Sarah Lawrence College Top Questions

There is the occasional person that is unfriendly, but that could be said for any campus. If you are outgoing you will find people that you connect with. For the most part, people are mean to be friendly, but are sometimes stressed out.

not really, while there are people here that fit that category, there's really a huge variety of people here. there are straight edge christian girls, a few preppy kids, a few wannabe jocks, some computer science nerds, just to name a few. but, most people are just people trying their best to stay real.

Honestly no stereotype is truly accurate here because for every one which fits even a decent number of students there are just as many who defy it. It is true that in general we are liberal, but there are conservatives. I think the only thing all of the students share is independence. It is true that the school is liberal, and if hippy means that it insists on putting the emphasis on the students personal growth outside of the typical educational structure then I guess that is accurate.

Most certainly not! Granted everyone has an opinion, but for the most part everyone loves talking about where their ideas come from. As for the fashion, there are strange outfits here and there... but usually its during Conference week and no one has time to do laundry.

The stereotype that we are all drugged-out kids who don't do their homework is millions of miles away from the truth. The majority of the people here are perfectly capable of enjoying a weekend without large quantities of drugs and drinking. Also, we work SO hard. And not because its assigned, but because we WANT to.

Stereotypes don't apply well to Sarah Lawrence because of the wide range of personalities our student body represents. You can call us "hippies" or "hipsters", but those labels reflect more about the person saying them than about us. In my house I've got a pre-med sports fanatic, an aspiring screenwriter, and myself, a theatre designer, amongst others. However, the three of us are also respectively into politics, sociology of race and sexuality, and the history of pseudo-science.

No they are not at all, there are off beat artists but not all students are like this. There are preppy, abercrombie wearing people who go here.

While that's the case for a small percentage of the students here (yes, I've met a few like that) the majority come here for the academic opportunities, because they like the idea of not having to take a lot of general requirement classes and prerequisites, because they like small classes, etcetera. Also, we're not all rich, I know several people here who wouldn't have come here if they hadn't gotten pretty significant financial aid packages.

I think you need to get to know Sarah Lawrence before you can judge from the image. At the same time, a lot of the stereotypes come from the students themselves. There's a certain frustration with the anti-social aspect of the student body, which can be a problem, but I've found a lot of these portrayals to be false. There are, of course,some pretentious assholes, but I think it's unavoidable to have some insecure people. The truth is, most people are talented and creative and really cool. Once you talk to them or get involved in the community, the image of the dark artist fades away.

Mostly. Not everyone is a rich, lazy hispster, but probably about half. Some people here get offended very easily, those people are also the most outspoken.

1. Okay, so the girl to boy ratio is like 3 to 1. But... there ARE boys. 2. I'm pretty sure a lot of us love to read and write... but I'm more than confident that everyone here finds time to do other things. 3. Haha, lets just say if you're a single, straight girl your options are limited.

Like many stereotypes, there is some truth to that. But let me say this. I was never awkward in high school, at least no more than any other teenage boy. I ran varsity track and live across the hall from another varsity high school sprinter and football player. My roommate is an amazing photographer and my sweet-mate is an international student who owns the cricket court. Yes if you visit you will find "weird" "socially awkward" students. But those are at any school. There is a group of people for everyone. If you come no matter who you are, you'll find people exactly like you.

These stereotypes are totally ridiculous. any type of person can be found here, there isn't a way to categorize the styles or personalities of SLC students. they come from all different backgrounds, with all different interests. for the most part i think students here are open minded and interested. there are losers and assholes at every school in the world, but that is certainly not a characteristic of the student body. students here are really inviting and friendly, you end up knowing a lot of people really quickly, which is a really nice way to make the transition to college. i also think the upper classmen are nice to the first years. yeah we get a little annoyed every once and a while, but there is still always someone to buy you beer.

For the most part, yeah, they are. There are a fair amount of isolated, quier, femenist, druggies around campus. People are strange here. If it is important for you to understand the people around you and analyze their motives, don't come here. You will not be able to do it.

they can be, but it really depends on the person. Basically all stereotypes have a basis in truth, but i'd like to think i don't really fit in with the worst of the Sarah Lawrence stereotypes.

It's more diverse than I thought it would be - more in the mindsets than in race or ethnicity. It's an expenisve school so many kids are from rich families. Definitely more drugs than binge drinking. Very liberal.

a large part of the population is gay or lesbian, and the men that tend to go here tend to be gay. But their are a lot of lonely straight women who lower their standards, lots of hipsters but not as many as NYU or Bard. I know people who have transfered here from NYU so I don't no if that one is true.

By and large, no. There are students who seem disengaged from the community, but it seems to be more the case that these students are focusing on their studies, which tend to be geared self _and_ social fulfillment. Many other students are happy to be involved in all sorts of activities, and their commitments to causes they believe are strongly-held and vigilantly maintained.

