Elon University
Responses from the Student Interview
From a student who identifies as Major: Undeclared, but I’m thinking I’ll major in Accounting. I’m in the business school.
Minor: None
Student Self Identifies as: Caucasian Heterosexual Male
Summary
I’m in a fraternity and I’m on the club tennis team
Background
Gender Identity: Male
Race/Ethnicity: Caucasian
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual
High School Experience: Public school in the suburbs of Charlotte, NC with a graduating class of about 700 students. There was a culture of going to college.
First-Generation College Student: No
Major: Undeclared, but I’m thinking I’ll major in Accounting. I’m in the business school.
Minor: None
Extracurricular Activities: I’m in a fraternity and I’m on the club tennis team
Academic Experience
What was your favorite class last year?
Accounting just because it was a really small class. There were like five other kids. I liked the subject and the professor was pretty engaging.
What was your least favorite class last year?
Management Information Systems, I felt I was overworked and the professor didn’t really know what she was talking about. It wasn’t that interesting of a topic, either.
How would you describe the learning environment in the business school? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
I think they make it pretty collaborative. So far in my business classes, there has been a lot of group work and group projects.
How accessible have your professors been?
Very accessible. Usually by email, they’ll respond pretty quickly or if you go to their office hours there’s no issue at all.
How difficult is it managing club tennis and your coursework?
It’s not really a time commitment at all. There are four practices a week, but you don’t really have to go if you don’t want to. You can easily put your classes first.
Reasons to Attend
1) It’s a pretty good school. You’re going to graduate with a respectable degree.
2) Class sizes. The professors will learn your name and see you every day and be able to interact with you one on one.
3) It’s a beautiful campus and a small campus. I don’t have to worry about driving or not being able to make it to class.
Reasons Not to Attend
1) If you don’t like small classes or if you’re looking for something bigger.
2) If you want a bar scene or a school that doesn’t rely on Greek life.
Around Campus
Where have you lived on campus?
Freshman: Smith Hall with one roommate.
Sophomore: I’ll live in the on-campus fraternity house in the Loy Center.
Can you describe the level of safety you experienced on and around campus?
I think it’s pretty safe.
What is your favorite off-campus restaurant?
The Root
What is your favorite place to get away from campus?
I didn’t really get away from campus a lot, other than going to Target or the movie theater. I guess I’d say the movie theater in Alamance Crossing.
Social Opportunities
What kind of nightlife do you like to participate in?
I go to frat parties. There are two bars, but I wouldn’t say they are really popular on the weekends.
What nights of the week do you regularly go out? Are there certain places you go on certain nights?
Not so much certain places on certain nights, just wherever our fraternity is having a party. Usually, I would say Thursday night, Friday night, and Saturday during the day.
What have been your favorite times at Elon?
There have been a lot of them. Move-in day was pretty exciting getting there for the first time and being on my own and figuring things out. Some parts of J-Term were fun. I did intramural bowling and I thought that was pretty fun. The class I took during J-Term was pretty interesting. Other than that, I would say my random events with my friends that turned out to be fun.
Can you describe a typical night going out freshman year?
It was pretty different for me first semester versus second semester. First semester you go out to one of the parties and if you don’t know anybody it’s kind of hard to get into the parties. When I was in a fraternity second semester it was a lot different. I would hang out with brothers and then walk over to the party and stay there until probably 2AM. You can walk back pretty easily because things are in walking distance at Elon.
So, first semester freshman boys have trouble getting into parties?
Yeah, pretty much the extent of Elon’s nightlife is fraternity parties for a lot of people, so if you’re not in one of the fraternities it’s hard to get in. You have to have a text from someone that you know there or convince them somehow to let you in.
How happy are you with the nightlife? Is there anything you would change if you could?
I’m pretty happy with it. I think it’d be interesting to have a few more bars just for a change from house parties all the time. Overall, it’s good.
Campus Culture
How did you meet your closest friends?
A couple of my closest friends I met through orientation and meeting their roommates and people around. Most of my closest friends I met through rushing and pledging my fraternity.
How would you describe the social scene?
I would say it’s kind of divided between what you’re involved with. I would say there’s a very distinct [scene for] Greek life, athletes, and whatever else, like clubs. I think getting involved in clubs is a really important part of the social life.
What is the impact of Greek life on the social scene?
I think it has a huge impact. They don’t really explain how important it is to be in Greek life here. It’s necessary if you are into going to frat parties and stuff because, as long as you’re a boy, there’s no way to get into a frat party after a while if you’re not in a fraternity. Even for girls, that’s mostly what they do on weekends. I think it’s bigger than they would say on tours or if they were to give statistics about it. [About 43% of students are involved in Greek life.]
Careers
Have you learned any computer programs that will be helpful to you professionally?
Yeah, in a couple of my classes we used Microsoft Excel and Access.