Santa Clara University
Responses from the Student Interview
From a student who identifies as Major: Economics
Minor: Entrepreneurship
Student Self Identifies as: Asian/Indian Straight Male
Summary
I’m on a varsity [sports] team, I [have a leadership position] in Student Government, I’m part of the Asian Pacific-Islander Student Union, and I’m part of a startup accelerator called OneUp at Santa Clara.
Background
Gender Identity: Male
Race/Ethnicity: Asian/Indian
Sexual Orientation: Straight
High School Experience: Public high school in the East Bay Area, CA with a graduating class of about 900 students. There was a culture of going to college.
First-Generation College Student: No
Major: Economics
Minor: Entrepreneurship
Extracurricular Activities: I’m on a varsity [sports] team, I [have a leadership position] in Student Government, I’m part of the Asian Pacific-Islander Student Union, and I’m part of a startup accelerator called OneUp at Santa Clara.
Have any of your extracurricular activities had a particularly big impact on your experience?
I’d say the Asian Pacific-Islander Student Union, my varsity [sport], and being part of student government for all three years have had the biggest impacts. The team culture of being part of athletics has been a huge cultural shift for me and has helped me develop personally. Professionally, this year out of most has pushed me in terms of leadership skills and how to deal with administrators through the student government. The South-Asian Indian Club has provided a pretty tight-knit community for me, as South Asians are part of the minority groups on campus. It’s nice to have a group of people who are pretty similar to me.
Academic Experience
Can you describe your weekly coursework for your major?
For the Economics major, it ranges. In the earlier lower-division classes, it’s a lot of tests, quizzes, homework, or tutorial walkthroughs, but not many problem sets. The upper-division courses turn into problem sets, labs, and working with data. Most of the Economics courses are data-driven using R software. A final project or exam and midterms make up the bulk of the final grade.
Is there anything you feel your major’s department does especially well or poorly?
The Economics department has a number of exceptional professors that are extremely qualified and smart. They do a good job of recruiting and retaining very accomplished individuals, but sometimes the time spent in class isn’t always the best. Sometimes the planning of the curriculum for Economics courses isn’t always the best. It seems like time is often wasted due to extraneous things professors want to teach, or the material taught in class doesn’t always match what we’re being tested on. I’d say that happens for about 25% of the courses, but the rest of the courses are usually fine.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
It’s extremely collaborative. Amongst all Santa Clara students, no one is trying to beat out each other. It’s more so about helping each other so we can first learn and do well on our personal exams. By no means is it an extremely competitive environment.
How accessible are your professors?
Some professors are very accessible and will reach out to you, but all professors except for a couple will respond to your emails if you make an active effort.
Why did you choose your major? Are you happy with your choice?
I chose my major because of the background I had in high school. I’ve always been business-driven. I started as a Biology major at Santa Clara but realized that it wasn’t for me based on the curriculum.
Do you feel that people are open to multiple schools of thought in the classroom?
I think it depends on the type of class you’re in. If you’re in a larger religion class in the College of Arts and Sciences, it’ll be pretty open for the most part because religion is thought about pretty liberally. Religion is pretty broad at Santa Clara because it’s a Jesuit university. If you go to a specific Women’s and Gender Studies (WGST) class and if you have a different opinion, it’ll be met with some judgment because of the pool of students taking that class. Also, if you’re in a hardcore time series Finance class, approaching problems with a qualitative mindset focusing on personality and softer skills, it’ll be met with judgment as well.
How do you like the quarter system? How has it impacted your ?
Contrary to popular opinion, I really like the quarter system. It keeps me moving because the 10-weeks go by so quickly that you’re constantly being assessed, but you’re constantly learning. If you have a poor experience with a professor, you’re only stuck with that professor for 10-weeks.
Reasons to Attend
1) The staff and faculty are a huge reason to attend.
2) The classroom environment.
3) Santa Clara has a lot of different opportunities. Being able to explore and take different classes allows you to get a diverse education.
Reasons Not to Attend
1) Santa Clara is really small, so if you don’t like a small and tight-knit environment where things spread quickly it might not be for you.
2) Santa Clara can be very monotone at times where you’re doing the same things socially. There’s not a whole lot to do off-campus, and if you’re not partying there’s not a whole lot to do.