There are a lot of pot smokers and some tough lesbians, but it is mostly straight girls trying to be more fashionable than each other (i.e. Ugg boots and Marc Jacobs all the time). Most of the men are not gay, and although the ratio does make it easier in some ways, a lot of the women are very emotionally unstable, so it's not exactly a walk in the park.

There are a lot of gay people, hippies, liberals and potheads but not everyone is like that. Some people are preppy and not the so-called "weird" kids.

From what I've seen my first year here, yes. Majority of the people here are not welcoming or encouraging, but I've managed to find some worthwhile people.

There is definitely an environment of academic competition, which can justify some accusations of pretentions. However, unlike at other schools, at Sarah Lawrence, competition is much more evident out of the classroom than in it--people care far more about who wins a half-drunken debate about feminism at a party than about who has the highest GPA. I don't find that the students are particularly hostile or prone to cliques, though many other SLC students I know have this impression of others at the school.

Of course there are a few who fit the stereotype. But you'd be hard pressed to find a school who doesn't have a few who do! For the most part though, they aren't true. SLC kids talk a lot, and are sometimes overly earnest, but ultimately friendly, good people.

answered above

Well with all stereotypes they have a basis in reality but exaggerate to the point of becoming a lie.

stereotypes never cover the whole truth of a situation. so half the time they are true, and half the time, they are not.

no.

We are definitely different, totally unlike most colleges and universities; our campus structure, the break-up of our student body, and the way we relate to schoolwork and our studies makes for a unique college experience, and attracts those who want that.

You're asking me to judge whether or not the campus as a whole conveniently falls into any of the above mentioned categories? ...isn't the point of listing the stereotypes usually an exercise to highlight how they AREN'T all encompassing truths?

Not everyone is gay, but SLC does have a higher than average number of non-hetero students. There is a lot of diversity of interests and experiences, though most students think they're much more unique that they are. The campus is largely liberal, though most students enjoy a good debate. And a lot of students are extremely self-motivated, but it is possible to slack off, though few like to admit it.

Yes.

SLC students can be anti-social but this happens mostly during the winter when it's too cold to go outside and during conference times when everyone is working long hours to finish up their work. There is a fair turn out for most events on this campus that leads me to believe that people are not as anti-social as it may initially seem. As for the hipsters... most of the ones in my year transferred out so I haven't had to deal with them. There certainly are a number of them at SLC but no more, I think, than at other schools. SLC went co-ed in 1969 but because of the ratio of girls to boys being something like (I'm not positive on this) 80-20 or 70-30 it is commonly believed to be an all girls school. As for it being full of lesbians there is certainly a large lgtbq community on this campus but heterosexuals are also well represented.

Not at all.

often yes, but never as a rule. isn't that usually how stereotypes work?

Sometimes, not always, as is generally the case with stereotypes.

i think the sarah lawrence community is much more active than our reputation lets on.

I'm sure you could find them on campus but as for the student body as a whole they are extremley inaccurate.

They pertain to some people but not to most!

the first two? not so much. The latter... well, yeah. Isn't that what we mean when we say "that's so Sarah Lawrence"?

At times, with individuals, but that's how most campuses will work out. While classrooms and dorm settings will bring out the obnoxious ones, it's easy to see through social and academic interactions, that the student population is generally intellectual, philanthropic and genuinely dedicated.

Some of the stereotypes are accurate. There are definitely a lot of hipsters, hippies, and artists, however there are a lot of science majors and athletes. Yes, we have sport teams.

SLC accepts imaginative individuals who stop at nothing to express ideas in inventive ways. As it happens, a number of these applicants usually did not enjoy the structure of high school -- either its administrative or its educational side. At SLC, these students feel much more free to set their own standards whilst disciplining themselves to work for their degree. Thus, that stereotype high schooler coming into SLC becomes this unique stereotype in short time.

Most of them have an aspect of truth but are rarely the whole truth. Are there some students who have large trust funds, yes, but there are also many who are on full scholarships because they have such great financial aid. Do some students get drunk and high frequently, yes, but there are also a large number of students who do not abuse substances and some who do not ever use.

We're quite unique (in a good way), but despite our lack of tests and majors, we study our brains out.

there are a lot of people that fall into these categories and a lot that don't. I don't think the "I'm so different from anyone else" myth is true at all though, because a lot of people fall into these above-listed trends, making than more part of the body than an entirely uninfluenced individual.

Generally, yes.

No. There are some people like that here, but they are definitely the minority / I could count them on one hand.

Yes- for the most part but like all stereotypes they cannot be completely accurate and definitely cannot be applicable to everyone.

Sure they are plenty of gay, artsy, moody people here who sit under trees and smoke weed, but Sarah Lawrence is also an intensely academic setting where you will be forced to think critically about most aspects of life.

As with most stereotypes, this one stems from truth- however, not everyone fits into the stereotype, and most are normal, compassionate, kind college students.