Trinity College Top Questions

Most Trinity students are from the New York and Boston areas. Most come from upper middle class families with many from private and boarding schools although the atmosphere is changing a bit. For example, the classes of 2009 and 2008 get very dressed up for classes and I've noticed that less of the 2010 and 2011 classes aren't as into their week-day threads.

It is disheartening to think that any student would fele out of place at Trinity. However, the reality of college, as in life, is that not every college is the perfect fit. I am the stereotype - blonde hair, blue eyes, preppy little girl. However, it bothers me when people feel racially, religiously, etc. on the outside because I have never treated anyone differently based on these things. You are the only one that can make yourself feel inferior.

A lot of white kids and a small minority population that's slowly growing where generally they all know each other.

Trinity get's a lot of negative press about our race relations, however compared to other NESCAC schools we are pretty darn diverse. The most noticeable thing about the Trinity student body is that everyone is beautiful. Honestly, it is stunning returning back to Trinity after visiting another college, just how beautiful and thin everyone is.

While diversity in terms of race is important, Trinity should be taking a closer look at socioeconomic and regional diversity. They are never going to attract new types of students until they break the stereotype of being a school for privileged white kids. Trinity wants racial diversity but they won't get it until they get other types of diversity. The first weekend of freshman orientation there is a speaker who tries to tell the class as a whole some of the statistics about the class, as well as leading students through all sorts of exercises that try to break stereotypes, yada yada. The one thing I still remember was when the woman asked people to stand up for one of these categories: your family always had more than enough, enough, or not enough. more than half of the room stood up for more than enough. you can take that as a bunch of americans acknowledging that almost anyone that lives in this country has more than enough, or you can take that as everyone immediately interpreting those categories as upper, middle, and lower class. there have been some major issues in the last few years involving homophobia and sexism on campus. the trinity tripod, the student newspaper, frequently makes jokes out of sexual assaults and other gender issues on campus. there is a lot of backlash against the only alternative group on campus, The Fred, which was put together several years ago as a way for students unhappy with the party/greek life centered social scene. it is not intended to be anti-alcohol, and is not, but it provides more alternative types of events, where those who are uncomfortable with drinking and excessive partying can feel safe and comfortable. in general, extracurriculars outside of sports are not very strong, with the exception of the greek system. but most clubs and other societies don't have strong followings. any attempts at political activism are largely ignored. if you want a place where it takes less than a year to have recycling bins installed on campus, i suggest somewhere where people give a shit. my guess would be if you average it all out, political leanings are straight down the center.

I would say that any student who is not upper class, straight, and white would feel somewhat out of place at Trinity. I don't know how common this is at other colleges, but people tend to segregate themselves largely by race, or at least students of color vs. white students. There were some instances about a year ago of a few black students having racial slurs written on their doors, as well as a strange incident where a white student went in black face to a Halloween party impersonating/mocking a black person. After this incident, some students of color (mostly black and hispanic) organized an event at the dining hall where they purposely sat at tables of all white students to try to break the pattern. Basically, (and this is coming from a white student!) the white students could be more friendly towards people of color. Only the athletic teams seem to be more integrated. Trinity is a Division III school, but we stilll take sports fairly seriously. Half of the student body participates in competitive sports, and people often make friends based on their sport. Don't believe the admission office when they say that students come from all over the state, generally they come from New England and the Mid-Atlantic area. There are a decent number from California, but coming from CA I still often felt a little out of place. Politically I'd say most students are democratic / central, but I would stilll say there are still more conservatives / more vocal conservatives than most colleges. It probably feels like there are more conservatives than there really are. Most female students are very into dressing in expensive clothing of hte jcrew /seven jeans variety to class. I have some wonderful friends at Trinity, and I am not speaking for the entire student body, but I would say the majority is more close minded, less friendly, and more homogenous than the average student body.

everyone is so nice.

Students are racist, sure, but misogyny and homophobia win the day. Beyond that, the general preppy-ness of the student body contributes to a sense of elitism, which really may be Trinity's fundamental problem: these are stupid rich kids. They feel entitled to everything and strive for nothing.

The basis of on-campus racism lies in exclusion. Since we have such a small community, it is easy for students to feel left out. While it may seem that minority students do not have the same venues in terms of social life, co-curricular activities and access to forums for campus-wide expression, these venues seek leadership. You can create any forum for expression as long as you are motivated. Getting involved is key.

