Middlebury College Top Questions

Describe the students at your school.

Emma

Students come from a wide range of academic and social interests.

Emma

Students come from a wide range of academic and social interests.

Emma

sadly, students mostly stick to their own kind.

Virginia

Middlebury students are extremely smart and well-prepared for college, which means they not only excel in the classroom, but also find ways to make a difference outside of the classroom--and even before they graduate.

S

As I wrote earlier, there are a lot of white kids here. While Middlebury looooves international students, the in-house diversity statistics are pretty dismal. And there are a lot of students from wealthy families. No one flaunts their wealth, but I've experienced some insensitivity -- people not understanding why I can't afford to eat out for dinner, and small things like that which make me feel a little out of place. It shows up in clothes, too. Middlebury athletic sweats are common items, but you don't have to search hard for pearls, cable knit, and pastels. The LGBT scene is a mess, incestuous and gossipy. But it's easy to escape if you're not gay and looking for a date. And the LGBT community is widely accepted. Middlebury's a pretty liberal campus. There's a small conservative presence, but they aren't too vocal about their views, as they're in the minority by a long shot...although the bros aren't above slurs and epithets. Different types of students do interact, although there is self-segregation, particularly regarding international students, who seem only to speak to each other. Middlebury is a cliquey place. Coming from a high school too small to have cliques, playing "name that group" in the dining hall is pretty fun. There's the bros, the bro groupies, the preps, the over-involved overachievers, the coed sports teams, the internationals, the nerds, the outdoorsy kids, the environmentalists, the Febs (it's a cult!), the first-years who haven't made friends outside of their halls, the hipsters, the theater majors, the smokers, the stoners.... The student body essentially splits into two based on dining hall: Ross = standard cafeteria food for standard cafeteria kids; Proctor = healthy, high-quality food with many vegetarian options for healthy, high-quality people who may or may not be vegetarians. You decide.

Thomas

Mostly, I really like the student body. Overall, MiddKids are exceptionally fun, nice, and cool, not to mention studious. Frustrations -International kids branch out minimally. But they're mostly really nice and interesting, and that's true everywhere, even someplace like Macalester. -Male varsity athletes are too often interested in only (a) themselves, (b) boobs, and (c) keystone. ... But like with international students, that's true everywhere. No getting around it. -Liberal arts colleges can be really difficult places for LGBTQ people, just because there are so few options for relationships. But my queer friends here still like it a lot, and say they're glad they came regardless of any occasional frustrations.

Zhe

they are bright, open-minded, outdoorsy and fun people that knows to work hard and play hard.

Rachel

They were always the smartest kids in their classes and now they're all in one room....it can lead to great things and also to a lot of stress.

Carlos

In most cases, my classmates turned out to be friends for life!

Daniel

My classmates were smart, independent people who were incredibly passionate about the things they loved most, whether those were sports, extracurricular activities, academics, or all of the above.

Sarah

Extroverted, slightly obnoxious about their personal views, can be very open-minded but are often too idealistic or naive to see the facts or deal with them well. Either "save-the-world" self-important types or completely self-centered jock types. Can be very "clique"-ish outside of class - it's hard make new friends after your first semester here. Not very practical, academic, don't truly realize how priveleged they are

Sarah

Very diverse in not just ethnicity and backgrounds but personalities too.

veronica

My peers are extremely engaging individuals, each having his/her own interests, extacurriculars, and backgrounds.

Jesse

Middlebury is filled with lots of interesting, fun, and intelligent people. Sure, there are a few irritating people, but overall everyone is great. It is common for people of all walks of life and interests to hang out. No one is pigeonholed unless they choose to be. I don't think anyone would feel out of place here. It is true that many people are white and from New England, but the admissions department have succeed in bringing people from all over the world. I have friends from Kenya, South Africa, England, Sweden, China, and all over the US.

Jackie

Students are a mix of internationals and new englanders. These groups should interact more but that is pretty rare. Beyond that there are the hipsters, jocks, and preps and these groups also remain pretty stratified. Everyone is very smart and hard-working.

Melissa

A closed-minded, boring, lazy person would not fit in at Middlebury. If you're not open to new things, you won't like it here. Also, a person who wants an amazing night life/club scene- don't come to Middlebury obviously. That's not to say we have nothing to do on weekends and nowhere to go out to- it's just that Middlebury is obviously not an urban haven. Kids are very active politically and love to talk about their personal beliefs as well as hear about other peoples'. My favorite thing about Middlebury is absolutely the people. The kids who come here are so much fun, love to try new things, love to learn, and love to talk!

Mandy

I have so many gay or bisexual friends; people overall don't seem to mind whether people are gay or not. There were some instances of gay hate crimes last year, which were terrible, but overall I'd say that the campus is good. Most people here are rich, you always hear about people being children of CEOs, etc. People here aren't so politically active. I'd say the campus leans democrat and liberal.

