Davidson College Top Questions

The typical student from Davidson is from an economically comfortable family, but I am always surprised by how many of my friends do work-study or are here on scholarship. There is a feeling among the majority of students that they are going to get the most out of their time here. Minority students are very vocal and powerful on campus. Politically, students are definitely in the center. But to reach that balance we have a range of every kind of belief. In the end, Davidson is such a welcoming place that our differences don't matter. We're all here to learn and contribute to the community.

Students at Davidson not only accept their peers but also respect them. It's a pretty incredible environment. People from all religious backgrounds, people who dress up, dress down, from Nigeria, from down the street, those who fall to the left, those who fall to the right... However, I do hope that we see more diversity on campus in the future in terms of ethnicity. The school is predominantly white, but there is a large contingent of black students. Many of these students participate in cultural organizations on campus like the Black Student Coalition, and Asian students often join the Asian Cultural Awarness Association. I would love to see these groups grow even stronger in the future. And again, these groups are not exclusive. While their members may be 99{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} black or 99{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} Asian, the activities they host are open to others and encourage attendance by all.

I've always felt like Davidson was an open campus, we have had some issues come up about race and sexual orientation on campus, but the reactions to those issues have always included huge rallies or discussions or forums to talk about why these issues come up. there will be issues on every campus, but the important thing is to look at how the students react and if they want to see a change. Davidson students want to see change. a student would feel out of place at Davidson if they were not passionate about anything. people don't get dressed up for class, but you'll see jeans or clean pants, collard shirts, polos, t-shirts, sweatshirts, athletic clothing, tennis shoes or sandals, very rarely high heels. davidson is liberal, but you see a variety of political and religious opinions. people love to talk about these opinions though. students are interested in having fulfilled lives, i have never heard anyone talk about how much money they want to earn.

ASmart, friendly people. Some students wear preppy clothing, but most are just well-dressed. Different types of students definitely interact, though there are groups of people based on athletics, race, outdoors, etc. There isn't much of an artsy crowd. Most students are from everywhere in the US. Many from NC and the south, but also lots from the Northeast, CA, TX, FL and CO. Most financial backgrounds are upper-middle class, though the debt-free plan brings in people with different socio-economic backgrounds. Students are politically aware, but not active as in there aren't protests or rallies. I'd say like most college campuses, students are liberal, but many of them come from conservative families. Students do not talk about how much they will earn one day, but many plan on going to grad school and getting high powered jobs.

Davidson's student body is busy. Everyone is always doing something.

Davidson started as a Southern men's college, went coed in 1972, and is still working to increase the diversity of the student body. Geographic diversity is strong (there are a lot of international students in addition to students from around the U.S.) but the college is still trying to increase racial diversity. Students are friendly with each other even if they don't hang out all the time. Athletes tend to be friends with their teams, but there certainly are exceptions. Financial background does not have a huge role in determining friendships - I have friends who I did not realize were on scholarship until recently.

Davidson is really working on becoming more diverse, both racially and socio-economically. Most of the student body has opinions but is also very accepting of others with different views.

I know that there are some students who will feel out of place at Davidson, if only because we haven't found ways to show outwardly that our campus is completely open to all groups of students. Despite this, the campus is open and we are all engaged in learning about other people and their affiliations, whether it be religious, racial or sexual.

I am impressed by all of my friends at what they know, who they are and what they do. While still liberal over all (this is a college campus, is it not), this tends to be a more conservative school. This is not a Wesleyan or a Haverford. Predominately apathetic about politics, although we have had some get exercised over Obama, it is still pretty chill. People are way more interested in issues versus real political candidates. Students can be dressy, but cleaned-up casual is the norm.

Davidson is transitioning right now from a Southern liberal arts school to simply a liberal arts school. With the adjective "Southern" in front come a few problems with diversity. During this transition, the administration is making every effort to stress diversity, and the student body is becoming more diverse. However, in the eyes of a minority, be it religious, racial, or sexual orientation, Davidson still has some BIG steps to make. On the whole though, everyone is making this effort and has an open mind towards progress and a diversified student body. People are generally VERY accepting, it's just that some have trouble communicating that to the people who need to hear it the most, i.e. the minorities. In general the student body is very well-rounded, and this is both in terms of individual persons and the entire group. Some liberal, some conservative, some northerners, westerners, southerners; athletes, writers, musicians, hippies. You'll find someone of every type and talent at Davidson. And the coolest part, is everyone has done something pretty amazing in order to get here. So no matter how "dumb" or "mean" you think someone is, you can always give them the benefit of the doubt, because they probably won a world championship, or are an amazing pianist, or started a service organization, or did amazing research- everyone here has something to offer.