Loyola Maryland

[Anonymous]

From nyc area but looking into Loyola for daughter. Just applied there today and seems pretty easy to get into, any thoughts or experiences with the school besides its Jesuit education and its location in the city of Baltimore. Kid is worried about fit as it’s a very small student population and has heard it can be very cliquey with the typical NJ, Philly kid area scene.

[Anonymous]

I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.

[Anonymous]

Very helpful. Thank you, PP!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.
OP here. Thanks for your long and detailed response. Can you elaborate more on the part about it being better for you if you attended a more prestigious university and that it would of been worth the loans?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.
OP here. Thanks for your long and detailed response. Can you elaborate more on the part about it being better for you if you attended a more prestigious university and that it would of been worth the loans?


OP here. Thanks for your long and detailed response. Can you elaborate more on the part about it being better for you if you attended a more prestigious university and that it would of been worth the loans?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.

I went to Hopkins and returned to Baltimore more than 15 years ago as an adult. Have no clue what pp is talking about, area around Loyola was very safe then and is now as well.

[Anonymous]

I graduated in 1997 and just went to an Open House there for my DD. It was the perfect fit for me. I am from Baltimore and went to a Catholic HS. I went to a state university my freshman year and hated it. I transferred to Loyola and felt right at home. I loved my courses and how easy it was to meet with teachers. They are also voted best dorms and I see why. Their newest dorm was huge! There were a lot of students from Long Island NJ there. That is true. If the OP cares more about prestige, go elsewhere since most people think you are talking about Loyola in Chicago, CA, or New Orleans.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.

I went to Hopkins and returned to Baltimore more than 15 years ago as an adult. Have no clue what pp is talking about, area around Loyola was very safe then and is now as well.

I live and work in Baltimore as well and agree. My kid goes to school right next to Loyola and the neighborhoods around Loyola are some of the nicest in Baltimore. Yes, Baltimore has some dangerous and unsafe places (I work in one of them) but they aren't near Loyola.

[Anonymous]

I agree PP. The only not-so-great area around Loyola is along the east side (York Rd area). The other 3 sides are like the Woodley Park, Spring Valley of Baltimore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.

I went to Hopkins and returned to Baltimore more than 15 years ago as an adult. Have no clue what pp is talking about, area around Loyola was very safe then and is now as well.

I live and work in Baltimore as well and agree. My kid goes to school right next to Loyola and the neighborhoods around Loyola are some of the nicest in Baltimore. Yes, Baltimore has some dangerous and unsafe places (I work in one of them) but they aren't near Loyola.

But outside of the immediate area is dangerous

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.

I went to Hopkins and returned to Baltimore more than 15 years ago as an adult. Have no clue what pp is talking about, area around Loyola was very safe then and is now as well.

I live and work in Baltimore as well and agree. My kid goes to school right next to Loyola and the neighborhoods around Loyola are some of the nicest in Baltimore. Yes, Baltimore has some dangerous and unsafe places (I work in one of them) but they aren't near Loyola.

But outside of the immediate area is dangerous

Nope, that isn’t true either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.

I went to Hopkins and returned to Baltimore more than 15 years ago as an adult. Have no clue what pp is talking about, area around Loyola was very safe then and is now as well.

I live and work in Baltimore as well and agree. My kid goes to school right next to Loyola and the neighborhoods around Loyola are some of the nicest in Baltimore. Yes, Baltimore has some dangerous and unsafe places (I work in one of them) but they aren't near Loyola.

But outside of the immediate area is dangerous

It's a stretch to say that. North Baltimore is affluent and certainly safe enough and Loyola has a suburban vibe for a reason. About 1/3 mile east of the campus it does become gritty but it's easy for a student to avoid going east of campus (or so I think). It's not an urban campus. But Loyola also has no college town. Students have to travel for watering holes and bars and dining and entertainment. Baltimore is mostly fine and safe enough but I do also agree that urban smarts are required for going to the more urban parts of Baltimore. Odds are still incredibly unlikely anything will happen if your student is clean and stays away from drugs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

OP here. Thanks for your long and detailed response. Can you elaborate more on the part about it being better for you if you attended a more prestigious university and that it would of been worth the loans?

