Goucher College

Responses from the Student Interview

From a student  who identifies as Majors: Political Science & International Relations double major
Minor: Legal Studies
Student Self Identifies as: Biracial – White & Hispanic Homosexual Male

Summary

I’m part of the Student Government, I [have a leadership position] in Model United Nations, I’m part of the Chess Club, and I’m a resident assistant (RA).

Background

Gender Identity: Male
Race/Ethnicity: Biracial – White & Hispanic
Sexual Orientation: Homosexual

High School Experience: Private high school in Reno, NV with a graduating class of about 15 students. There was a culture of going to college.
First-Generation College Student: No
Majors: Political Science & International Relations double major
Minor: Legal Studies

Extracurricular Activities: I’m part of the Student Government, I [have a leadership position] in Model United Nations, I’m part of the Chess Club, and I’m a resident assistant (RA).
Did any of your extracurricular activities have a particularly big impact on your experience?
Yes, being an RA has. It altered the perception students have of me, and it raised me to a different standard of behavior than other students because I have to lead by example.

Academic Experience

Can you describe your weekly coursework for your major?
When I was a freshman, I had a ton of work and it was hard to balance it all. Now I almost know exactly what to do because I’m familiar with the professors. I know what they’re looking for and what they’re not looking for. My workload has gone down overall. The assignments are mostly readings, discussions, essays, and exams.
Is there anything you feel your major’s department does especially well or poorly?
The best professors I’ve had in my entire school career have been here. There’s nothing the departments do poorly, it’s just that there’s not a lot of class variety regarding my major. There are eight or nine options each semester and they don’t vary too often.
Do you feel that people are open to multiple schools of thought in the classroom?
Some are, and others aren’t. Usually, the ones who aren’t are the loudest. Most people here assume you think like them, and if you [say something] that isn’t conventional they aren’t going to be as open to it and there will be less of a discussion. Otherwise, it’s very calm in terms of discussion. [See QuinnNews article, “Political Science Capstone Investigates Ideological Diversity at Goucher.”]
How accessible are your professors?
They state their office hour times clearly and it’s not difficult to meet with them.
Why did you pick your major? Are you happy with your choice?
I love my choice, but I wish there was more diversity of thought in the classroom.

Reasons to Attend

1) It’s between three major cities, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C., which have tons of internships and opportunities.
2) It has a pretty good study abroad program. [Goucher has a 100% study abroad policy.]
3) Considering it’s so small, you’re more likely to get a leadership opportunity or other role that looks good on a resume.
4) The teachers put a lot of work into what they do, and you can see that in the classes.

Reasons Not to Attend

1) I don’t really mix well with the social culture of this school. I think it has a very big monoculture with groupthink, which I think stifles debate. [See QuinnNews article, “Political Science Capstone Investigates Ideological Diversity at Goucher.”]
2) It’s too small for its own good, so much that it prevents people from really experiencing themselves beyond the Goucher core identity. [There are about 1,480 undergraduates.]
3) I don’t admire the location.

Around Campus

Where have you lived on campus?
Freshman: Fireside Hall with one roommate
Sophomore: RA in Roselle Hall in a single
Junior: RA in Dulaney Hall in a single
How was transitioning from your hometown to Towson, MD?
I grew up on the East coast so I kind of knew what to expect. The most shocking thing was the police presence in the city of Towson.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
It’s been pretty safe. I don’t have an excuse to leave campus at night which has impacted my opinion on safety, but on campus it’s fine.

Social Opportunities

What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
The nightlife here is pretty lacking. I’ve just started getting more active with it. I mainly hang out in friend’s rooms and have a small party with them. I haven’t found too many places in Baltimore that are clubs I’d go to. If I go out and do something, I’ll probably go to a restaurant. There aren’t any real parties or large social gatherings here. Goucher is kind of excluded from Towson University and Johns Hopkins University [parties], so we have our own in the dorms. Since the school is so small those parties are small and more so just a social gathering.
How has identifying as LGBT influenced your nightlife experience? Are there any LGBT nightlife options that you like to go to?
There’s a big Queer presence at Goucher, but it’s all women. I never thought I’d feel isolated as a gay man, but I feel more isolated here out of the closet than in the closet because there are so few gay men here. A lot of the Queer programs are dominated by Queer women, which is fine, but when you don’t personally identify as that it makes it so you’re almost the odd one out.
What have been some of your favorite times at Goucher?
There’s Get Into Goucher (GIG), where there are no classes and it’s a little carnival everyone gets to go to. The events I like are club events such as conferences with Model United Nations.
How happy are you with the weekend options at Goucher? Is there anything you would change about them if you could?
I’d change a lot but I think the weekend options are what they are because of Goucher’s small size and locations so there’s only so much I could do. What would be nice is if there wasn’t inaccessibility for Goucher students to attend parties or social events at other local schools.

Campus Culture

How did you meet your closest friends?
I had a few classes with them. There’s kind of a culture here where people won’t really say what they think, or virtue signal a lot of the times without upholding their values. I had a friend that challenged that in a way that was constructive, and that made me feel less isolated. He’s also a Queer man, and through him, I found more friends over time who were similar.
How would you describe the overall social scene at Goucher?
It seems like there’s almost this prevalence of social awkwardness coupled with anxiety. People won’t smile back and they’ll look at their phones, they prefer to be isolated, and are more reserved but passionate in some regards. I’m a person who likes being social and talking to people. I enjoy being able to say my piece, and here it’s very difficult to do that with a lot of people because they think it is more of an attack because I think that stems from a place of self-consciousness or something. For me, it was very off-putting for some time.
To what extent do you think people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
It appears like there’s a lot of cohesion between different races and sexual orientations. [The undergraduate population is about 56% White, 16% Black, 10% Hispanic, and 4% Asian.]
How would you describe the Hispanic community on campus? How strong is it?
It’s pretty large and welcoming. I haven’t really seen any problems at all. They have their own club and a lot of amenities.
How would you describe the LGBTQ+ community on campus? How strong is it?
Because the percentage of women here is around 70%, it’s much more skewed in one direction in terms of Queer identity. I don’t like when most of the dialogue is related to LGBTQ issues mostly focused on women. I’d rather have it be more fluid. It feels like there are times I’ll try to bring up something as a Queer man and it’ll be shut down because I’m a Queer man. I don’t go to a lot of Queer club events.
How has the 70:30 female-male student ratio split impacted your experience?
I get along better with women, so it’s fine in that regard. At the same time, college is about exploring yourself and who you are interested in. It’s difficult for me to find someone here that’s compatible. Considering how Goucher is isolated from Towson University, Johns Hopkins University, and Loyola University, it’s difficult to get your roots out there a little bit.
How do you like the size of Goucher in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How has it impacted your experience? [There are about 1,400 undergraduates.]
It’s way too small. I would triple the size of it. Here, since it’s so small there are so few people that think differently and too few people have different identities in terms of thoughts. It becomes a monoculture where everyone thinks the same and picks up on each other’s social anxieties. It makes being at Goucher and finding people with your interests much more difficult if you don’t fit that status quo.

Careers

Has the alumni network helped you find internships or jobs?
I’ve contacted professors more than alumni for internships. One of them is helping me find one now, and I was offered a research job last year as a freshman.

Financial Aid

Have you used financial aid? If so, how easy is the office to work with?
A few weeks ago, something was wrong with my financial aid and it took me three weeks to get everything situated to be able to drop a class I wanted to drop. As a result, I had to withdraw from the class instead of dropping it, and I wasn’t able to add a class to replace it because I was past the deadline.