While Trinity has primarily white students, there is definitely a sense of diversity on campus. The various ethnic houses allow students of all races and ethnicities to feel at home. There are various religious houses, as well as an LGBT community. A lot of the students like to "dress up" for class, but many are comfortable and show up dressed down. Because of the diversity, I believe there is a place for everyone at Trinity.

I don't know enough about this becauses the traditinal students relly get to know each other, IDP are often too busy within thier own lives.

majority are white new england prep school kids... people with similar socioeconomic backgrounds stick together campus seems to be very segregated in terms of social groups. students are generally apathetic, not as much left, right, or center. four tables of students: 1. pastel / lily pulitzer wearing preppy kids (boys and girls) with the same longchamp bag. 2. large people - football/basketball players 3. black kids 4. general weird kids that don't fit into the top three categories

Trinity has a pretty diverse community; racially, religiously and socio-economic status wise as well. Although Trinity is sort of known as a rich school which is pretty true, it's really not that big of a deal. Trinity is one of THE best colleges in terms of need-blind financial aid, I basically have my entire tuition covered by it.

Dress code: Lilly, polo, vinyards vines, brooks brothers, those are mostly the wardrobe. Burberry or Barbur jackets. North face or patagonia fleeces. Some times nice (usually Brooks Brothers or Ralph Lauren) wool/cashmere jackets. Or course juicy, vince, paper, citizens, and others make their appearances, jeans, anything deigner goes. Shoes are Jack rogers, raindows, tods and guggi loafers, the usual brands make their rounds for formal events, girls in their choos, manolos, and louboutin, tory burch, not to say these shoes don't make appearances for more casual effents. Long champ and Herves and the book bags, Vera duffles are a common sight. ---- most students come from money Most are open to LGBT, but that doesn't mean they want to see that sort of behavior. Students are politically aware and I would day that there are more registered members of the GOP at Trin than at other schools, but I wont say its the majority, just more than the norm. Students spend a decent amount of time talking about what they'll earn one day, and how they'll earn it.

Some sectors of the student body are surprisingly conservative for a college campus.

While it is generally thought that the Trinity campus is not accepting of minorities (such as homosexuals), I have not, in my personal experience, encountered such descrimination. I have heard of people being rude to my gay friends and belittled them but this certainly is not the predominant opinion on campus.

Just about everyone can find their niche at Trinity. A lot of students dress up to class, but some do not. Different types of students don't interact on a regular basis, but if you seek out people that aren't like you, you can certainly find them. There are many different groups and organizations at Trinity and just about every student is involved in something. A lot of students are very wealthy and about half of the students came from private schools. Politically, the campus is split right down the middle. People go to Trinity for an excellent education and so people do tend to focus on making sure their education will get them good jobs in the future or enrolled in a good graduate program.

Most students are Trinity are from New England, however even though I am from California, I had no problem fitting in with the preppy East Coasters. As I mentioned earlier, most students are Caucasian and wealthy, and this is evident in the clothes they wear and cars they drive. People care a lot about their appearance here. The students at Trinity really enjoy going out Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, and the upperclassmen tend to go out during the week as well. I would say individuals that do not enjoy drinking or drug use would feel uncomfortable here because that is what a majority of the students do on the weekends. Although there are many social options provided for weekend fun, the majority of it is based upon going to the three popular frats. What surprised me about Trinity's campus was how conservative the students were. However, I've found most people to be pretty open-minded.

While Trinity is comprised mostly of white kids, there are a fair amount of international students, especially because the squash teams draw from many different countries. In terms of diversity, there's more than I thought there was going to be. And, while it's pretty segregated, I haven't witnessed any firsthand racism...maybe that's a naive or ignorant observation though, because it might occur. Actually, it seems like a lot of white kids are intimidated by other groups of people and the sororities in particular seem really exclusive and unfriendly.

Most students come from New England but there is also a substantial population from California and even Minnesota. Trinity can be a bit intimidating to students who are not aware of or used to upper-class north eastern culture. However, I think that a good majority of students are welcoming and accepting and, if student participate in school functions and get out and about on campus, most people can find someone or some group of people that they can relate to or share interests with.