Sure. My parents did not have much money and strongly advised me to avoid taking on significant debt for college, which is good advice. I had good grades and test scores and was accepted into several schools that have a much higher reputation/'prestige' factor and recognition at the national level. In my field and in general, the prestige factor often helps in the professional world.

One factor is network. Loyola is well regarded in Maryland and perhaps NYC due to the high number of alums, but more limited beyond those places. As much as I wish it were not the case, relationships matter especially when starting your career. Another example, my previous employer would pay new hires from some arbitrary list of 'prestigious' universities more than less desirable schools. Frankly I find these practices to be ineffective and a bit classist given the percentage of students at some of these places who are there based on legacy status and athletic scholarships, not merit. But regardless, they exist and I think that having a more prestigious college on my resume in the early years would have helped me to find a higher paying job faster. I ended up making good money (not rich by DCUM standards but more than I thought I could make); had this not been the cases, then my decision to avoid loans would have been the right one.

Despite this, I really enjoyed my time there and am still good friends with several of my close friends from college. I had many great professors and was well-prepared in my field from my college education. Hindsight is 20/20.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am alum but graduated many years ago. This information is most likely out of date.

It is cliquey especially with the population from NJ, NYC, and Long island. I think that if your kid is from NYC culture they will be fine. It personally was not a fit for me. However, there are many students who come from other places, and it is definitely possible to find a niche of friends if s/he doesn't want to hang with the NY/NJ crowds. There are so many NY/NJers there, your kid will have a network if they want to return home to NYC.

As part of the Jesuit education, there is a focus on service and many students are very community oriented.

I like Baltimore but it is a large violent city. If your kid is used to navigating NYC they should be fine. When I attended a student was shot in the head outside of a college bar (he survived). My friends who remained in Baltimore tell me that is has only become more violent

There is no greek culture, which can be a plus or minus depending on how you look at it. Drinking culture is about the same as other places, maybe a bit more.

Loyola is (was) more Jesuit than some other Jesuit schools in terms of curriculum and % of students who identify as catholic. My friends who attended Georgetown found more diversity in the theology curriculum than was offered at Loyola.

When I attended the strongest programs appeared to be Business, Accounting, and Speech Pathology. This may have changed in the years since I graduated.

My parents loved the communication from the school. They felt well informed and generally had a very good impression. My professors were great and I was in a less popular major and had small class sizes, which was nice. Most of the professors were excellent, however there were a few who were not, and they did stand out in a bad way. My own experiences with the administrators were not great and I have heard the same from others. A new President was just announced last month.

While I enjoyed my time there and the friends that I made, I probably would not attend if I had it to do all over again. I largely selected Loyola because I received great financial aid. However in retrospect for me it would have been better to attend a more prestigious/well-known university and taken out a bit more in loans. If you have specific questions, I will do my best to answer.

I went to Hopkins and returned to Baltimore more than 15 years ago as an adult. Have no clue what pp is talking about, area around Loyola was very safe then and is now as well.

I live and work in Baltimore as well and agree. My kid goes to school right next to Loyola and the neighborhoods around Loyola are some of the nicest in Baltimore. Yes, Baltimore has some dangerous and unsafe places (I work in one of them) but they aren't near Loyola.

But outside of the immediate area is dangerous

It's a stretch to say that. North Baltimore is affluent and certainly safe enough and Loyola has a suburban vibe for a reason. About 1/3 mile east of the campus it does become gritty but it's easy for a student to avoid going east of campus (or so I think). It's not an urban campus. But Loyola also has no college town. Students have to travel for watering holes and bars and dining and entertainment. Baltimore is mostly fine and safe enough but I do also agree that urban smarts are required for going to the more urban parts of Baltimore. Odds are still incredibly unlikely anything will happen if your student is clean and stays away from drugs.

I think Loyola students tend to go to Towson for bars and restaurants rather than downtown, it’s closer.

[Anonymous]

Just be extra sure that she’s ok with going to a smaller school; It’s on the larger side of small schools but it absolutely feels like a small school.