Vanderbilt University

Visit Report by angelt841 (Member since July 05 2007 with 138 posts) Visit Date - March 2008

4 of 5 people found this visit report helpful
Visit to Vanderbilt University in March 2008 by angelt841 (Student, HS Class of 2008)
Visit Activities:
Admissions Interview: Yes - I met a 2007 Vandy Alumni at a summer session and she agreed to be my interviewer. It was perfect. Completely laid back, and since she had just graduated, she provided me with ALOT of helpful info. Information Session: Yes - Having already been to one in the summer, the one on campus felt like deja vu.However, if you haven't researched Vandy enough,it'll really get you excited. (But I had and I was bored) Campus Tour: Yes - I HATE scheduled campus tours. However, my tour guide didn't waste much time on random nonsensical facts. He made the tour very quick and I was pleased. Classroom Visit: Yes - Philosophy.We talked about Nietzsche,whom I'm not a big fan of.Yet the teacher(not prof,he was a grad student,surprised me)gave me a different view of him and actually made me enjoy reading his w
Vanderbilt University Campus:
Friendliness/Courtesy of Students: 4 - Very Good - The first students I met completely dispelled the Vandy stereotype in every sense.They were not at all snooty &wore blue jeans & t-shirts.The presence of n.face&pearls was noticeable,not o Friendliness/Courtesy of Staff: 5 - Excellent - My admissions counselor is extremely nice &all of the professors I met really cared about their jobs &students.At one session,a prof even told us to not go to Vandy if it didn't "fit Appearance of Campus: 5 - Excellent - This campus makes me feel guilty.Vandy SPOILS its students.It's an arboretum,random sculptures everywhere,the interiors look new&fresh with great architecture on the outside.The Commons-BEAUT Building/Facilities Maintenance/Cleanliness: 4 - Very Good - See above Dormitories: 4 - Very Good - Upperclassmen housing feels like a "first apartment",not a dorm.The commons(1st year dorms)are NEW&spacious.The commons area has a dining facility with greta food Security/Safety: 4 - Very Good - I felt safe, but there really aren't many bluelights.The officers I met were nice lol Overall Campus Impression: 5 - Excellent - I can not wait to go to Vanderbilt.It's reputation goes further than a ranking.The caring professors,down to earth students who care about grades&fun,sports,Nashville,&beautiful campus ma
Off-Campus:
Area Immediately Around Campus: 3 - Good - I'm from a big city so I'm used to many more options.However,it's right next to downtown,& I had the best panini I've ever had 5 min from campus.Nice restaurants,concert venues City/Town/Community: 3 - Good - See above. I will add that I love country music and this makes going to Nashville that much sweeter. It's Country Music capitol and Music City.There are artists everywhere(mostly newbies,but stil
Campus Visit Notes for Vanderbilt University:
Visit Description: Fisk and TSU are near the rough parts of Nashville. Don't be fooled into thinking everyplaceis beautiful because of the area around Vanderbilt lol Also, I did NOT like the Waffle Houses chains. Students- I can't say enough good things about them. It would be silly for me to think that there are no mean,snobby,blonde&blue-eyed drunkards on the campus(common stereotypes)but without searching for them I didn't find them.My host& her roomies were in a sorority, from different parts of the country(and another country),loved sports,and were completely down to earth.Some other visitors didn't like their hosts,but were really happy to meet mine.I felt honored:-) Whenever I felt lost on campus(WHICH WAS ALOT), I was able to ask any student without feeling afraid and they were all quite nice. Noone looked annoyed that I had asked & a few walked me to my destination, all the while asking me questions with genuine interest.the 2007 alum was a minority and said her first year on campus was rough but in retrospect it was because she allowed herself to feel alone.Once she branched out, she "loved Vandy and wouldn't trade it for the world." People who have participated in Altenative Spring Break are completely bethrothed to that program.One girl told me she stills regrets not doing it her freshmen year, even though she's a senior and has done it the past threeyears! ASB was started at vandy and is now a many schools across the nation. instead of going home for spring break, you do community service somewhere. I think I'll be doing that also :-) Oh,THERE IS NO OVERWHELMING COUTRY MUSIC LOVIN' presence! I was a little disappointed, but at least I found another person on cmapus that loves it too. Race Relations-The students did tell me there was an amount of self-segregation on campus, but I personally didn't seeit. 