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Will I Make Friends?
Many students think that it’s easier to make friends at a big university, because there are so many more people to choose from. In fact, the opposite is true.
A nationwide survey of alumni of smaller Lutheran colleges and national flagship universities explored questions of campus community and camaraderie. Some of the results may surprise you.
Lutheran college graduates were more likely to say they benefited from a sense of community and to say they made friends in class. Just ask Julie and Jason Winkler, whose Valparaiso University professors and friends participated in their wedding.
| Percentage of graduates who said there was a sense of community among students: |
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| Lutheran College Graduates |
84% |
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| Public University Graduates |
58% |
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| Friendships developed from classroom experiences: |
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| Lutheran College Graduates |
66% |
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| Public University Graduates |
52% |
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Students generate much of the social and cultural life at small colleges. Large universities may offer more campus organizations, but small schools often offer more opportunities to become involved.
For example, at a Big 10 campus there may be 650 athletes within an undergraduate population of 25,000, meaning that less than 3% of the undergraduates can play intercollegiate sports. At a smaller school, you’re likely to find 400-500 athletes in a student body of about 2,000.
At almost any small liberal arts college, a first-year student can walk into the newspaper office and walk out with an assignment, sing in the choir without previous experience or experiment as a disk jockey at the college radio station. Or, you can initiate a new student organization. Whatever your interests, you won’t be a passive observer, or an anonymous face in the crowd!
| Percentage of graduates who said they were involved in varsity athletics: |
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| 25% |
« Lutheran College Graduates |
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| 8% |
« Public University Graduates |
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| Pecentage of Students who said they were involved in music or theater performances: |
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| Lutheran College Graduates » |
36% |
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| 15% |
« Public University Graduates |
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At Lenoir-Rhyne College, Alexis Harris found that her social life blossomed with all the activities she participates in – Sigma Kappa sorority, tutoring elementary students, editing the college newspaper, working with the freshman orientation program. “I had a small group of friends in high school; I wasn’t so involved,” she says. “Here, I find myself wanting to get in to everything.”
As Waldorf College senior Suzanna Hock puts it, “I love it that everyone on campus knows who I am.” |
