Baylor University

Responses from the Student Interview

From a student  who identifies as Major: Public Health
Minor: Business Administration
Student Self Identifies as: South Asian Straight Female

Summary

I’m a member of the Indian Student Subcontinent Association and I’m associating for a multicultural sorority. Associating is similar to rushing, we just don’t use the term rushing.

Background

Gender Identity: Female
Race/Ethnicity: South Asian
Sexual Orientation: Straight

High School Experience: Public school outside of San Antonio, TX with a graduating class of about 900 students. There was a culture of going to college.
First-Generation College Student: Yes
Major: Public Health
Minor: Business Administration

Extracurricular Activities: I’m a member of the Indian Student Subcontinent Association and I’m associating for a multicultural sorority. Associating is similar to rushing, we just don’t use the term rushing.
Did any of your extracurricular activities have a particularly big impact on your experience? In what ways?
Both of them have had a really good impact. ISSA has had an especially good impact because Baylor is primarily Caucasian and refers to itself as “unapologetically Christian,” so being able to associate with people of my own culture has helped my experience. It’s also helped me grow and the school and find opportunities with people who are in the same situation as me.

Academic Experience

Can you describe your weekly coursework for your major?
There’s a lot of outside of class work where there is a social aspect like health educating and going on field trips to orphanages and stuff like that. It’s a lot more social health work than learning facts, so I do not have many problem sets.
Is there anything you feel the Public Health department does especially well or poorly?
One thing they do that’s super helpful is the Introduction to Public Health class is all based on building a career in the public health field. A specific thing they make you do is create an online portfolio website that has your philosophy of health, your experience, and your volunteer work. If you continue with the major, they’ll have you update the website and use it when looking for internships and jobs or apply to graduate school or whatever you want to do. I think it’s really smart and really helpful that you make sure to have this tool because it’s only beneficial for your future.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
I think Baylor is a more competitive school than a collaborative school only because there are a lot of students who are pre-med or pre-health. But, in terms of the learning environment, Baylor goes out of its way to provide a lot of opportunities for help and whatever students need. [About 15% of students are on the pre-med track.]
How accessible are your professors?
They are mostly accessible. But, in the Public Health department, a lot of our professors are graduate students who are also taking their own classes and have their own coursework, so accessing them is a little bit more difficult. It’s harder to find time with them versus the professors who already have their doctorate degree and are full-time.
How was transitioning academically as a first-generation college student?
It was very difficult. As a first-generation college student, there are a lot of things that nobody can explain to you. It’s just a first-time learning experience for you and your family. One negative about that in terms of Baylor is that Baylor is not very good at walking you through the process of financials, living arrangements, and stuff like that. I think the most helpful thing I found was just reaching out to previous Baylor students through Facebook groups or just to find people who were already at Baylor. Their advice was a lot more genuine and helpful.
Why did you pick your major? Are you happy with your choice?
I chose my major because I want to go into the administrative and healthcare-oriented side of public health, not the social work end of it. That’s why I wanted to make sure that I incorporated Business Administration as well as Public Health. That’s why I picked my major and minor. I don’t want to do just medicine or just business.

Reasons to Attend

1) The academics. While they are rigorous, they are so good for your growth. It helps you grow as a person and makes you feel like you’re learning.
2) There are so many opportunities here. Making connections and networking at Baylor is very strong, so just getting to know people and talking to the right people can help you so much in your career later on.
3) I love the Baylor culture in terms of how strong the school pride is. The school pride is also helpful later on for building connections for the future.

Reasons Not to Attend

1) If you’re somebody who grew up in a very culturally-oriented lifestyle and community, Baylor would be a culture shock and it would be hard to adjust to because of the strong White and Christian presence.

