Thursday, October 16, 2008

Is The Stereotype True?

When I first started to consider SMU, one of the first things I did was ask my friends what they had heard about it.  Honestly, I wasn't very comforted by their feedback.  Most raised their eyebrows immediately and said that SMU was a "rich people" school and that I would probably turn out to be a snob if I went there.  Unfortunately, that reaction automatically turned me off to the idea of EVER being a mustang.  However, when I mentioned the possibility of attending SMU to adults, their reaction was the complete opposite.  They all kept going on and on about how amazing the school was, and said if I passed up the opportunity to go there, I would be missing out on a degree that could get me extremely far in whatever career I want to pursue.  
  At this point, I was utterly confused.  To see for myself, I visited campus in early December of last year.  It was finals week and there was not a soul around.  I did not have a comforting feeling at all when I left SMU on that freezing Friday afternoon, and I was completely convinced that my plans to go to Auburn were now set in stone.
April of senior year arrived before I knew it, so did another invitation to visit SMU just one last time for Mustang Days.  I rolled my eyes when I received the letter, but my dad was so intent on me giving it one more try that I agreed to go back to Dallas.  I arrived on campus once again with the terrifying "snob school" stereotype still echoing in my head.  I was just ready to get this night over with. 
However, to my complete surprise, I began to like SMU and the other incoming freshman
more and more as the hours went on. After talking to people, I found out that they were just
as nervous as I was about coming to a school with such an intimidating reputation. I had so
much fun that weekend, and when I left, I knew that this would be my home for the next
four years. Yes, our school is known for wealth and beautiful people, but there are those
people at every university. I am so glad I was able to look past the initial impression of SMU
and I couldn't be happier to attend such an amazing school.
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2 comments:

Life of SMU freshman said...

I had the exact same experience. While my friends did encourage me to come to SMU, my first visit was not successful. I came around a time when there was also no one on campus. To make the situation worse, it was freezing outside! I was miserable the entire visit and left early. To add to the bad weather conditions, the people who gave us the tours were not people I could see myself. Long story short, just like you, when I came back for my second visit I fell in love!

October 21, 2008 at 7:34 AM
Opaque said...

SMU has been trying to diversify. It is not a school just for the rich white people anymore. It was way different ten years ago. But I love it now, so I am glad it changed. Many people see the school as it's old image of "stuck up" but it will change soon.

November 24, 2008 at 10:32 AM

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