Boston College

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't say it's conservative in a religious or political sense...but it is kinda conservative in...vibe? Not very diverse, very preppy, lots of conventional, popular, attractive, sporty kids from UMC backgrounds, beer drinking, etc. Smart, yes, but definitely more pre-professional as opposed to a "life of the mind" kind of place. I wouldn't worry about the religion so much, but ask yourself if your daughter fits into that vibe.

My artsy, quirky kid noped the hell out of there when we toured, but my younger one would probably like it (she's only a sophomore so haven't started tours yet).

All of this.

Sure, but this also describes the large majority of colleges with major Division 1 football and basketball programs. I presume OP knows at least that much.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Lots to think about! Appreciate the responses I’ve received so far.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:An article from a BC alum that describes how BC remains a deeply homophobic institution:

https://www.bcheights.com/2021/04/11/a-message-to-prospective-students-homophobia-at-boston-college/

Do you have some kind of alert on your computer that buzzes every time the internet mentions Boston College? So strange that you continue to assail a school that you know so little about.

I went to BC for grad school, and I lived on campus as an RA during that time. My son also later attended BC for his undergrad.

There were multiple grad and undergrad LGBTQ students who were out, comfortable, and supported by the community during my time and my son's time there. It actually seemed a fairly liberal environment. I met one of my best friends, a gay male, on campus at BC, and he was as out as it is possible to be. He had tons of friends and neither he nor I ever heard any criticism about this. Our "dorm priest", Father Marty, was also very inclusive and supportive.

There was a certain area in O'Neill library that was a designated "hookup spot" for gay male students looking to meet someone for a NSA encounter. This wasn't rumor. I knew at least three BC guys who used it.

BC is not a conservative campus overall, in any case.

[Anonymous]

My kid is likely to choose Notre Dame.
Catholic thing is the least of a concern.
it's not even a factor to consider.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't say it's conservative in a religious or political sense...but it is kinda conservative in...vibe? Not very diverse, very preppy, lots of conventional, popular, attractive, sporty kids from UMC backgrounds, beer drinking, etc. Smart, yes, but definitely more pre-professional as opposed to a "life of the mind" kind of place. I wouldn't worry about the religion so much, but ask yourself if your daughter fits into that vibe.

My artsy, quirky kid noped the hell out of there when we toured, but my younger one would probably like it (she's only a sophomore so haven't started tours yet).

OK, yeah, it's preppy. That's the word for it. When I was at BC, you would see the Jcrew boxes heaped high on mail delivery day. My best gay friend and his boyfriend were from preppy UMC east coast backgrounds, and so were most of the LGBTQ community I knew. So...preppy liberals. I would say BC is preppy liberal in vibe.

[Anonymous]

It was not a school that I ever strongly suggested Dd look at, has a pretty good reputation academically but I just defaulted to the generalizations I had heard about it that it was fairly preppy, etc. I suspect that is true it wouldn’t have been a good fit for her, although I did recently meet a philosophy professor who teaches there and was so impressed. She was definitely very intellectual/liberal and gave a great description of their department and its orientation and it made me think that I may have relied a little too heavily on “Vibe” as the be and all of an institution.

[Anonymous]

OP here - Thank you for everyone’s comments. DD is very much into women’s rights/equality, so that is my main concern with the student population and instructors. Are they cool with that or is it a conservative catholic atmosphere?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thank you for everyone’s comments. DD is very much into women’s rights/equality, so that is my main concern with the student population and instructors. Are they cool with that or is it a conservative catholic atmosphere?

If by "women's right" you mean that your DD is staunchly pro-choice, I would not send her to BC or any other Catholic school. While BC may not be a conservative Catholic environment, as you put it, it is a Catholic school. That means the school administrators are (and should be) staunchly pro-life with respect to all issues, including abortion, the death penalty, war, etc. That's a huge part of what it means to be a Catholic. So, yes, she would have many classmates who are pro-choice, but does she want to be at an institution that is pro-life? Because that is what Catholic universities/colleges are, and what they must be. Especially in our current times where debates about abortion will be heated and the Supreme Court may very well be curtailing Roe v. Wade, I would not send my staunchly pro-choice kid to BC. Now, if your DD is willing to listen to other viewpoints and learn the other side of an issue she feel passionately about, then BC may be the perfect place for her to go. FWIW, I work at another Catholic university, so I view this more from an institutional perspective than most parents who probably view this from "what has my kid's experience been."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wouldn't say it's conservative in a religious or political sense...but it is kinda conservative in...vibe? Not very diverse, very preppy, lots of conventional, popular, attractive, sporty kids from UMC backgrounds, beer drinking, etc. Smart, yes, but definitely more pre-professional as opposed to a "life of the mind" kind of place. I wouldn't worry about the religion so much, but ask yourself if your daughter fits into that vibe.

