Indiana University-Bloomington Top Questions

Can find everyone from Young Republics to Students for Barack Obama. Some students drive Audis, others Honda Civics. There are athletes and artists. Geographic backgrounds range from New York to SoCal. With 40,000 students, we have all kinds. You can decide whether you want to fit in, stand out, or just do your own thing.

B-Town is very Liberal, since I've been here Barack Obama, and the whole Clinton family have all swung by to give speeches. The student body is very diverse. Sometimes your dorm floor may smell like Indian Food, but at least you're getting cultured. Lots of students from Indy and the Chicago Suburbs. The "townies" can always show you a good time, like showing you the quarries. Anyone like 75 ft plunges into beautiful emerald green waters? New Yorkers who talk funny, and hardly ever branch away from each other. And Asians, who are guaranteed to raise the curve in your accounting class and cruise around in a Porsche SUV.

There are students from all over at IUB. There are a lot of students from all over the state, some from all over the country, and many students from other countries as well. Some students are politically aware/active, and some are not. Since there are students from all over the state and country, some are predominantly left and some are predominantly right. I would say that the majority of students were raised in a comfortable environment. That is to say, most come from fairly wealthy families. It's plain to see that most students appear to have a lot of money and spend it freely, so it's obviously not theirs. Most students' parents are paying for everything, school, room and board, and everything else they need while they're in school. It seems to me that the majority of students have everything they need provided by their parents. I'm sure there is a handful of students who got scholarships and took out loans and received financial aid and had to pull all kinds of strings just to make it here, but I would assume that more than half of the students here haven't even had a full-time job yet. There are different buildings on campus specifically for clubs or religious groups or ethnic centers. There is an LGBT group and there are also places for international students. I think its nice that IUB does a good job of welcoming this students and provides them with their own place to go to feel at home. From what I've seen, different types of students interact in class, like different cliques do not have trouble working in groups and talking together in their learning environment. But sometimes they do have a hard time understanding one another when they talk about things outside of class. Like some of the 'Greek' students explain aspects of their frats/sororities, and other students have no idea what they're talking about. Or some students study in the library and know where things are there, and other students only use the library as a meeting place, so when they do group projects and mention technology available, some students just let others who have more experience do the talking.

Being a conservative person from the south I can say that going to IU has really taught me lessons in tolerence of other people's views, due to the fact that the town of Bloomington is very liberal to say the least, but that being said people are respectful for the most part of other's views and opinions.

I'm not a close minded individual, but I do have my own values and principals. As a student here, I do and I don't feel out of place. I don't feel out of place because I'm accepted by everyone that I've come across and I've made so many connections that I feel surrounded by family. At the same time, I do feel out of place because I feel that the institution pushes specific values on people to accept or acknowledge or to not act prejudice against things that they don't believe in or don't live by. IUB's student body is so globalized that there's not a group that could possibly be left out. Literally. Now, there are some student groups that may be underrepresented, and there may be some groups who wish to have more visibility on campus, but they can all be seen throughout the school year. I'd suggest that if anyone wanted to see just how globalized IUB really is, you should take a class in Immigration and Cultural Identity. EVERYONE in my class literally had a difference in ethnic identity, religious affiliation, socioeconomic status, and other forms of identity. As for the way that student's look and dress, it all depends on the season and their attitude. You have people who may sound "American" or "Americanized" or Midwestern, but they still wear their headdress that's traditionally worn in their family or whatnot. There are some students who are more exotic or that may express themselves iv various ways. I've seen students who were highly conservative, caught up in the 70s or 90s, students who seemed gothic or emo-looking, students who seemed like "burnouts," the preps, the professionals, the hip hop influenced students, and those students who really just broght their own swag. The only students that I really see dressed formally on and on throughout the year are the Kelly School of Business Students. Some of them may not have much money at all, but they make themselves look professional when they step into those classrooms and when they present their projects. I personally bum out all year. However, I'm constantly attending events, so it could appear that I surprisingly dress up for no reason while I'm heading to class or to a quick meeting. As I've said before, this student body has it all. You everyone form students who are only spiritually inclined to those who probably woul lobby with legislature everyday if they could. IUB holds the highly conservative and the liberals under one roof. When you head into the union building, you may find yourself stopped by Mormon missionaries (it happened to me every Friday), and once you leave out on the other side, you may find yourself going through an "embrace diversity" rally... you can really paint your own picture with that....

We are more diverse than a school from Indiana might appear. We have students at IU from every state in the Union and over 120 foreign nations, with all different cultural and financial backgrounds. This makes for a vibrant and exciting student life because everyone is exposed to cultures that they may never have gotten the chance to experience elsewhere.

I feel like there is too much Greek life here....not a fan. Most students wear comfortable clothing to classes, like hoodies. All different types of students interact- whites, blacks, asians, Jews...I see it all over campus. I think financially, students here are very wealthy..it's an expensive school, and many out of state/overseas students attend IU.

Frats, sorrorities, corean clusters, music geeks, antisocial pre meds, health nuts/jocks, bohemians, brothas, etc. Yes, there are defenetly some very identifiable sub-groups of hoosiers. No tension though, and MOST people are still just people (exept frats, those things are pretty lame).

In my opinion IUB is full of IUB students. At such a large university, avoiding people of different backgrounds is nearly impossible. Of course, most students are from Indiana and the Midwest, but that doesn't mean there's no place for lots of other students.

I'm from an incredibly small town (both in size and in mind...), so I really hadn't experienced living in a place with such size and diversity. I'd visited before, so it wasn't like I was dropped off the family wagon and immediately shocked by The Big City...but visiting and living are two separate situations. Living in a community like this has introduced me to people I'd of never really had the opportunity to know, and through those connections I've been likewise introduced to knew things (music, food, etc. etc. etc.) that are continually added to the list of Things That Define Me. It's a wonderful process.