Eric

The campus is definitely diverse, sometimes even a little too in your face. No one would really feel diverse...I feel like there's enough kinds of people here that everyone could find some niche. Interaction between groups happens, but its limited. I feel like every party I go to is the same 50 people after a while. Middlebury kids are definitely leftist...theres a republican contingent, but a lot of it seems like an attempt at irony.

George

As a politically active person on campus, I have found a really good group of people (both from the left and from the right) who are willing to engage in open discussion and are open minded. This being said, this is probably not the norm. Many people on campus seem to be fairly apathetic and I sometimes get frustrated with how career oriented some are. But this not all a bad thing, it is good to have a mix of people--this gives Middlebury a certain amount of worldliness. One of the most pleasing things about Middlebury is the amount of International students. They contribute a lot to the community and all have very unique and interesting perspectives. Midd definitely lacks ethnic diversity (read blacks and latinos) but in terms of economic diversity, I honestly don't know. People keep their economic backgrounds quiet. Most of my friends are from Public Schools, but that may just be how I role. Once again, you can find what you want at Midd in terms of the student body.

Elise

It is interesting that the student body is homogenous despite the bragging that admissions does regarding how "diverse" Middlebury is. Students who are "from other countries" are mainly ex-patriots whose families have lived abroad. Also, there are not really any overweight students on campus. The student body is extremely active and athletic; most people either work out, run, play a sport, or engage in intramurals.

Margot

Most Middlebury students are from the Northeast.

Laura

I find that students speak as if they are all from the same socioeconomic background, even though I know that it is not the case. Most of the people I know have a healthy appreciation for Target, but also are not afraid to spend some cash to go out to dinner or a similar splurge "because they deserve it". I've never felt that people talked about money excessively, other than to complain about how they should get a job, or need new jeans/going out clothes/attractive underwear, would like to go shopping, etc. I suppose that if I was coming from a working class background, I would find these discussions disgusting, but I've never taken offense to anything that any person has said regarding money.

Alex

WHITE BREAD. International students and racial minorities often stick together and they are relatively few in comparison with the caucasian bunch. And obviously Vermont is even less ethnically diverse, so thank God midd has such strong study abroad programs.

Emmerson

It's a pretty open environment on campus, everyone starts to look familiar. Students work hard but most are pretty laid back, and everyone seems to be able to find a comfortable niche.

Harper

Everyone is vocal, there is a lot of noise. I think someone who's spent his or her whole life in a big city in which a person could disappear would find it hard here. Some people are fashionable, some are not - as with anywhere. Most students are affluent, it's true. I'd like to think that most of them are intelligent and can at least formulate why they think a certain way.

frances

Pretty liberal. White, Upper class, New England people.

Lisa

I pretty much covered this up in the first box.

Tom

I don't think anyone would feel out of place at Midd. As much as everyone (me included) dogs on the "white/rich" thing, I feel like there's a "type" for everyone. Nobody would feel left out. There are nerds, jocks, hippies, hipsters, stoners, frat guys, goths, gays, and everything in between. There's definitely a large contingent of "nice guys who wear baseball caps and like Jack Johnson" but those guys are alright sometimes :) --- most everyone is intelligent and nice to talk to. And there's a scene for everyone.

Jacob

Mass, NY, and Connecticut dominate the campus, but the diversity does not suffer as a result. Everyone seems to speak a different language. Even the lacrosstitutes and bros. Febs are their own populous, and they are pretty cool.

Joanna

In general, Middlebury students are likable, talented, interesting people. The school, like many, lacks all types of diversity (racial, socio-economic, etc).

Nora

Middlebury advertises its extreme diversity all the time and while there are students from every state and many different countries, there is still a feeling of homogeneity. Maybe it's just in my Middlebury expereince but I've experienced a Middlebury where people tend to dress similarly and are interested in similar activities.

Will

I have described the Middlebury student body as a rake. At one end you have the handle, which is the very distinct kind of frat-boy culture. Mostly varsity athletes from a few big time sports and their groupies, they are pretty separate from everyone. They don't really mix with other groups, and they can be pretty closed minded towards people who don't fit their mold for whatever reason. I'd say they are like 20-25{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the campus. At the other end of the rake you have other groups which have their own core members, but all kind of blend together as you get closer to the shaft of the rake. The international students have a distinct group, the environmentalists, the theater majors, the hipsters, the very studious. Most of the campus kind of move between these groups. Or they don't really fit into any of these categories, they are just normal. They are the shaft of the rake. I regret using the rake metaphor in the first place. Racial diversity at Middlebury from within the US is low. We have a lot more South American students than latinos. And a fair number of africans, but not a lot of african americans. It's a liberal school. Period. It's not hard to be a quiet conservative, but homophobia, racism, war hawking or denying global warming will be met with hostility.

