Loyola University Maryland

Responses from the Student Interview

From a student  who identifies as Major: Marketing
Minor: None
Student Self Identifies as: White Straight Female

Summary

Background

Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: White
Sexual Orientation: Straight

High School Experience: Public school on Long Island with a graduating class of 350 people. There was a culture of going to college.
First Generation College Student: No
Major: Marketing
Minor: None

Extracurricular Activities: None

Academic Experience

Can you describe your weekly coursework for your major?
It’s mostly just reading in a textbook and sometimes we have short response questions. For big assignments, it’s a mixture of essays and exams. Presentations are also a lot of it.
Is there anything you feel your major’s department do especially well or poorly?
I think the Marketing department has really good professors. They’re really interesting, well at least the ones that I’ve had, and they’re really engaging and helpful.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
I would say there’s definitely some competition, but I feel that, for the most part, it’s very collaborative. People are always studying together or doing homework together.
What has been your favorite class in your major?
I guess the first Marketing class you take, so [Marketing 251]. I just really loved my professor for that class and I feel like I learned a lot from it.
What has been your least favorite class in your major?
As far as my least favorite goes, I’m not really sure. I guess I didn’t like some of business core classes. I definitely didn’t like Economics. I thought Economics was really hard.
Do you feel that people are open to multiple schools of thought in the classroom?
No, I really don’t. I do know that people consider Loyola to be a more liberal school. I think in general, even in my Marketing classes, professors are really open to hearing a lot of different ideas. They encourage you to say a different answer than the people before you say. They want to hear each person’s genuine opinion.
Why did you choose your major? Are you happy with your choice?
I chose marketing because I was really interested in consumer behavior. I am very happy with it. I actually had never taken a Marketing class before I picked that major, so it worked really well.

Reasons to Attend

1) Baltimore is awesome.
2) The professors. I have gone through three years and I haven’t had a class where the professor didn’t know everyone’s name. I think that’s really important, and it’s really helpful for us to be able to go into their office and they know what your problems are already.
3) The dorms. The dorms are really nice compared to a lot of other colleges. Freshmen can even live in big apartments. I think that would be a major factor in coming here.

Reasons Not to Attend

1) It can feel a little unsafe at times. Not because anything is going on, but just because of the general crime statistics of the city of Baltimore. People are just on edge a little bit about it.
2) You have to go kind of far to go out. You’ll always be spending a good bit of money if you’re not staying on campus.
3) If you don’t like the type of place where everyone knows everyone, that’s the kind of school this is.
4) We don’t have a football team. Lacrosse and basketball are good, though.

Around Campus

Where have you lived on campus?
Freshman: Butler with one roommate in a normal dorm-style room. That is on the hillside of campus, which is mostly all freshman housing.
Sophomore: Newman and I had three roommates
Junior: I lived in a Villa with five roommates.
Senior: I am going to live in an apartment off-campus.
What was your favorite living situation?
So far, I would say the apartment. But, I really liked junior year because I was with so many of my friends.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
I actually have never had any kind of problem with that. I know there’s a couple of stories here and there about people facing problems with safety, but, for the most part, I would say it’s a pretty safe neighborhood.
What is your favorite off-campus restaurant?
I like a lot of the ones in the Inner Harbor, specifically Brio. Then near campus, I like Yama Sushi.
What is your favorite place to get away from campus?
I would say the Inner Harbor or Fell’s Point. Just going by the water is really nice.

Social Opportunities

What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
We mostly go to bars. We go downtown, which is like 20 minutes away. I mostly go out Thursdays and Saturdays. A lot of juniors and seniors tend to go to the bars in Federal Hill.
What have been your favorite times at Loyola?
I have a lot of really good memories, but I would say I really like Loyolapalooza. It’s really fun. It’s a spring concert, last year we had T-Pain. Just going out generally I would say is really fun.
What is something you would do if you didn’t feel like going out to a bar?
I’d probably just hang out with my friends in someone’s room and watch a movie.
How happy are you with the weekend options at Loyola? Is there anything you would change if you could?
I’m really happy with it. I think it’s really fun. The only thing that I would change is that bars can get really expensive for college students. It would be nice to have more house parties, but we don’t really have a lot of houses off campus.

Campus Culture

How did you meet your closest friends?
I actually met my closest friends at a floor meeting the day we moved in freshman year.
How would you describe the social scene at Loyola?
I would say it’s pretty fun. I think a lot of people are always hanging out around campus and trying to organize events that include everyone. I think it’s a really fun place to be with a bunch of other college students.
To what extent do you feel people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
I would say there are some occasions that I have heard of or that I’ve experienced that show certain types of people can be a little bit less accepting than others. But, I would say, for the most part, there’s a really good network of people who are supportive of people of color or anything like that.
How would you describe the student body?
There are about 4,000 undergraduates, and I would say that pretty much everyone does try to hang out together and go to the same places at the same times and stuff like that. I would say the community is really nice.
Do you think people leave Loyola happy with their choice? Do you think people leave loving Loyola?
Yeah, I definitely think so. I think for the most part people love it more and more every year. By the time you get to senior year, it’s just so much fun to be with your friends.

Careers

Has the alumni network helped you find internships or jobs?
Yeah, I found the internship that I have now at the Loyola Handshake website. It wasn’t necessarily an alum, but the company I work for posted the job there and then I reached out to them.
How helpful has the career office been?
They’re really helpful with writing resumes. I haven’t gone to them for much other than that. I know they have helped some people I know get internships for the summer too.
Have you learned any computer programs that will be helpful to you professionally?
In Computer Science, I learned Excel and the [Microsoft] Access database. I learned it in addition to the tech codes and stuff like that.

Financial Aid

Have you used financial aid? If so, how helpful was the office in meeting your needs?
I’ve never actually had to go into the office. I have used financial aid and it’s worked out marvelously fine every time.