Emerson College Top Questions

Someone who was very popular in high school or just very preppy and scientifically inclined would stick out and perhaps be outcast at Emerson. Many Emersonians are from New Jersey and the mid-west. This is a private college, so most students come from wealthy families, though many are middle class. Everyone here is predominantly extremist left political activists.

For the most part, once you find your niche you'll start fitting in with the kids in your major by at least your junior year. It may take a while, but once you're in the right place the whole experience is a lot more fun. The students are from all over (east coast, west coast and in between). Some people take themselves way too seriously, but that's sort of fun to see.

The style at Emerson is ridiculous and needs to change. If you are a girl, ugg boots, tights and an over-sized shirt with big sunglasses or belt is usually your style. Lame. Most students, the normal ones get away with tee shirt and jeans. Our campus, both men and women looks like an add from American Apparel. People are trendy, but you don;t need to be, I got away with wearing jeans and boat shoes everyday. Emerson students are all liberal. be prepared. liberal as far as experimentation, politics and clothing go. but the good part about us is that we will never force you to do something you don't want to, we are caring. there are four general categories of students at emerson. 1. the trendy people, as mentioned before. 2. people who play sports and hang out with people who don't play sports and party together, we are cool...but a little crazy. 3. people who play sports and have sticks stuck up their asses and are no fun 4. everyone else who is too focused on making the bfa film to do anything else.

Yes, the stereotype of Emerson students say that we're all gay, pretentious clove-smokers, but that's not all true. Sometimes we smoke Marlboros, too. Okay, I'm kidding. Yes, there's a big gay presence at Emerson, but it's not enough to make most people feel uncomfortable. Yes, there are a lot of smokers of every type, but no one is going to be pressured into doing (or consuming) anything. And yes, we're pretentious, but that's just on the outside. Get in, and we're a really sweet, fun bunch of kids to know. Who like being pretentious. You will never see an Emerson student wear sweats and an oversized hoodie to class. I mean that, I have never seen it happen once. Get yourself a jacket that "defines you", and get used to wearing it a lot. You will not fit in at Emerson if you are a bro. Bro is the Emerson colloquial term for frat boy. If you like sports, trashy sluts, Top 40 radio, and Happy Birthday Fratapults, you can do a lot better than Emerson. There are a handful of Bros at this school, but they all hide out on the lacrosse team. Financial backgrounds slide into two categories. Upper-middle class students who worry about coming back next year because it's so damn expensive, and coast-based rich kids who are confused why you aren't going home this weekend by private jet. I wish I was kidding about this. There are no republicans at Emerson. No, wait, there was that one kid who called himself a conservative during an orientation week panel discussion. Then we all laughed at his funny, funny joke. Four tables at the dining hall? One film crew just who just got off set, one generic patch of WLP, journalism, and marketing students, one group of performing arts kids nursing fierce hangovers at 2 PM, and one group of foreign students who are talking about art and culture that you really wouldn't understand.

The student body is diverse as far as different ideas go, but looks incredibly white from the outside. I know of very few African American students at Emerson, or very few students of any ethnicity to be honest. It's an incredibly liberal school, so liberal it's not diverse. I know of both the republicans on campus and they aren't very popular. While the students are liberal I wouldn't say that most of them are politically active, they're is a lot of apathy at Emerson towards the government, but less so now during the Obama, Clinton race. The social groups at Emerson are usually determined by major. The film kids hang out with film kids and the marketing majors hang out with marketing majors. Ofcourse there are cross overs, a lot of actors and film kids hang out, that's the most common combo. Musical theater kids tend to stick with themselves so if you're worried about that don't be. Emerson kids tend to be on the wealthier side. We have a lot of famous sons and daughters, but generally I'd say upper middle class dominates. But the thing is everyones a poor college kid and everyone is a private school kid who wishes they weren't so if you're poor you'd be cool cause they all wish they were. People dress up for class, even the guys. By dress up I mean but on some of the coolest clothes i've ever seen in my life. It can be intimidating.

