Reed College Top Questions

There is a large homosexual community on campus that is open and unpersecuted. Reedies tend to be white, and a surprisingly large proportion are Jewish. People who practice religion aren't generally open about it. It seems like everyone is from the San Francisco Bay Area, and if not that, they are New Yorkers. We tend to be politically aware and have some activists on campus, but most people don't have time to get involved. We are stereotypically and practically uniformly leftists here. We mostly talk about how our great education will leave us starving.

The student body at Reed is liberal. Often times conservative viwepoints aren't voiced on campus. As for the mix of students, there's a large diversity of sub-cultures rather than a large ethnic diversity (reed college is working on this). YOu have your anarchist-folk punk activists organizing political rallies and playing bluegrass, fire-spinning hair-dyed kids who write theater productions, tight jean- thriftstore hopping coffee drinking hipsters, super techie bike-geeks, outdoor loving he-men and women, perky cute girlie girls, frisbee/rugby beer-drinking jocks, and so many others. Students are generally open and friendly to hanging out with anyone, i've rarely felt excluded from events on or off campus.

Students are... unique. Some of them try really hard to be unique, and some of them don't, but it's interesting anyways. I couldn't characterize what the "average" Reed student would look like... I think in terms of background they would probably be liberal, have at least one professor parent, dance awkwardly and often and have a secret passion for something odd that you would never guess from looking at them. Most likely they went to private school or alternative school or something, though I went to regular public school and I know one or two others. Students don't think about money in the future, but most have big ideas about their contribution to the world, either artistically, philosophically or scientifically. I think most would be willing to starve for those things, though apparently most alum go on to be comfortable and upper middle class.

Although people often claim that Reed is the most un-religious school in the nation, as a Christian, I have enjoyed my time here. Almost no one at Reed goes to church regularly, but I have had better discussions about the nature of God here than anywhere else. I've also realized that while a lot of kids put down that they're "agnostic" or "atheist," most of them have more nuanced and interesting ideas than that. And, while a few freshmen are sometimes rude to avowed theists, that really isn't part of the Reed culture: they realize that it's inappropriate to do that pretty quickly. We have shirts in the bookstore that read "Atheism, Communism, Free Love," but in 2008, it's normally more like "Agnosticism, Socialism, Safe Sex."

student groups: queer alliance, black and african student union, asian student union, activist organizations, etc.--plenty of similar organizations here. reed bends way, way, way to the left, bordering on pinko sometimes. i have not been personally involved in any political-ish group, but they are a presence on campus, and they are active. the feminist student union and the new men's feminist group, mr. fakk, are pretty vocal, and sometimes controversial. but not in any divisive or harmful way. difference of opinion and debate are not just tolerated here, they are revered. unless you're a republican. as for religion, their is a multi-faith council and a chaverim, and the christian group is called "oh for christ's sake." i think that's pretty telling. normal kids would feel out of place here. the types interested in frats and sororities and mega team sports. probably extremely observant or orthodox religious kids. ver conservative students who might be offended by the slightest hint of nudity. people who crave a more typical college social scene. however, if your are a biracial atheist transgender student interested in stopping the oppression in burma and metaphysics, come on over! another important note: reed is sadly not very racially diverse at all. it's largely white, with some asians, few black students, and even fewer hispanic students, though there are a surprising number of international students from places like bulgaria and algeria. what do students wear to class? what don't they wear to class? i recommend that you abide by the "no shirt, no shoes, no service" rule (even if some don't). at the very least wear pants. that's the best rule of reed dress i can think of. only applies in class. yes different types of students interact, but visible groups do emerge over time. most reedies come from california or the pacific northwest, followed by new york, the midwest, and probably the international scene before it even gets to the south. there is not a great deal of socio-economic diversity because reed is so pricey. however, with the little endowment reed does have, they provide full rides to a fair amount of students from lower socio-economic backgrounds. on the flipside, this means that the lower-middle/middle class students (like myself) often do not receive the financial they need or might get more easily at a different institution. but i would say most of the people i know come from rather privellaged backgrounds. students are keenly aware of current sociopolitical issues and active as well. reed has a history of radical liberal activism, and that tradition is slowly being rekindled (even if it means unplugging our coke machines). LEFT.

A lot of Reedies dress like they're poor. Usually, these are the ones who are self-conscious about how much money they have. Reedies are generally pretty liberal, but are so caught up with academics that a sense of apathy pervades student life.

I would say that most are white, straight, from the middle to upper class strata, liberal, and nonreligious.

There's a clear lack of diversity in terms of racial, religious, and socio-economic groups. While students don't segregate themselves, it's a fairly homogeneous group.

Reed is very white, and middle-to upper middle class for the most part. it's definitely gay-friendly. I don't know that I can speak to racial issues. I'm white and most of my Reed friends are white. My friends in high school and after Reed are much more racially mixed than at Reed. As far as class goes, students dress badly were less concerned with money and clothes than how badass they are in writing and speaking well about complex academic ideas. Someone who is not interested in academics, or who is only interested in partying or shopping would be out of place at Reed. Four tables: 1. Freshmen talking about HUM reading, 2. More freshmen talking about how they have to finish the Hum paper before they can go kayaking this weekend, 3. seniors who moved back onto campus to be closer to the library, 4. Scroungers Most students are from the Pacific Northwest, California, the Northeast, and a few from various other place and international. Students are generally very politically aware and pretty far to the left.

Very accepting. The student body is quite polarized in terms of financial background. Politically left as left can be- this is no bad thing. Very visible and vocal LGBT community which was great.