My artsy, quirky kid noped the hell out of there when we toured, but my younger one would probably like it (she's only a sophomore so haven't started tours yet).

I know at least 8-10 current students at BC, and they all fit the bolded language above. They are all really great kids, and having a good experience in a good college town. (None of them seem particularly religious to me, and are generally protestant.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thank you for everyone’s comments. DD is very much into women’s rights/equality, so that is my main concern with the student population and instructors. Are they cool with that or is it a conservative catholic atmosphere?

It should be the least of your concern.
It ll just be like any other college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thank you for everyone’s comments. DD is very much into women’s rights/equality, so that is my main concern with the student population and instructors. Are they cool with that or is it a conservative catholic atmosphere?

If by "women's right" you mean that your DD is staunchly pro-choice, I would not send her to BC or any other Catholic school. While BC may not be a conservative Catholic environment, as you put it, it is a Catholic school. That means the school administrators are (and should be) staunchly pro-life with respect to all issues, including abortion, the death penalty, war, etc. That's a huge part of what it means to be a Catholic. So, yes, she would have many classmates who are pro-choice, but does she want to be at an institution that is pro-life? Because that is what Catholic universities/colleges are, and what they must be. Especially in our current times where debates about abortion will be heated and the Supreme Court may very well be curtailing Roe v. Wade, I would not send my staunchly pro-choice kid to BC. Now, if your DD is willing to listen to other viewpoints and learn the other side of an issue she feel passionately about, then BC may be the perfect place for her to go. FWIW, I work at another Catholic university, so I view this more from an institutional perspective than most parents who probably view this from "what has my kid's experience been."

What are the other viewpoints and the other side of bodily autonomy?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thank you for everyone’s comments. DD is very much into women’s rights/equality, so that is my main concern with the student population and instructors. Are they cool with that or is it a conservative catholic atmosphere?

If by "women's right" you mean that your DD is staunchly pro-choice, I would not send her to BC or any other Catholic school. While BC may not be a conservative Catholic environment, as you put it, it is a Catholic school. That means the school administrators are (and should be) staunchly pro-life with respect to all issues, including abortion, the death penalty, war, etc. That's a huge part of what it means to be a Catholic. So, yes, she would have many classmates who are pro-choice, but does she want to be at an institution that is pro-life? Because that is what Catholic universities/colleges are, and what they must be. Especially in our current times where debates about abortion will be heated and the Supreme Court may very well be curtailing Roe v. Wade, I would not send my staunchly pro-choice kid to BC. Now, if your DD is willing to listen to other viewpoints and learn the other side of an issue she feel passionately about, then BC may be the perfect place for her to go. FWIW, I work at another Catholic university, so I view this more from an institutional perspective than most parents who probably view this from "what has my kid's experience been."

Based on this response I don’t think I would encourage my DD to consider any Catholic institution since I think birth control would be frowned upon too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thank you for everyone’s comments. DD is very much into women’s rights/equality, so that is my main concern with the student population and instructors. Are they cool with that or is it a conservative catholic atmosphere?

If by "women's right" you mean that your DD is staunchly pro-choice, I would not send her to BC or any other Catholic school. While BC may not be a conservative Catholic environment, as you put it, it is a Catholic school. That means the school administrators are (and should be) staunchly pro-life with respect to all issues, including abortion, the death penalty, war, etc. That's a huge part of what it means to be a Catholic. So, yes, she would have many classmates who are pro-choice, but does she want to be at an institution that is pro-life? Because that is what Catholic universities/colleges are, and what they must be. Especially in our current times where debates about abortion will be heated and the Supreme Court may very well be curtailing Roe v. Wade, I would not send my staunchly pro-choice kid to BC. Now, if your DD is willing to listen to other viewpoints and learn the other side of an issue she feel passionately about, then BC may be the perfect place for her to go. FWIW, I work at another Catholic university, so I view this more from an institutional perspective than most parents who probably view this from "what has my kid's experience been."