There are clubs for just about everything at Emerson. The GLBT community is very large, and very active. Student groups abound. If there's something you like, there's most likely a club, possibly three, that are geared towards that interest. If not, it's pretty easy to start one up yourself and get (minimal) funding from the college. Politically, the student body is mostly liberal, but there are conservative students, as well. Just as one would imagine an art school would be full of 'individuals,' Emerson fits the bill. Every student is different. Some wear pajamas to class, others are dressed for a job interview. Noone seems to notice what anyone else is wearing, but I've noticed that out on the street some people get a second look. Hair of all colors from black to green, braids to curls. Everyone's a unique snowflake, just like everyone else. Financially, I find that many students are from the middle to upper-middle class. Most of us will be paying back hefty student loans.

Emerson has a lot of diversity in terms of personality and style, from the trendy/artsy people to athletes. It is not hard to find a group of friends that you fit in with really well and share interests with. However, there's not too much diversity of though. There are more anarchists and socialists than Republicans, and a lot of important issues don't receive the conversation or debate among students that they deserve. But outside of politics, there are a lot of great conversations among students about various aspects of their lives, majors, future careers, and college in general.

Emerson is VERY gay-friendly. We have a large population of LGBT students. I wouldn't have it any other way. I can't think of any kind of person that would feel out of place at Emerson, since the "cool" thing to do these days is to try not to fit in. Wait. I take that back. Homophobes would be uncomfortable. Emerson students come from many places. I, for example, am one of the few that are from Vermont. Most of my friends are from: New York, Texas, Jersey, Connecticut, and New Hampshire. A lot of people come from LA or other far-away places, too. Emerson's got rich kids and middle-class kids. It's a really expensive school, and you can't attend unless you're willing to take out about $100,000 iin loans, or if you're borderline poor like me and actually get need-based grants from the school. My advice to anyone who CANNOT afford to take out loans and wants to go to Emerson is this: APPLY FOR EARLY ACTION. If I hadn't applied early, I might not have gotten grants and been able to attend this school. I can't stress it enough. If you know what you want to do with your life, and you're the kind of person who has a plan and is stickin' to it, or at least has a plan with backup plan B and C, apply early and do everything you can to get financial aid. It's worth it.

This is a mostly white school, with a huge LGBT group and some religious groups. We have our own religious clubs, but they aren't very widespread. They cater mostly around christianity, buddhism, and jewish groups. most students wear jeans and t-shirts to class, dresses, skirts, or "funky" outfits. Students usually stick to the people in their same major, as they have similar classes, but after-class activities lead to some mixing. The students are from everywhere...I myself have dormed with girls from California, Pennsylvania, the Phillipines, New Jersey, New York, and Texas. Most students are from Upper Middle Class or Upper Class, where they are paying full price without much/any financial aid. Students are very politically aware, and there are multiple political meetings and discussions on campus. This is a very forward thinking and liberal school, and Conservatism is not looked upon too kindly. The only times students talk about their future earnings is when a writing or publishing major talks about the awesome cardboard box they'll end up living in, but it's always said with a good amount of humor.

When the Princeton Review took Emerson off the list of top ten schools with the best homosexual communities, the student body at Emerson was extremely surprised, to say the least. There is a myth that circulates among the freshmen each year that almost half of the student body is gay, but I highly doubt that is true. However, it might seem true at some points. In short, your gay-dar will be finely tuned by the end of freshmen year for sure. The community at Emerson is extremely open and accepting and therefore there's a good mix of students. There do seem to be a lot of wealthy Jewish students, but that's just a stereotype and not necessarily true. Money and connections are big selling points of Emerson and a big focus by students. Emerson has undeniable connections and therefore if you work hard enough you just might get that high paying job right out of college. This seems to be a big deal for many students because they come from wealthy or well off families and financial stability is important. As for political attitudes, a lot of the student body is from the center to the far far left. You'll find republicans here and there but many students proudly declare themselves to be liberal. Students might wonderful why someone is republican but it doesn't make them an object of ridicule in any way. Overall, the student body is accepting and pretty much open to anything.