Where you decide to go to college says a lot about who you are as a person. Given the variety of higher learning institutions, there is a multitude of options you are bombarded by right after you are handed a high school diploma. Many will choose well-known state schools, some will venture to the ivy leagues, and others will consider a different route; one off the beaten path. That road less traveled--if you will the private liberal arts university.
Lib arts kids (heck yeah, there’s lingo) honestly march to the beat of a different drum. We’ve come to terms with this and have accepted ourselves and those around us. However! There are always the outsiders who really don’t understand what exactly it is that goes on in our class sizes of around… eight. So we get questions. Lots and lots of questions. Here’s a list of a few of them that I, myself, or my friends have been asked before.
So like… You get a bachelor’s degree WITH a specific major after 4 years right?
Yes, despite all of the magical, liberal fairy dust on the diploma, I will graduate with a degree. This is more of a misconception than I thought it would be. A liberal arts education just means that it is a more well-rounded process of learning. For example, I’m not required to take a theatre class to graduate (my major is Biopsychology, whattup fellow nerds?!) but if I WANTED to, I could definitely fit it into my schedule and still graduate on time.
The follow-up question: Is everyone at your school a theatre major or minor?
Again…. No. Not that our theatre department isn’t BOOMING (it is.. Reefer Madness changed my life) but it’s not for everyone. We have business majors, art majors, biology, accounting, engineering, literally almost any major you can name… we have it, too. BUT the difference is that an engineering major might have a class with an art major. Just to keep it fresh. THERE ARE EVEN ENGINEERING MAJORS WITH AN ART MINOR. Holy exploding universe.
So are all of you guys like super hipster?
If by hipster you mean forward thinking and well-dressed then, yes. Welcome, peasants.
I bet it must suck going to a school that small. I would hate it.
Well, no one is really begging you to come…
But in all honesty, at times it’s not exactly super ideal going to a school of just over 1000 where it’s likely that people know your business. But at the end of the day, it’s college. No one judges like they did in high school. And if they do keep tabs like "Mean Girls" they usually transfer after the first semester. We don’t need those vibes on a campus this small where we consider just about everyone to be family.
So you guys have alcohol at EVERY school function?
I mean, yeah, our school puts on a lot of different events for us and alumni at times and if you’re 21 then you can drink --just like in real life-- if you’re 21 years old… you can drink. Why is this such a foreign concept?
At the end of the day, lib arts kids are just like other college students. We pull all-nighters, inject coffee straight into our bloodstream during finals week, and miss class at times. The only difference is that we are on a much smaller scale, and our professors might literally call our cell-phones asking why we aren’t in class. But it’s OK for people to ask us questions, just don’t be surprised if you get an eye-roll or two, because we literally can only explain ourselves so much. Still love you, though. HAGS.