Around Campus

Where have you lived on and around campus?
Freshman: Collins Hall with one roommate. It was an all-female hall.
Sophomore: Off-campus apartment.
How was transitioning from living outside of San Antonio to Waco, TX?
Waco is very, very different. San Antonio is a metropolitan city and there’s so much available to you because it’s an urbanized area to live in. Outside of the Baylor Bubble, Waco is a poverty-stricken town. There are a lot of unfortunate circumstances in Waco, so when you step out of the Baylor Bubble it is a very different environment. That was hard to adjust to. People who go to Baylor mostly don’t leave the Baylor Bubble, so there’s not much of a reason to be outside of it. [The poverty rate of Waco, TX is about 27%.]
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
On campus, safety is really good. There are always campus police officers around. If you’re at an academic building late at night and need to walk home, there’s always a campus police officer at every gate, so nobody ever has to walk out alone to their car and they also are happy to give you an escort if needed. Outside of Baylor in Waco, there is more crime since it is a poverty-stricken area, but I don’t really leave the Baylor Bubble so I don’t know as much about the safety there. [Waco has one of the highest crime rates in America for a community of its size.]

Social Opportunities

What kind of weekend activities or nightlife do you like to participate in?
The coursework here is rigorous so on the weekends, unless there’s a football game, you might see the library be pretty busy on a Saturday. Baylor culture is a very southern culture, so tailgating during the weekends in the fall is a really big thing. In terms of nightlife, I have not been out as much as other people so I don’t know as much about it. Personally, I’m not a big party person. My friends and I like to go to visit the mall or try different local restaurants.
What have been some of your favorite times at Baylor?
The Baylor football games, especially as a freshman because at Baylor we have a tradition where freshmen can run the line at every home football game. It’s a big tradition here and is something unique to Baylor. You then get to run the same line again as a senior, so that’s something a lot of people hold dear to them. Baylor has a very special Thanksgiving dinner that’s open to the entire campus that a lot of people love. Baylor also has Diadeloso that’s the day of the bear where classes are canceled and there are activities and fun.

Campus Culture

How did you meet your closest friends?
I met them through my residence hall and also ISSA.
How would you describe the overall social scene at Baylor?
There’s a huge social scene at Baylor. Everyone’s always involved in something and doing activities. I also think that there are opportunities for everyone to find a place to fit in. Like, Baylor is a predominantly White school, but I do feel like they’ve made it a goal to incorporate as many cultures and people as they can. I do see that a lot of people can fit in more and more as time goes on.
To what extent do you think people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
At Baylor, you don’t normally see that. You aren’t going to see a bunch of people in the LGBTQ community hanging out with a bunch of people in the Panhellenic sororities.
How strong is Baylor’s Christian affiliation?
Baylor likes to identify themselves as unapologetically Christian. We are required to attend chapel for two semesters and you have to do two core classes on Christian religion, scriptures, and heritage. Baylor finds a way to incorporate religion into pretty much everything, so it’s pretty strong. Also, a lot of the way they run the school is based on their Christian morals. As someone who is not Christian, it is a little bit draining and unfair to have to do all of these things just because I want to attend this university.
How do you like the size of Baylor in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How was transitioning to a school with [about 14,000] students?
I think it’s a really good size. That’s one of the things I really do enjoy about Baylor is the small class sizes. Every single one of my professors knows my name, and I think that’s phenomenal. Also, one of my professors for Public Health is the department head, so being in her class and getting to know me on a personal level is important to me because I know that she’s learning about my interests and what I want to do. It’s very helpful in terms of that stuff.
How would you describe the South Asian community on campus? How strong is it?
I don’t think it’s that strong only because it’s not as big as other communities on campus. I have seen and heard that it’s growing, which is awesome to hear, so I think we are starting to make a larger appearance on campus. The community is also very accepting and the school has been so accepting of us. It is just hard sometimes because there are so many people who are not South Asian.
How would you describe the student body?
People who are super motived and super determined in their own field. They are very passionate about what they want to do and what they want to achieve. As a whole, the student body is passionate about the school’s culture and representing Baylor. It’s a really good environment.

Careers

Have you learned any computer languages or software that will be helpful to you professionally?
In high school, I took two business information and management courses and was trained in Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access and got certified. I came to Baylor and they gave me credit for that and recertified me, which was awesome. If you want, they have those courses available and a lot of majors require you to take those courses.

Financial Aid

Have you used financial aid? If so, how easy are they to work with?
That office is not easy to work with. It’s very difficult to work with them and get a straight response out of them. With Baylor, they give what they give you and you can’t file a petition for more or anything like that.