Quinn

Its white and rich and from Boston mostly, but if you want, you can find anyone. I've found some of the most diverse, optimistic, nonjudgemental, amazing people ever.

Noah

The most active minority group on campus is MOQA, the Middlebury Open Queer Alliance. It makes sense they are the most active, as they are the most discriminated against by graffiti and everyday speech. I think an inner city kid might feel out of place, unfortunately, which is something most students would regret. Most students wear comfortable pants/shorts/skirt and a t-shirt or button-down. In the dining hall, there will be the theater table, the mountain club table, the political activist table, and the athletes' table. Most Middlebury students are from New England. Most are from middle-class financial backgrounds. Students are politically aware, not necessarily active, and are predominantly left-wing. Students hardly ever talk about money, and/or how much they'll earn one day.

Ryan

Middlebury although tries really hard at facilitating diversity, it really isn't very representative of america's population. i think this is mostly because poor people cannot and are not willing to take loans to pay through their noses for an education. yes it is a good education but it is a capitalistic market and opportunity cost is not worth it unless you are sure you're gonna ride middlebury's name into a high-profile finance job. financial aid is good, but not good enough. this filters out many people and so i think it would be safe to say that most midd-kids are rich and by rich i mean the spectrum of rich, not all billionaires, white, and to a great extent privileged in some way. but their fun people who are mostly humble. but they do bring their social status into a classroom because they cannot help their upbringing. Most students are from just outside boston and/or new york city. not many fanatical religious kids.

Peter

Students are a little bit too stressed, missing the paradise that we are living in now. Need to take a deep breath and enjoy life.

George

See above

Tate

Middlebury college is not very diverse. Even though the college tries to enroll students from all sorts of backgrounds in terms of racial and international characteristics, socio-economically the student body is very homogenous. People of 'poor' American background would feel out of place, and so would people with a worldview differing from the norm (rich American charitable thinking)

Dylan

There are very few black people at Midd. I had a much more diverse high school and I miss black people! Gay people, there are so many gay boys now! Not many gay girls. There's the MOQA kids (the queer organization) and the non-MOQA kids. Sometimes they fight over feisty editorials in the newspaper. It's fun! I actually don't think anyone would feel out of place at Middlebury. Except maybe a truly hipster indie post-rock music nerd. They should go to Hampshire or something. If you're really alternative and different, that faction at Midd is dying. It was alive and well five years ago, before we were number 5. Go to Bard.

Gaby

diverse student body in terms of interests but still very sports-oriented becoming more racially diverse everyone seems to be financially well off

Dale

While the student body isn't very diverse racially, there are too many individuals at Midd to classify them into groups.

Jonathan

A person who is not a wealthy northeasterner would feel out of place, at least for a while.

Dylan

Most kids at Midd dlebury are pretty reasonable in their own unique ways. For the most part, if you encountered a midd student one on one outside the context within which we act on campus they would be kind and at least come off as a upstanding individual. What might come next is a different story.

Elliot

WE'RE WHITE!

Andy

I think it's pretty conservative for a liberal arts college - which I like. If I went to Hampshire or Wesleyan I'd just be another hipster in the woods. But here, I'm special. Only drawback are wack school concerts. Past few ones include: Wyclef, J5, Cake Not terrible, just not cool.

Katie

Very political. Very motivated. Mostly students from upper-class backgrounds. But theres the jocks, the preppy kids, the hippies, the artsy ones, the actors, the outdoorsy, the skiiers, the rock climbers, the politically agressive, the laxers, the laxer groupies, the social climbers, the feminists and too many more to count.

Casey

There is a larger element of the homogenous, CT/MA, white, preppy, wealthy, and well-educated-if-not-too-intellectual types than I thought I would find here. I expected a more "funky" energy. However, that element is definitely present. I have total jock friends, total artsy friends, political crazies, outdoorsies--you name it, they are here, and they are pretty passionate. Students don't dress up for class here. Sweatpants are a normal occurrence. Political awareness is present, but not as heavily as I expected.

andrew

rich, white kids. it seems like everyone here is from just outside of boston. the general attitude is one cultivated by growing up under those conditions/prejudices. thought that doesn't easily fall into these lines will probably not be understood or treated as hostile by most students on campus. that being said, there are places where one can find welcoming, but it will be very much removed from most of the campus. the 'outsider' cliques tend to fall along the lines of the frisbee team, theatre kids, hipsters, international students, &c..

Andrew

The Middlebury student body is mostly white with the exception being the large international student body. Our "Students of Color" are not American. I think that's why we get a rep for being homogeneous. Most of my friends are apathetic towards religion and politically left.

William

Outspoken. If there's an issue, it'll be raised. There's a breadth of socio-politico-economic opinion, though the majority of the students are well-off and white. I would say the student body is broken up into people who think for themselves and people who do what's expected of them. There's a large group of people I don't know (that I don't particularly want to know).