Some of the most popular student activities/groups on campus include the American Medical Student Association, The Unified Student Government Association, The Football and Basketball Intramural sports leagues, and a variety of others. Athletic events are not very popular. This is because our sports teams are not as great compared to other famous schools that students usually talk about or watch such as University of Illinois and Northwestern University. Guest speaker are somewhat popular because Loyola tends to bring in very notable people. For example, sometime soon, the Dalai Lama is going to visit the school. Theater is very unpopular. No students I know of are in any theater programs or plays and I have not been to one or even heard of one taking place at Loyola. The dating scene is very big at Loyola. Many of my friends have been or are still in a relationship with another Loyola student. I met my closest friends though the floor I lived on at my dorm my freshmen year in college. If I am awake on Tuesday at 2am it is most likely because I am doing homework or studying which is what you would find other Loyola students doing as well. If I am not doing that I am sleeping, or playing video games in my friends room. Many traditions and events happen. One very significant one which many of my friends and I attend is the presidential ball in the fall and the Damen ball which takes place in spring. Both are dances similar to those from high school. Other traditions include Finals Breakfast which is a huge dinner for students offered by the university held the week of finals where breakfast foods are cooked for students and when taking a break from studying, students can come and enjoy them. Another major event is the yearly concert. Last year famous singer Jay Sean performed and the year before that Flo Rida performed. People do not party very often due to the small size of the school. Also, since many students at Loyola are from Illinois, they tend to go home to their families on weekends. Fraternities and sororities are not very important. You don't hear much from them and they are only a few of them at Loyola to begin with. Last weekend a couple of friends and I went to the city of Chicago, which is only a 20 minute bus ride away, and ate dinner at a restaurant there. There is many things to do at Loyola on a Saturday that does not involve drinking. Some of them include going out to the city of Chicago where many restaurant, stores, sights, theaters, and events are located, going to the beach located right next to Loyola if the weather permits, attending an event hosted by Loyola, or going to a party that does not involve drinking ( which there are many of, happening throughout campus). Off campus, I am usually in the city with my friends or back at home with my family, which is an hour drive away from Loyola.

I have no idea. I feel like a lot of students go their separate ways and are involved in smaller clubs. The sports here aren't huge and the sororities and fraternities also play a very small part as well. As a freshman in the dorms, students did not leave their doors open. I found it hard to get involved here and the dating scene is absent. A lot of boys that go here are homosexual, and there isn't a large male population to begin with anyways. Unless you have a fake or are 21, a weekend is usually a time to stay in and watch movies or if you don't mind spending money, to go out on the town.

Every group/club/team is popular in some way to someone. I'm involved with a group called Up 'Til Dawn which raises money for St. Jude Children's Hospital. I met my closes friends at Orientation during the summer before freshman year and through various events. It is not hard to meet people at Loyola. You are constantly making new, awesome friends. If I am awake on Tuesdsay at 2am, it's because I am either studying for an exam or writing a paper. Loyola has different events that take place every year. An all-time favorite that is coming up is Finals Breakfast; a breakfast at 10p.m. on the Tuesday of finals week intended for everyone to take a break from studying, eat, and socialize. People party as much as they want to party. It's a personal decision or choice so there isn't really a standard. Fraternities and sororities are not that important. They exist on campus, but they don't define a person. You have 10,000 options for a Saturday night that doesn't involve drinking...you are in Chicago..the greatest city ever! There is always stuff to do. Off campus I like to go explore the city.

Loyola University has a very stylish, urban student body. Most students are not extreme about it, however, but at the same time you'll find no students going to class in their pajamas. It's all fashion-forward here. There are many hipsters as well. You know, those annoying people with their thick-framed glasses, neck scarves, caveman beards, who do everything "ironically."

Loyola has an amazing mix of students. You can find groups of jocks, frat guys, sorority girls, stoners, geeks, nerds, the list goes on and on. There doesn't seem to be one dominant group, which makes Loyola quite unique. The only thing is that groups seem to stay rather closed-off, so if you don't fall into any one group it makes it harder to make friends.

