Boston College Top Questions

Yes. See above.

Yes.

I would say that people at BC know how to have a good time but also put their academics high on their priority list. It is not necessary to be religious here. It is more important to be open to others.

In some ways yes, but not to the negative extent that many claim.

While many students fit into the J. Crew classification, there is more diversity at BC than it is given credit for. There are very distinct subcultures on campus, and while some may be more popular, per se, than others, all are certainly recognized and respected. For a school of this type, however, particularly one of Jesuit origin and influence, it is considerably more liberal than I expected. This is no doubt the case at just about any university, but the demographics would suggest a much more conservative landscape. As for the concerns with one's image, there really isn't a lot to dispute this claim. And while this certainly has its negative implications (i.e. $200 bags on the arms of 50{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the girls), it does have a silver lining--BC was deemed the third fittest school in America by a leading magazine last year. Intramural sports are immensely popular, and students will wait in hour-long lines to make sure they can register a team before schedules fill up.

I think that there are a range of students that fit all the categories mentioned above. Overall, I don't consider BC a "rich and conceded" school, I definitely consider the majority of students to be well-rounded in academics, extracurriculars, personality, interests, demographics, and what they have to offer others.

yes

It is filled with rich, preppy kids. However, there are plenty of other kinds of people here. Although it can be more diverse, it is pretty diverse with kids from all over the world and from different types of backgrounds. For example, I have a friend from the US Virgin Islands, someone from Maine, and plenty of international students. Our curriculum does have a religion aspect to it but it isn't so bad. I rarely see priests walking around on campus. The school's policy on drinking is pretty relaxed for such a religious campus.

I hang out with White people as much as Black and those that I associate myself with do not fit the stereotype... for the most part. While most of my friends are athletic and fit, hardly any of them spend their life in the Plex (BC's Recreational ComPLEX home to workout equipment, pool, etc). As far as the athlete stereotype... unfortunately it is kind of true. While I am good friends with alot of athletes (go me), this issue has come up many times. I even had a discussion with one of them about it and while he was offended, his history spoke for itself. By second semester though, they've dipped their... fingers... in enough cookie jars to want to settle down. Just be advised that BC is not really the place to go if you're looking for a relationship. That could just be my experience but, for the most part, everyone is in a "hit it and quit it" state of mind.

To a degree

NO! A lot of students at BC are from affluent families and communities but a majority of the students are well-grounded and vested in service and social concerns, so money is not necessarily a derisive force.

For the most part, the stereotypes are accurate. A friend of mine once said that he hated people-watching at BC because everyone looks like the same person. There plenty of students on campus who own neither Ugg nor Northface apparel and who couldn't care less what the football team's record is. While BC students may initially appear to be materialistic consumers, a major part of the student body is dedicated to community service both in Boston and abroad. Don't let the preppy clothes and wild sports cheers fool you-- most of the students at BC are friendly and caring individuals.

for the most part, they are. BC tends to be a little homogeneous, like most private Northeastern universities, but there is an innocence here that somehow makes it charming to be sheltered. many are involved in at least one activity on campus since its perhaps the best way to network among classes, disciplines, socioeconomics, etc. additionally, there is a bipolar culture here of trying to uphold the above mentioned traits while still maintaining an active college experience. this translates to a lot of drinking with/hooking up within service groups, a pseudo-frat culture among the performance groups, and a scene of social hierarchy in the more social-networking based activities (student government, orientation leaders, spiritual groups). in short, BC is a place where it is part of the "scene" to go to Church, where it is considered cool to appear flawless, and where frowns are rewarded genuine concerns for one's wellbeing.

While there are a fair number of well-dressed students, BC students are not spoiled rich kids. As a campus, we are well aware of serving others and the importance of humility. People come from very different backgrounds and while many students may dress the part once you actually speak with them you quickly realize we are not cookie-cutters of each other and many of us have experienced hard times both before and during college. We are passionate about our causes and vocations. I would argue that there is no such thing as the stereotypical BC kid - I have yet to meet one in my four years.

Despite the fact that J. Crew is definitely a popular label seen on campus, the student body definitely is not snobby for the most part. BC really does have a great community of caring people, and its Jesuit roots encourages students to reach out and volunteer, or even go on special weekend retreats to reflect and get to know one another. As for the relationship aspect, it's certainly not impossible to get into a relationship here, but students (girls especially) should not go into things blindly, assuming that Mr. Right will fall in love with you after a drunken hook up...Highly unlikely.

I think anywhere you go you can find people that are scared of change, or more so diversity. People that don't know something often fear it out of ignorance. BC does have programs to change peoples minds, and those who are open-minded enough will come out with a different perspective. It's also true that a few people can ruin the reputation of an entire area. I think, without a doubt, that a few students/professors/administers have skewed the public's perception of BC.