University of Notre Dame (way up)
We visited Notre Dame this past weekend.
What a beautiful campus! And such friendly people!
It was great seeing the students in session. They were about to take midterms, so they were studying and generally you could tell that they felt the pressure.
To state the obvious…you could really tell that they cared a lot about football.
If you go, you MUST stay at the Morris Inn. It is a hotel that is owned by the University and is right in the middle of campus. One thing that stood out was that there were a lot of older alums there and you could tell that they really, really loved the school. The hotel is also a great value. $200 for a fabulous room. Staying at the Morris is a no brainer.
The information session was run by 2 students. They did a great job, but I generally like it better when an AO does it. As in other student run sessions that I have seen, our students were stumped by tough parent / applying student questions.
Our large group had 8 tour guides. One issue was that 7 of the 8 tour guides were business majors and 1 was a PSY major. Still, our tour guide was terrific. Bright, articulate and experienced. She conveyed great enthusiasm for her school.
Minor issues…the food was just OK. We had a few meals in both the North and South Dining Halls. Some fairly long lines in some areas while other areas were just open.
Another issue…Notre Dame claims that it is 60% white. I didn’t see how that was possible. It seems like it is more like 80 to 85% white. The students seemed cut from a particular mold. Tall, athletic, friendly, somewhat reserved, and dedicated to their studies. The Tall part was a bit odd. We somehow saw lots of athletes (you could tell by their apparel) and lots of men over 6’4 and women over 6’0. My daughter is a volleyball player and yet she said that she felt like a shrimp.
Students were fanatical in their devotion to their dorms. I had heard of this, but it was really cool to see this facet of their culture.
What was interesting was that Notre Dame was impressive without TRYING to be impressive. It just felt genuine and my daughter is very excited to apply.
One thing…we overheard a front desk AO say that ND was reconsidering its Test Optional Policy for 2026 and beyond. No need to ask me follow up questions, as that is all that I know. Stay tuned.