After having a few friends come visit me at SCU, I began to realize there are a lot of things we consider normal that most other university students just don't get. As freshmen, these things have just become normal aspects of college life, but in reality they are unique characteristics of SCU. While some other schools may have these features, it is not common, and a majority of people just don't understand.
Named Houses
http://theclara.co/
Believe it or not, when we say we're going to Hooters or IHOP, we aren't talking about the restaurants. Naming our off-campus houses makes life a lot easier for us, but a lot more confusing for any outsider trying to figure out what we're talking about. When I try to explain this to most of my friends from home, they don't quite get it, and when they visit and hear we're going to Billboard, they're even more confused than before.
Unaffiliated Greek Life
Wait, so you're not allowed to advertise for rush on campus? Most people directly associate college and Greek life, and attending a school Greek system is unaffiliated with baffles many of my friends. They don't understand how we can even exist without the school's help. They couldn't imagine going to a school where recruiting during rush or advertising your house's fundraiser isn't allowed on campus.
Sophomores Living On-campus 
http://giphy.com/gifs/kim-kardashian-nick-kroll-sh...
Nothing confuses my friends more than why I would choose to live in the dorms as a sophomore. They don't understand the cut-throat housing market around SCU and that unless you start planning September the year before, you will struggle to find a house. It may seem weird to choose to live on-campus as a sophomore, but here it's totally normal.
Fines, Fines, and More Fines
The downside to living in the dorms two years is two years of fines. While other schools have punishments for breaking housing contract rules, most of my friends never experience fines like we do. Many of us have experienced that disappointing moment when you get written up by your CF and have to pay a nice hefty fine for breaking housing rules. While all schools have CFs (or as normal schools call them RAs), Santa Clara loves to deter us from dorm drinking with fines, and for the most part, it works.
Acronyms for Everything
http://giphy.com/gifs/camera-kickstarter-possibili...
RLC, CF, ASG, APB, OML, MCC, CSL, ELSJ, SCAAP, the list goes on and on. Everything at SCU has an acronym, and calling these things by their full name seems weird. While the acronyms are easy for us, it is almost impossible to figure out what we are talking about unless you go here. Even as a freshman student I was beyond confused when I would hear these acronyms, and it took about two quarters to remember what everything stands for.
Beer Die
The drinking game that defines Santa Clara confuses other students more than anything. While the game is becoming increasingly popular among California universities (sometimes with variations of the game or a different name), most of my friends just don't understand our obsession with the game. Seeing front lawns full of shirtless boys throwing a die into the air on a sunny Friday afternoon is standard around here, but just looks weird to plenty of other people.