Based on this response I don’t think I would encourage my DD to consider any Catholic institution since I think birth control would be frowned upon too.

Frowning? I don't think students can see Fr. Leahy frowning at them LOL. The local CVS doesn't have a problem with selling contraception.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thank you for everyone’s comments. DD is very much into women’s rights/equality, so that is my main concern with the student population and instructors. Are they cool with that or is it a conservative catholic atmosphere?

If by "women's right" you mean that your DD is staunchly pro-choice, I would not send her to BC or any other Catholic school. While BC may not be a conservative Catholic environment, as you put it, it is a Catholic school. That means the school administrators are (and should be) staunchly pro-life with respect to all issues, including abortion, the death penalty, war, etc. That's a huge part of what it means to be a Catholic. So, yes, she would have many classmates who are pro-choice, but does she want to be at an institution that is pro-life? Because that is what Catholic universities/colleges are, and what they must be. Especially in our current times where debates about abortion will be heated and the Supreme Court may very well be curtailing Roe v. Wade, I would not send my staunchly pro-choice kid to BC. Now, if your DD is willing to listen to other viewpoints and learn the other side of an issue she feel passionately about, then BC may be the perfect place for her to go. FWIW, I work at another Catholic university, so I view this more from an institutional perspective than most parents who probably view this from "what has my kid's experience been."

Based on this response I don’t think I would encourage my DD to consider any Catholic institution since I think birth control would be frowned upon too.

It isn't, though. The majority of my BC professors were super liberal, and they didn't hide that. As for birth control, I was on the pill and so were many other girls in the dorm. The "BC bus" actually stops in Cleveland Circle by the CVS, which was happy to fill bc prescriptions. I did go to the Planned Parenthood near Packards Corner a few times to discuss bc options and get a prescription, and that was fine.

BC's student body is not socially conservative, on the whole. Really. They are good-natured, preppy liberals, for the most part.

If you could see what went on in some of those parties in the Mods, you would never be worried that BC is too conservative...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - Thank you for everyone’s comments. DD is very much into women’s rights/equality, so that is my main concern with the student population and instructors. Are they cool with that or is it a conservative catholic atmosphere?

If by "women's right" you mean that your DD is staunchly pro-choice, I would not send her to BC or any other Catholic school. While BC may not be a conservative Catholic environment, as you put it, it is a Catholic school. That means the school administrators are (and should be) staunchly pro-life with respect to all issues, including abortion, the death penalty, war, etc. That's a huge part of what it means to be a Catholic. So, yes, she would have many classmates who are pro-choice, but does she want to be at an institution that is pro-life? Because that is what Catholic universities/colleges are, and what they must be. Especially in our current times where debates about abortion will be heated and the Supreme Court may very well be curtailing Roe v. Wade, I would not send my staunchly pro-choice kid to BC. Now, if your DD is willing to listen to other viewpoints and learn the other side of an issue she feel passionately about, then BC may be the perfect place for her to go. FWIW, I work at another Catholic university, so I view this more from an institutional perspective than most parents who probably view this from "what has my kid's experience been."

Based on this response I don’t think I would encourage my DD to consider any Catholic institution since I think birth control would be frowned upon too.

It isn't, though. The majority of my BC professors were super liberal, and they didn't hide that. As for birth control, I was on the pill and so were many other girls in the dorm. The "BC bus" actually stops in Cleveland Circle by the CVS, which was happy to fill bc prescriptions. I did go to the Planned Parenthood near Packards Corner a few times to discuss bc options and get a prescription, and that was fine.

BC's student body is not socially conservative, on the whole. Really. They are good-natured, preppy liberals, for the most part.

If you could see what went on in some of those parties in the Mods, you would never be worried that BC is too conservative...

OP here. Lol. Thank you so much for sharing your experience. I appreciate it!