Chapman University Top Questions

A mix of the good, the bad, and the ugly; they're diverse and interesting.

There is a wide variety of students. My classmates do not judge others, but rather accept people as the way they are. The classes are small and thereore we all have a chance to get to know eachother.

Enjoyable, not just with interaction with others, but to learn from and be inspired by.

My classmates are determined to succeed, smart, friendly, and very willing to help others succeed with them in an academically fair manner.

My classmates are eagar to learn and willing to help others.

Most of my classmates are wealthy and do not need to hold a job. They do not really care about acheiving high grades, but simply do what they need to get by.

I am very involved in the LGBTQIA community here at Chapman and sadly my perspective is very unique, as there is only a few of us who are. There is a community here, although it is very small and relatively quiet. There is no overt animosity towards the Queer community and at the same time there is no outward exclamation of its presence. We do not have a resource center for LGBTQI students nor do we have a resource center for anything else. We did however this year get our Associated Students to fund most of our Pride Week activities and I believe that with our efforts more of a voice has emerged! We had the comedian ANT come and perform as well as organized a silent candle light vigil in remembrance of the Stonewall riots! Not only that but we had 200 students participate in our Day of Silence on campus. We are making progress here at Chapman but there is still a ways to go.

From my experience, students with self-confidence are usually the ones who thrive at Chapman. If you're one who does not want to be called on in class, who wants to disappear into the crowd or who does not like being noticed, this place is not for you. People will notice you walking around every day, they will remember what you say in class and they will remember what you did at that party on Saturday night. There is a pattern to how things work at Chapman and, if you break the mold, people notice. Most students are from California, but there is also a large portion from Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Hawaii and Arizona. Students here are ambitious and are high achievers -- the academic life here is competitive, but it's unspoken. Students here want to do well in life it's noticeable. Almost everyone is involved in some sort of extracurricular activity.

Chapman has a very welcoming student body. Really anyone can come to this campus and feel at home. The people are incredibly nice and try to get to know everyone before they start judging. There are plenty of clubs that welcome diversity to our campus and encourage more interaction. Like I said people are from all over the world, but if I were to say where the majority of people are from it would be California, Oregon, Washington, and Colorado. We also have a decently sized demographic from Hawaii. Politically I feel Chapman is pretty much split but at the same time we respect each others opinions and views. I like Chapman because it doesn't seem like someone is going to start judging you based off of what you wear, but at the same time it may be because most people are very laid back and not worried about what you look like.

I was nervous to come to Orange County for school because I had watched The O.C. and knew that wasn't the lifestyle for me. When I got here, I found that most people are really nice and interested in getting to know others. I also joined a sorority, which is the best decision I made because I was able to make friends with a ton of girls who had interests similar to mine. I would like to see Chapman become more diverse in the future, although I know it is definitely working towards that. We have lots of out-of-state students and international students, so we have a variety of perspectives on campus. Students are very nice here, so even if you feel like you won't fit in with how you envision Chapman students, you will soon find a niche of people you get along with. I also know there's a stereotype of all the students being really wealthy. Chapman is a private school, so it is pretty expensive. However, I know I wouldn't be here without financial aid, and more often than not, I find that other students are in the same situation.