Loyola University of Chicago is very unique since we are not a large sports school. A lot of students come to Loyola for the Jesuit education they offer. This does not mean it is not a fun school, but it is harder to find a "clique" of friends that you are comfortable with. Greek life is not big, but it is definitely growing with five social fraternities and six social sororities. Social Injustice advocating is also very near and dear to our hearts since we are a Jesuit school. Class sizes are small and getting to know your professors is not hard to do.

The popular sporting events students typically visit are Men's Volleyball and Men's Basketball. Students organizations that people get involved in can include a variety including intramural sports, greek life, social services, etc. Personally, I am involved in an organization called GlobeMed, which provides health care to under-developed countries, USGA, which is the student government association of Loyola, SASA (South Asian Student Alliance), and MSA (Muslim Student Association). Students are very open, especially in the freshmen dorms and quite often leave their doors open and are ready to socialize, as the dorms for upperclassmen get a little more private, so do their lifestyles in the dorms where the doors are often closed. I met my closest friends in my freshmen dorm - which is where most students typically make their friends. People often do "go out" to parties and the city on the weekends, etc. For anyone who doesn't wish to get involved with drinking, there is a DOP (department of programming) which provides late night programs available for all students which can include outings to Chicago, late night movies, etc.

I couldn't imagine myself anywhere else, but it has its downfalls like any other school. If you aren't involved in anything or have a good floor your freshman year you won't like Loyola. Mertz is by far the best freshman dorm to live in if you want to meet people since it is classic dorm-style. Loyola has a major housing problem and doesn't really look out for the students, but they have been improving.

The different types of culture, people, and behaviors one encounters walking to class, the grocery store, or a restaurant is a sociological dream: "Rogers Park is one of the most ethnically diverse neighborhoods in the country" (Christine George, Chicago: Growth of a Metropolis - SOCL 125, Fall 2007). Students at Loyola University Chicago are exposed to people of many different cultures, ethnicities, and lifestyles - combined with the rigorous studies, you possess a well-rounded, enriched knowledge of both people, life, and academics.

Generally speaking, no! For a private Jesuit university, Loyola is surprisingly diverse, though Caucasians are the majority. In addition, there are a large number of non-Catholics at Loyola,and that reflects the diversity that exists at LUC. Being in the heart of Chicago's Rogers Park neighborhood can be a culture shock for students coming from small towns and even suburban neighborhoods like my hometown, but being in a big-city environment leads to a sense of respect for others that wouldn't be found in other universities.

Yes. Another point, the professors constantly tell us how we're better than other schools like DePaul. And in a lot of regards, this is also true, especially educationally.

That's one of the characteristics about loyola that i love, the professors know their students by name and do whatever they can to help you out. I would say students on average study approximately 24 hours a week. Within my classes, i've noticed that there are many shy people, making it hard for them to participate in class. Conversations aren't always intellectual, but i guess that could be a plus and a minus. It's a plus just because it allows us to get our minds off school and more time to relax, but we don't get to learn something new. Students at loyola are really competitive to a point where they get annoyed when u ask them a question.

The social life at Loyola really depends on the student and their wants/needs. I've been involved with the athletic Dance Team as well as the Marketing Club. Some other popular groups and organizations include the many ethnic clubs, business clubs and fraternities, as well as language clubs. Many creative / artsy clubs are starting to blossom. Athletic events usually attract a decent amount of attention, unfortunately depending on how successful the team is doing at that point. I personally enjoyed watching the men's basketball games and volleyball matches. I've only been to one guest speaker... which says plenty about those events. I've performed in dance informances; however, I have not been to a theater show. I met my closest friends though random interactions at dining halls, nearby residence halls, house parties, hanging at the beach, or soccer games. My best friend also attends Loyola; we've been close since high school. My friends and I love to hang out at locations all over the city, be it off the Belmont stop to shop and eat lunch, Millennium Park to ice skate, Evanston for a quieter change of pace, or anywhere within the Gold Coast. Roger's Park, where the majority of my friends own apartments, provides a lot of fun on weekends. Most people complain that Loyola lacks a lot of excitement, but I believe if you want to have fun you're fully capable of finding it. The party schedule varies, as I hinted. Most of the people I know, myself included, like to go out on Thursday nights and enjoy the weekend doing whatever. But the workload at Loyola is intense, so it depends on how you adjust your schedule and your dedication. Classes are important to me, so balance is KEY. There are no set "frat houses," so it's not your standard college setting. Greek life isn't huge here; it's definitely not a priority. If I'm awake at 2am on a Tuesday, I'm usually watching episodes of "The Office" with my roommate, and/or talking to my friends who are still up (not unusual). Or showering, if I've been at the gym... I'm a night owl. Last weekend I worked at Water Tower mall and celebrated St. Patrick's Day, where I rode on a float. A Saturday night that doesn't involve drinking might include a couple of movies and a fast paced game of Apples to Apples. Experimenting with dinner in the company of a few friends can also be fun & delicious.. and hilarious. The possibilities are endless for a good time in Chicago if you have an open mind... and schedule!