1)Because it was minority weekend lol and 2)Because the people I met had very diverse friends.The students were relaly honest and even told me they know some racist jerks, but they are few and far between and many people let them know they are racist jerks lol However,I feel assured that you can find a racist jerks on many, if not most campus. Coming from a school where my minority is a majority,I didn't feel like being a minority on campus would leave me feeling unwelcome and outnumbered.Most of the people I met outside of MOSAIC events were white (and even my host for minority weekend was white lol) but my race didn't seem to bother them and their race didn't bother me.I was much more concerned that they were nice, silly, and honest.Ok, and sports fans lol I did meet students that weren't sports fans. They were ok (kidding) Frats/sororities-You can definitely feel and notice the Greek presence. You see the shirts bearing greek symbols everywhere and you can't miss the gorgeous houses. I did meet people who didn't like the system and weren't in it themselves, but they didn't sway my interets. I will pledge/rush next year! lol However, as much as I love CC, you can't take all of these opinions as representative of the entire or even majority of the student body.The girls I have met from the "lower ranked" sororities have been sweet,funny, AND pretty. You can rank sororities based on their looks if you wnat,but isn't beauty really subjective? Profs-Very easy to talk to. One professor even told me, despite the fact that many people say noone cares if you fail, these profs do.They call the students that are and give them delinquency reports.A Peabody prof told me most students usually give excuses about how they;e been doing this or that, having a hard time. But he called up one student and said "You know you've bene missing a lot of classes lately, not doing well." the student replied, "I know, I've been having alot of fun." I DIED of laughter. He said that particular student had a habit of "having alot of fun" at the beginning fo the school year and then working twice as hard to pick his grades up. The icing on the cake- Vanderbilt seemed to have it all. Sports,great profs, down to earth students focused on their academics first,but def willing to party or simply hang out during the weekend, breathtaking campus, city-ish life (haha) But I still felt like something was missing. At 10 o'clock saturday night, I called up the head of a Christian organization on campus (a recent alum) whom had emailed me before and asked her if she could please speak with me and if she knew any other Christians on campus whom could talk to me about their experiences. They confirmed what i had believed. There isn't a strong presence of Christians on campus, and as someone whos serious about her faith and would like to find others, it was a bit of concern. But we talked for a couple hours about how it's been for them.While many people aren't of the same beliefs, they could find them, and even many people of different religions with the same values. Being a part of an organization and church on SUndays and was a big help. That talk realy confirmed that Vandy was the best place. I found something in common with many of the students I had talkedto that weekend, but finding someone with the same concerns and interest as me was comforting. The cherry on top of the icing- The residents def have a southern hospitality.One lady took picturesof my group for us and then almost talked our ears off. also,Everyone kept telling me about all the celebrity sightings. Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman, this. Reba, that. In the airport, I saw "important-looking' athletes. I finally asked one of them whom they were and they were soccer players for the U.S. Olympic team! Last but not least, a country group whom I loved boarded the SAME plane as me! They gave me an autograph and took a picture with me. I've been smiling ever since. Hotel/Lodging Recommendations or Comments: If possible, try to find a student who wouldn't mind you staying in their dorm.Vandy however does not make these accomodation unless it's a scholarship/MOSAIC week Dining/Restaurant Recommendations or Comments: Noshville was nice but a lil overrated IMO.Cafe Cabana(I think thats it)added pesto by request to a panini&it was delicious.I can still taste it&I want 1 now.Kind of tiny &does have a hipp Other Comments (Transportation, local attractions, parking, etc.): I still haven't visited much more than the campus and a boot store :-)The Nashville public transportation system seems hidden :-( I didn't see more than a couple buses my entire trip.
4 of 5 people found this visit report helpful