Fordham University
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Insider insight and information about the academics, campus life, and student
    body at Fordham University, written by current students and recent alumni.
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About Me

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Intro

Think you know New York City colleges? Think again.

You could consider NYU a hipster documentary filmmaker and Columbia an uber-focused doctor-in-training...and then there's me. I'm a biology major/theater minor on the football team who takes flamenco class on Friday nights and volunteers with a local community center on the weekends.

In other words, I'm different.

I'm a big-city school with a diverse community and a heart of gold. I have great programs in biology, business, health, engineering, and even dance. I believe that education is about more than checking off boxes—it's about asking tough questions, nurturing a deep understanding of oneself and others, striving always to make the world a better place, and all that jazz.

I mean, this is New York City. Whether you want to be on Broadway or Wall Street, I'll help you get your foot in the door. It's not a long walk from my hallowed halls to a kick-butt job in the heart of your chosen industry.

Name

The Rams

Hometown

New York, New York. The Bronx is up and Lincoln Center is down.

Birthdate

1841

Body Type

I'm just the size you want. Whether you're looking for a big, beautiful college with history and a football team, or a smaller, arts-oriented college smack-dab in a big city, I've got something for everyone.

Rose Hill, my larger campus, spans about eighty-five acres in the Bronx. My Gothic architecture, large lawns, and cobblestone streets play host to about 5,800 undergraduate and 1,000 graduate students.

Lincoln Center, while smaller in acreage, enrolls 2,800 undergraduates and 4,700 graduate students (including students at my illustrious Fordham Law School). Although only about 1,100 live on campus. No hard feelings: Lincoln Center is in the heart of New York City, after all. You can watch the arrivals at New York Fashion Week from your dorm room. Beat that, Ivy Leaguers.

Current Living Situation

Most freshman live on campus—you just can't beat the comradery or the commute. As Anna sings in the musical The King and I (which may be performing at the Broadway theater you can see from the Lincoln Center dorms), freshman dorm living is all about "Getting to Know You." And yes, that often means smaller rooms, communal bathrooms, and more roommates.

Not to fear, though: my housing, like cheese, wine, or a college student's brain, improves with age. Plus, laundry is free. Seriously. No laundromats for you, young scholar.

Because New York City is just as much a campus as my actual campus, many students choose to move off-campus and live right in the middle of the hustle and bustle. Whether you're a Rose Hill student who settles into the nearby enclave of apartments on the Bronx's popular Arthur Avenue, or a Lincoln Center student who finds a Harlem rental that's only a twenty-minute train ride away, you'll never be far from the center of everything.

Relationship Status

New York may be a competitive place, but I like to keep it pretty civil. For example, my famous BFA dance program is a partnership between me and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. And, okay, I admit—it does rankle when New York University is name-checked as a "cooler" Manhattan college. But hey, I'm a Jesuit, and I forgive.

Back in my youth, I had a tumultuous relationship with Harvard. Both Harvard and I wanted the color magenta to represent our institutions, and like the fine young gentleman we were (this was 1874, after all—sorry ladies) we decided to settle the matter on the baseball field.

While I won the tournament, Harvard reneged on their promise to surrender the color. Ever the optimist, I settled on maroon instead. It wasn't until sometime later that Harvard gave up their falsely-won color—magenta—and settled on crimson. Crimson is still a bit close to maroon, but at least we Rams know the real story.

Religion

I'm the one and only Jesuit university in New York, and I'm proud of it. We Jesuits believe in an idea called cura personalis, which focuses on the growth of the whole person: mind, body, and soul. I'm also deeply invested in social justice and community service, which pretty much anyone with a heart can get on board with.

Think about my Jesuit-ness as more of a theory of education than a strict religious philosophy. You don't ever have to go to mass if you don't want. Check out my Buddhist meditation room in Lowenstein, pick up a prayer rug and Qu'ran from Faber Hall, or just head down the street to Times Square, where you might find one of my Jesuit professors, Father George Drance, onstage. Yep, he's a professional actor.

Politics

I'm a Jesuit school, so that means certain things apply. You can't pick up birth control at Health Services. You can't sign in overnight guests of the opposite sex. But…that's kind of it. As far as Catholics go, Jesuits are pretty liberal.

My Lincoln Center campus is very liberal, perhaps because that's where I house my world-class dance and theatre programs. Open discussion, frank inquiry, and most importantly, respect, are tenets of a Jesuit education, though, so if you don't fit the artsy-New York-liberal mold, no one will judge you.

That being said, there's a sizable conservative population on my Rose Hill campus. It's larger, a bit more traditional, and tends to sway heavily towards business, finance, and pre-law. There are clubs for College Republicans and College Democrats, and they tend to get along pretty well. My students' politics are as diverse as I am.

You should apply to me if...

you wanna get off the beaten trail in the most iconic city in the world.

Website

http://www.fordham.edu