There is such a wide range of students at Loyola, that it is difficult to describe a typical student. Students come from all financial backgrounds; many students commute from the city or suburbs while other students come from different states to attend a private school in Chicago. I would say that the majority of students are middle-class, Caucasian, and hold both left and right political beliefs. However, many students are quite apathetic when it comes to politics. There are many groups of diversity around campus, from clubs about ethnicities to religious and feminist clubs. For the most part, these types of groups are greatly accepted on campus. I think it is safe to say that diversity is something Loyola is proud of, and students seem very open-minded. Recently, however, students have been protesting problems of racial profiling by campus security, and many racial minorities do not feel accepted or noticed. This raises a question about the acceptance of diversity at Loyola, and students are actively fighting to fix it. There is also a large gay population at Loyola, and their organization “Advocate” seems active and widely supported. Many straight students supported a previous fundraiser, buying “Straight is great, gay is fabulous” tee-shirts and wearing them around campus.

The nice thing about Loyola is the fact that we're located in CHICAGO! On any given afternoon or evening there's always something to do, whether it be enjoying activities on the lakefront, visiting a museum (many offer student discounts or free days), or sampling food from one of the many restaurants around! If you'd rather stay on campus, there are frequent movie nights, club sports activities, and theatrical performances.

The best thing about Loyola is the city. It's close proximity is absolutely fantastic, and it provides for so much excitement, yet still maintains an academic atmosphere. One thing I would change is the level of faculty diversity. Most of our teachers are white Catholics, yet the students are not. We should have diversity reflected in our faculty as well as our student body. Our school is just right in size! You see people you know all the time, yet you still get to meet a variety of people you've never seen before. At the same time, you don't lose your identity or get lost, as you might in NYC, for instance. People usually react with indifference or "oh, that's a nice school!" or something about how our campus is close to the lake. I spend most of my time on campus at the CFSU, Centennial Forum Student Union. I also jump around classrooms for meetings and classes during the day. Our town has many parts to it, but Loyola definitely has a presence in Rogers Park. However, I doubt the citizens would call it a "college town" I feel like Loyola's administration can be helpful, but at times present an atmosphere of superiority, which limits our desire to go to them for guidance and assistance with club activities. However, this is just a generalization and some of the administration have been AMAZING in many respects. The biggest "controversy" I guess was the school's debate on whether or not to permit our Coca-Cola contract to continue, due to the accusations of poor treatment of its workers in Columbia, etc. The students all took sides and it was a very strong political movement and has since raised awareness of social issues on campus. There is a moderate amount of school pride. No one really HATES it, but no one LOVES it either. I'll always remember the day that H.O.M.E. came on campus to try to advertise their homophobic material. Students banned together to pressure them off campus, showing the school's utmost tolerance and ability to come together as a community.

LOTS OF DIVERSITY...LOTS OF PEOPLE FROM DIFFERENT RELIGIOUS BACKGROUNDS AND ALSO MANY HOMOSEXUALS

The school isn't very diverse, despite what LUC might say in their brochures. Most Loyola kids are from middle-class families in the Midwest.