football team.
I'm pretty sure we've got a baseball team and maybe a hockey team. But they slip under the radar of importance. If you're super into sports, you'll have a real hard time finding anyone that cares, or looking for a good sports debate.
Partying involves lots of dancing to daft punk, hipster music, or obscure techno. It also involves either cheap beer like PBR and Miller High Life, or energy drinks and vodka. Lots of pot smoking, cigarette smoking, and clove smoking as well.
Emerson Naked Truth
Emerson College: Wholly responsible for keeping the words "postmodern" and "aristotilean" in the vernacular.
Emerson College: We're unique in the exact same way!