Around Campus
Where have you lived on and around campus?
Freshman: Swig Hall with one roommate
Sophomore: Casa Italiana with seven roommates
Junior & Senior: Off-campus house with seven housemates
How do you like going to school close to your hometown?
It’s fine and has its plusses and minuses. I come home more frequently than most students, but that’s also a blessing because I have the ability to go home. I’ve learned to like it.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
I’ve always felt very safe and haven’t had any trouble.
Social Opportunities
What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
Late-night bowling is fun, there’s a special for that near campus on Tuesday nights. There are a number of university bars that have certain nights when students go out. I used to attend fraternity parties and other club sports parties, but not so much anymore. I’ll hang out with people in the dorms or in my house just playing a board game one night, it just depends on the mood.
If you’re looking at the grand scheme of Santa Clara, Sundays and Mondays are really dead, some students go out to those bars on Tuesdays, Wednesday nights end up being fraternity or sorority events, Thursday nights are for the bars, Fridays end up being fraternity or sorority events, and Saturdays end up being date parties or just hanging outside during the day.
What’s an alternative to going to a party or a bar that you like for a night out?
My personal alternative would be going to play basketball in the gym late at night. For many of the students there isn’t a whole lot, so partying ends up being the norm. If you don’t party, you usually end up staying in the dorms and hanging out with a group of friends who also don’t party.
How happy are you with the weekend options at Santa Clara? Is there anything you would change about them if you could?
I’d love to have more weekend options. [If you don’t have a car], you have to Uber to the movies and to bowling. Also, having more restaurant options would be cool. There’s not a whole lot of shopping except for the Westfield Mall, but you have to drive there. A lot of people take the Caltrain up to San Francisco.
Campus Culture
How did you meet your closest friends?
I ended up living with them during my freshman year.
How would you describe the overall social scene at Santa Clara?
When you first arrive, it’s a whole new world and there’s a lot of openness. As you go throughout your experience, it becomes more and more cliquey so it depends on what group you become part of. What ends up happening is you have a core group of friends then you have extended friends from similar friend groups, so that ends up being a group of 50 people who all know each other but don’t actually hang out regularly.
To what extent do people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
It’s pretty open. I’ve never felt unwelcomed to hang out with other people of different races. The minority groups on campus tend to stay to themselves sometimes because of the clubs. They like hanging out with people who’re like them. [The undergraduate population is about 18% Hispanic, 3% Black, 48% White, and 16% Asian.]
How would you describe the South Asian community on campus? How strong is it?
There are lots of South Asians on campus, and there’s one really tight-knit community. Then, there is an externally large secondary community. I could think of 30-40 individuals that know each other and are pretty tight, and I can think of an external 50 students that would deem themselves part of the South Asian community, but not in that main group.
How do you like the size of Santa Clara in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How has it impacted your experience? [There are about 5,500 students at Santa Clara.]
I like the size but I wish it were a little bigger. It’s currently growing so I think it’ll end up getting to the size I wish I was at. It’s been a good experience and having a small community is something I was looking for in a college.
To what extent do people in Greek life and not in Greek life mix socially?
Some individuals will only hang out with their fraternity brothers, and there are other individuals who will mix with people. Once again, it depends on your personality and who you know.
What is the impact of the Jesuit affiliation on campus?
It does impact the social and health wellbeing. For example, condoms aren’t allowed on campus because of the Catholic Church’s view on contraception, which is a negative side to the Jesuit values. On the positive side, having the Jesuit values constantly being pushed through all aspects of education is really interesting. They even get snuck into my Economics classes somehow. I think it’s really interesting and provides a different perspective from my normal culture and community. [See The College Fix article, “Coalition forms to advance the sexual revolution at Catholic universities,” and The Odyssey article, “Catholic Colleges’ Stance On Condoms Is A Contraception To Jesuit Values.”]
Careers
Has the alumni network helped you find internships or jobs?
Yes, it has. For my job coming out of college, I ended up hearing about it through the Bronco Network, which is specifically for athletes and allows for individuals to meet with alumni to find jobs. I was referred to an individual in my community who I didn’t know, and they ended up helping me through the application process.
Have you learned any computer programs or computer languages that will be helpful professionally?
Excel and R are used in a lot of Economics classes. I’ve also learned a little Python and JupyterLab.