Trinity University

Responses from the Student Interview

From a student  who identifies as Majors: Business Analytics and Technology & Sociology double major
Minor: East Asian Studies
Student Self Identifies as: South Asian Bisexual Female

Summary

I’m currently rushing for a sorority, I have a [leadership position] in the Pride Club, and I’m in the South Asian Student Association.

Background

Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: South Asian
Sexual Orientation: Bisexual

High School Experience: Public charter high school in Irving, TX with a graduating class of about 120 students. There was a culture of going to college.
First-Generation College Student: Yes
Majors: Business Analytics and Technology & Sociology double major
Minor: East Asian Studies

Extracurricular Activities: I’m currently rushing for a sorority, I have a [leadership position] in the Pride Club, and I’m in the South Asian Student Association.
Did any of your extracurricular activities have a particularly big impact on your experience?
The South Asian Student Association and the sorority I’m rushing have been pretty impactful. They’ve really allowed me to expand my network and have helped me become more comfortable around campus.

Academic Experience

Can you describe your weekly coursework for your majors?
For [Business Analytics and Technology], we usually have two midterms, a final exam, four to five quizzes, daily assignments, and maybe a presentation for a class.
Is there anything you feel that your majors’ departments do especially well or poorly?
Trinity is known at a lot of big companies, and they recruit at Trinity. Our Chinese department also works heavily with our business school because a lot of students want to work with these companies. China is a major business partner [at the companies that recruit at Trinity], so our Chinese Studies department is very big with our business department.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
As a first-year, I think there’s more collaboration than competition and that has a lot to do with the small class sizes. My biggest class is 23 people this year, so you see those people all the time and there’s a culture of everyone wanting each other to succeed. You will see those people again, and I feel like the cutthroat sentiments aren’t there.
How accessible are your professors?
They’re very accessible. I’ve had classes at my professor’s houses, and since the classes are so small they have a lot of time to do one-on-one stuff. They have office hours almost every day.
How was transitioning as a first-generation college student? Were there any resources in place that helped you adapt?
Transitioning wasn’t too hard because my high school was similar. As for resources, there is a lot for pre-med, business, and math, with our Quantitative Reasoning Center. There’s also a Writing Center.
Why did you choose your majors? Are you happy with your choice?
I choose Sociology because it’s my passion and what I want to pursue a PhD. I choose Business Analytics because I want to make money while working.

Reasons to Attend

1) The one-on-one engagement with professors. They’re there to help you and they care.
2) The opportunities for finding a new job, especially if you want to stay in Texas. A lot of employers know Trinity is a prestigious institution.
3) The academic resources. They’re very committed to caring about you and making sure you succeed. They’ll email and follow up with you, even if you don’t ask for it.
4) You will not be just a number here. Your professors will care about you, even after you leave their class.

Reasons Not to Attend

1) If diversity is a deal-breaker, I wouldn’t come here.
2) If you’re really into school spirit, you won’t find that here.
Because Trinity is so small, it’s easy to get caught up in the small group of people you hang out with every day. If you’re not willing to put yourself out there and into the greater San Antonio community, Trinity won’t help and might keep you encapsulated in that bubble.

Around Campus

Where have you lived on and around campus?
Freshman: Calvert Hall with one roommate and two suitemates
How was transitioning from your hometown to San Antonio, TX in terms of location?
It was very easy. San Antonio and Dallas aren’t that different at all. There is more of a Hispanic influence here, but other than that it’s probably the same.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
I think our campus is pretty safe. It’s completely open which concerns me because I’ve heard of students having encounters with random people on campus. It’s also in the city, so there are a lot of underprivileged communities with impoverished people. There’s a lot of police nearby, which is nice.

Social Opportunities

What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
I used to be pretty active with volunteering during the day. There are a lot of opportunities. Trinity will post about sponsored opportunities and there are general community things we can do. Over the weekend, we’ll go thrift shopping or to a coffee shop to do homework. At night, there are a bunch of clubs nearby so we’ll go there. Downtown there’s St. Mary’s Strip which has a lot of bars and clubs. Some are 18+ and some are 21+.
What nights of the week do you regularly do things?
Thursdays are college nights, but usually on Fridays and Saturdays. Around recruitment season the fraternities and sororities will rent out the clubs, but it’s not a reoccurring thing where every Saturday is a specific fraternity’s night.
What is the impact of Greek life on nightlife?
I’d say it’s big. Greek life overpowers on my campus, and everyone who’s in it is a “cool” person on campus. It’s usually someone who’s involved in a lot of things and is likable. Our organizations are definitely not as big as our Greek life. There’s an emphasis on Greek life so there’s a heavy influence. As for exclusivity, there are parties and events for new recruit classes, so if you’re not in Greek life or in the recruitment process you can’t go. I wouldn’t say there’s anything excluding new pledge classes from joining because they want us to come and like their organization.
How happy are you with the weekend options at Trinity? Is there anything you would change about them if you could?
It would be nice if everything wasn’t so expensive. It’s hard to go out as much if you’re not working, which I do but I understand why others cannot.
How has identifying as LGBT influenced your nightlife experience? Are there any LGBT nightlife options that you like to go to?
There are a couple of gay bars in San Antonio. There’s one that does a drag show every semester, and every first Friday of every month the downtown has a lot of things to do, and a lot of those are LGBTQ focused. They’ll have poetry night, and one time there was a clothing drive for people transitioning.

Campus Culture

How did you meet your closest friends?
We got selected to be in a [Summer Bridge] program, so we came to campus three weeks before fall semester started. That’s when I met two of my closest friends.
How would you describe the overall social scene at Trinity?
If you’re not in Greek life, I’d say there isn’t much of a social scene. People go out with their friends, but it really revolves around Greek life.
To what extent do people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
It is a predominately White institution. We lost two major faculty members in the past three years who were Black and worked in the diversity and inclusion office. It’s kind of rough when you see people who’re there to support you leave the campus, for whatever reason. It’s a little hard dealing with that because they’re like your allies. They are professionals on this campus that can make changes. [The undergraduate population is 56% White, 4% Black, 6% Asian, and 18% Hispanic.
How would you describe the South Asian community on campus? How strong is it?
It’s pretty fun. There are quite a few of us and we host pretty big events every year which keeps us working together. Even though we have a South Asian Student Association, a lot of our members aren’t South Asian.
To what extent do people in Greek life and not in Greek life mix socially?
I’d say well. Because your classes are small, you’re bound to be with people in Greek life and you’re bound to have a group presentation and have to work together. If you want to be in the social scene, Greek life does dominate.
How do you like the size of Trinity in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How has it impacted your experience? [There are about 2,500 students at Trinity.]
I really enjoy it. I don’t think it’s negatively impacted my experience at all. Going to a campus this small means we don’t have a lot of school spirit and our sports aren’t that great.

Careers

Financial Aid

Have you used financial aid? If so, how easy is the office to work with?
I have aid. As for the office, they’re very responsive and I’ve had good experiences with them.