Scripps College Top Questions

When asked how to describes the typical Scrippsie, there is an overwhelming consensus: there isn't a typical Scripps student. Women come to this school with different interests and to engage with all different types of people. Scripps has an LGBT presence which most students accept and support, but it is definitely not super overwhelming. Scripps also always discusses that it is working on increasing diversity on campus- but I do not find the college to be very homogeneous at all. I have plenty of friends that are black, hispanic, middle eastern, or asian, and know many international students. Lots of students are on some amount of financial aid, but there are others who definitely do not need it. Regardless, background does not influence who people are friends with. Scripps is a liberal arts school, and as the name implies most students are very liberal.

There is no typical Scripps woman, but my classmates are generally passionate, intellectually curious, and desire to change the world in some manner.

No student should feel out of place at Scripps. Whether it is a group on campus or across the 5cs, there is a place for you. If there is not, you are encouraged to create one. Because of this, students enjoy clubs and organizations including everything from Nerd Club to midnight acapella groups to improv theater.

Being a woman of color here on the Scripps campus has been challeging, mainly due to the fact that about 90 percent of the population is comprised of Caucasian individuals. The only issues I have in regards to race are that people are ignorant of hurtful things they say or may be oblivious to certain situations and you ahve to inform them of their mistakes. Fortunately, we have many organizations of support that cater to the issues in regards to all races, ethnicities, and lifestyle choices. It is very common for different types of students to interact here, there usually is not much division between Scripps girls.

Living in the dorms here, I feel surrounded by friends, or at least potential friends. I love that I can go to the dining hall and run into people to eat with. While Scripps offers a ton of resources (and great mentor programs) for minority students through Scripps Communities of Resources and Empowerment, I'd like to see a greater discourse about ethnic and racial diversity on campus. What discourse there is tends to feel tense or hostile. I think that, intelligent, empowered and compassionate as Scripps students are, we can do better.

Scripps is not terribly diverse. They definitely are trying to diversify racially, but since Scripps is so expensive, it is hard to diversify in terms of socio-economic status. They do offer really generous financial aid, at least to me, but in order to do that, they have to have a certain number of students who can pay full tuition. Students' attire tends to be more put together than the average college campus. Sundresses are very popular. Of course, around finals or whenever it rains, people break out the sweatpants, but in general people are fairly fashionable. I would say that the student body is socially liberal and probably financially more in the middle just because, again, many of the students are from upper middle class families.

I would say that Scripps is not a very diverse place, racially or economically. At the same time, Scripps is constantly working toward ensuring that minorities have a voice, and they are very vocal. I think it would be hard to feel out of place...but I'm also white and upper class - I have the privilege of not knowing. We have a great race theory classes that tend to start by requiring the recognition of the racism in the world that creates privilege for some and discrimination for others. The LGBT community is also extremely vocal, with the beloved Motley Coffee House as the hotspot. All ranges of sexuality are accepted, there is even a new (tiny) fraternity of transgender guys. Most Scripps women (and transgender men) are very politically active and aware, especially within the Scripps community, if not nationally or worldly. We're predominantly pretty liberal, but there are definitely exceptions.

While Scripps does have racial and ethnic diversity, it is not as diverse as some schools in California, especially larger universities. Some students feel Scripps is not diverse enough in this regard, while others are not bothered by it. There are several religious groups on campus, plus LGBT support groups and racial/ethnic groups. While some students tend to interact mostly within their group of friends, there is definitely interaction among different types of students. Wednesday tea and snack nights are good opportunities for different members of the Scripps community to mingle and interact with each other. Scripps students come from all over the country and world, although there are more students from California, Oregon and Washington than any other one place. There are a wide variety of financial backgrounds - some students come from more wealthy families and can afford a Scripps education on their own, while many students are on some form of financial aid. Even the students that are more wealthy rarely flaunt it, and students with different financial backgrounds often interact with each other. Many students are politically aware and are active when it comes to issues they care about, whether it be social justice, women's rights, environmental sustainability, or helping the poor. Generally, students tend to be more liberal.

The student body is not very diverse, and most students are upper-middle class, Caucasian, and heterosexual. Which is not to say that EVERYONE is, and Scripps does make an effort to admit diverse students. The SCORE office is home to racial, religious, and LGBT support clubs at Scripps. Scripps makes an effort to be welcoming to all students, and within the student body people are generally accepting. The student body is fairly relaxed, and their is not much grade competition. Students do not brag about their grades or about how well they are going to do after college. Students usually go to class in t-shirts and jeans (or some equivalent depending on the weather) and have good relations with their professors. Most students have a close group of friends, but I would not describe them as 'cliquey'. Most students are politically aware but do not shove it in each others faces, and in general Scripps students have liberal leanings.

I've met just about every type of person at Scripps, and because we are so small and intimate, we all interact and are all friends. I would say that we are very accepting of everyone, I've never felt awkward or out of place for any reason. I think Scripps is similar to many institutions of higher learning populated by younger people, in that many students politically lean more to the left. But that's not to say that those of us who don't feel out of place. I feel as though many Scrippsies are always cute. They care about how they look and they look adorable! Sure, some people wear sweats or pjs but you can get some great fashion ideas from a lot of them. Scrippsies interact with everyone and are a good mixture of everything, it's fun!