Loyola University Maryland
Responses from the Student Interview
From a student who identifies as Major: Finance
Minor: None
Student Self Identifies as: Caucasian Heterosexual Female
Summary
Background
Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: Caucasian
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual
Transferred in junior year
High School Experience: Private in Baltimore, MD with a graduating class of about 100 students.
Major: Finance
Minor: None
Extracurricular Activities: None, I always worked.
Academic Experience
Can you describe the weekly coursework for your major?
It depends on the class and the semester, but it’s probably about 4-6 hours of work a week? We had to read a bunch of case studies. Last year I had a lot of presentations, about 3-4 a week, and then lots of group projects.
Did you especially like or dislike anything about your major’s department? Did they do anything especially well or poorly?
I had the greatest advisor, and I think they had a lot of really good professors. The advisors really care and that was really helpful. When you first start off in the business school you have to take Financial Management, which I think is a really good class to see if you want to stick with finance or not. I didn’t like that the department was basically all guys. There were maybe 4 girls and 20+ guys in all of my classes. That was kind of annoying.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
There are smaller classes so you get personal attention. It’s very collaborative because we did a lot of group projects. It starts getting a little competitive later on.
How accessible were your professors?
They were readily available to meet with you if you needed help.
What is your favorite class you took in your major?
A Salinger Applied Portfolio Course. It’s an amazing class because we got to invest real money and see what happens.
What is your least favorite class you took in your major?
Equities and Securities Valuation. The professor was really old and he wrote a book a long time ago on it, so he made the class all about how he felt about it.
What is a fun class you took outside of your major?
Asian Philosophy. It was the coolest class ever. You get to learn about Buddhism and Hinduism, and stuff like that.
Why did you pick your major? Are you happy with your major choice?
I’ve always been good with numbers and I’ve been around the business world my whole life, so I just went from there. My family got me interested in investments at an early age. I’m definitely happy with my choice.
Reasons to Attend
1) The location.
2) The networking you can do with the professors and the resources that they have.
3) We are a Division 1 sports school, so you can get that experience of going to sports games. We don’t have a football team, but the basketball team and lacrosse teams are huge. You get that sense of a big school but we still have small classes.
Reasons Not to Attend
1) It’s really expensive. [Tuition for the 2019-2020 academic year is $48,700.]
Around Campus
Where have you lived on campus?
Junior: I was one of six girls in a Hopkins Court suite. We had 2 girls to a room, 2 baths, a kitchen, and a living room. I moved into the Gardens and lived with some friends in Dorothy Day in a pretty similar setup.
Senior: I lived on Falls Rd. in a strip of houses where a lot of Loyola seniors live.
What was your favorite living situation?
Living off campus was my favorite. I liked the off-campus house because I had my own room.
How safe do you feel on campus and in the surrounding area?
It’s Baltimore so I’m used to it. There have been instances where there was a robbery nearby on York Road and the guys will drive or run on campus and we’re alerted right away and the campus locks down. What freaks me out was when there would be helicopters with spotlights. I never felt unsafe on campus, though. I would walk by myself when I had night classes and stuff.
What is your favorite off-campus restaurant?
Miss Shirley’s.
What is your favorite place to get away from campus?
My parents’ house.
Social Opportunities
What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
We went to bars. We’d go on Thursdays definitely, some Fridays but not many, and Saturday days and sometimes nights. We mostly went to places in Federal Hill. On a Saturday, we’d go get brunch then go grab drinks at Cross Street Market or somewhere outside depending on the weather.
What are your favorite days and nights at Loyola?
Going out Saturday and being with everyone. Everyone at Loyola goes to Rally in the Alley at Power Plant Live. There are four of those during the year.
What is an alternative to going to a party or bar that you like for a night out?
Student nights at Oriole’s games are fun. There are Loyola basketball and lacrosse games that people go to. Loyola is Jesuit so there are people who are actively involved with something to do with the church.
How happy are you with the nightlife at Loyola? Is there anything you would change if you could?
I’m fine with it. I would change how much people at Loyola go to bars. It’s expensive and it’s annoying when you’re under 21.
Campus Culture
How did you meet your closest friends?
Through one of my friends from home who went there. Two others were from classes. That was one thing that was an issue as a transfer, it was hard to make friends right off the bat.
How would you describe the social scene?
Cliquey. It’s such a small school that everyone tends to group off. A lot of people went to the same high schools in New York and New Jersey so they were immediately grouped with each other. [New York and New Jersey are among the top ten feeder states to Loyola. The undergraduate enrollment is about 4,000.]
Do people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
Yeah, they definitely do.
Do people seem happy with Loyola by senior year?
Yeah, I think so.
Careers
Has the alumni network helped you find internships or jobs?
No, but I just joined it and they’re ramping up a lot of stuff for Loyola.
What did you use the career office for? How helpful was it?
Yes, I didn’t start until pretty late. That’s actually how I got my job. I went in for an on-campus interview. You definitely have to work to get benefit out of it.