- Because IU is so big, you can always find others who are like you. - Politically, IU is thought to be mostly left-wing liberals, but the truth is that we have the entire spectrum. There's also a large number of apathetic students, so it isn't necessary to be politically active to fit in! - I was surprised when I first came to IU because everyone was so NICE! In general, students are really nice to each other and will help you out if you trip, hold the door for you, or need other random things.

The diversity at IU is one of my favorite parts about the student body. I am always impressed at how many students are socially and politically aware and involved.

I believe the students at IU are very welcoming, and I see people of many different backgrounds walking around campus. Most students dress casually for class (jeans and an IU shirt is always a common choice).

IU has everyone. Hands down--you think of a person? They're here.

I really dont think any student would feel out of place at IUB because there are so many support groups available if anyone were to feel uncomfortable about their race, religion or sexuality. Most students here wear jeans and sweats to class. Most IUB students are from Indiana.

I do not believe that there are many issues of feeling out of place on this campus. Students go to class in their pajamas quite often, and they are not looked at strangely, mostly because they are wearing theirs as well. However, there still remains some sort of division among students, but there still exists positive relationships among them. In the dining hall, I would say that there is an African American table, and Asian table, a Greek table (fraternities and sororities), and the rest, being people who do not belong to any of these groups. However, this campus does a nice job of letting anyone who wants to speak, speak. There are numerous guest speakers that range from major political figures to discussions of sexuality and role-reversals when it comes to the LGBT community. But I think that all of these things bring Indiana together. I have never felt a sense of distance or bad feelings from one group to another. I just think that people associate with people that they can relate to, so the divisions occur. Students are from all over the world, but there is a large majority from either New York or of course from Indiana. The financial backgrounds also vary, but that never seems to be much of an issue. As for politics, it is hard to say where students fall under the Political spectrum, because it is most often overlooked as a topic of conversation. For me, I have friends from all different Political backgrounds, but that does not mean anything. Some of my best friends have different opinions than I do. I think it is better this way, because it does lead to some interesting conversations.

IU is very open to other culture and there are alot of organizations on campus that student can get involved in to connect with different peoples cultures. No student should ever feel out of place on this campus there are opportunities for everyone. There are people of all over the world that come to IU and friends are easy to come by. Usually people are really laid back and just wear jeans and a tee-shirt. Some of the business classes will require that you dress up for class when you have presentations. Most student just wear what makes them comfortable. Thats how life usually is pretty laid back until finals week comes and everyone gets really into school. When your a freshman and you have to live in the dorms you get to know people on your floor and you can hang out in their rooms (if they are ok with it) and go get food together. Your floor is a little like your family you have to see them every day. When students go to the dining hall they will usually go with the people they live with. I went to highschool with Eric Gordon who plays for IU's basketball team and will most likely be going to the NBA next year but I get to see him around and football players and its kinda fun to see them off the feild or the court. IU has students from all over but there are two areas that have alot of students from IU. There is Indiana and then Chicago has alot of students coming to IU specifically Naperville Illinois. College is expensive so you will see quite a few wealthy students but usually people are middle class. Some students are politically aware and there are all kinds of organizations that people can join or create depending on their poliltical views. There is no shift really. You can easily find people of all different walks of life and with all different views. Working around Bloomington isn't too bad you can find jobs in the school and you can also find jobs in the community. I work at the Musical Arts Center where IU puts on its operas and it wasn't hard to find the job. They have a huge job fair at the beginning of first semester and if you are looking for a job I would really recommend going to that. Some students talk about how much they make some students don't even have jobs it really depends on the person.

Students can be cliquey, and stick with their own kind. But just talk to people and they will open up. If they are going to be an ass, who cares. This is college and people need to learn to relate to others. There are a good amount of jock-y guys, and preppy-sorority-girls. However, there are also a lot of nerdy (in a good way!) rock, indie etc. people. There is every kind of student, here, someone for everyone. And there are serious students who like to have a good time (i.e. the SOS club!)

I've interacted with ALL types of people here, and while it may be a culture shock of sorts at first, you get used to it and end up loving the diversity. I think there is a place for anyone here at IU, unless you KNOW you want to go to a tiny school. While I feel like it's a nice size, some still might be intimidated. Most students wear comfy clothes to class, and way too many girls wear leggings and Uggs. Birds of a feather definitely flock together, but most people are pretty open here. You might have one table full of girls who party a lot (rich girls, usually) and remind you of the "popular girls" from high school. You might have another with music and theater kids. You might have one with the typical sports guys or frat guys. You might have one with whoever else doesn't fit into the former three categories. Most students seem to be from Indiana or surrounding states. I feel like most people I meet come from middle-class to upper-middle-class backgrounds, and sometimes it is intimidating. Although it may not be as politically active as it could be, it's an election year, so you do see more political initiative from students here, especially as a "blue city" in a "red state". Most students are liberal or moderate, but you won't feel terribly out of place if you aren't. Business students talk about the money they'll make. And that's about it.

Although IU does its best to invite diversity, at the end of the day, the demographics of the school largely reflect the demographics of the state, which means that the majority of students come from white, middle-class families. There are numerous groups on campus to support minority students, and the administration takes discrimination in all forms very seriously, but I can't claim that IU is truly a diverse environment. Certain departments, such as the Kelley School of Business, draw a lot of out-of-state students to IU, and because out-of-state tuition is so high, there's a large cross-section of wealthy students as well. As far as politics is concerned, there's a mix; the left-leaning groups seem to be more active, though being in the mid-west means that there are a lot of conservative Christians, too.