Lehigh University
Responses from the Student Interview
From a student who identifies as Major: Finance
Minor: Real Estate
Student Self Identifies as: Caucasian Straight Male
Summary
I’m [a student-athlete] and I’m in Greek life.
Background
Gender Identity: Male
Race/Ethnicity: Caucasian
Sexual Orientation: Straight
High School Experience: Private high school in Michigan with a graduating class of about 150 students. There was a culture of going to college
First-Generation College Student: No
Major: Finance
Minor: Real Estate
Extracurricular Activities: I’m [a student-athlete] and I’m in Greek life.
Have any of your extracurricular activities had a particularly big impact on your experience?
My sport is a time commitment because it takes up a large chunk of my day.
Academic Experience
Can you describe the weekly coursework for your major?
Each week there is online homework or problems set assignment each week. We’ll have exams every month, and there are no quizzes.
Is there anything you feel your major’s department does especially well or poorly?
They do a pretty good job teaching advanced concepts within finance. The professors make those concepts easier to understand.
What has your school done to prepare you for the real world?
By teaching different things in finance that relate to investment banking or wealth management. They teach specific concepts that can prepare you for a job where you’d actually have to use those concepts.
How would you describe the learning environment? Do you think it’s particularly competitive or collaborative?
I think it’s both competitive and collaborative. Everyone wants to do well, but everyone also wants to do better than the other person.
How accessible are your professors?
Pretty accessible. They give you their office phone number and email. They have office hours.
Why did you pick your major? Are you happy with your choice?
I choose my major because they didn’t have a real estate major, just the minor. I felt that getting a finance degree with real estate would be better than any other degree I could get with the real estate minor.
How was managing both your sport and coursework?
It’s difficult but you just have to take advantage of the time you’re not at [your sport] and do your work. The upper-classmen usually help you out.
Reasons to Attend
1) There’s a great alumni network with a strong reputation that can help in the job application process.
2) It has a good and active social life.
3) It’s a good academic school so it challenges you to learn more and tap into different parts of your brain that you didn’t think you had.
Reasons Not to Attend
1) If you’re not an outgoing person you might feel shy or scared to reach out.
2) It’s expensive. [Total costs for the 2019-2020 academic year are about $69,650.]
3) If you want to go to a school with more of a sports presence.
Around Campus
Where have you lived on and around campus?
Freshman: Richards House with one roommate
Sophomore: Fraternity house with one roommate
Junior: Off-campus house with four roommates
How was transitioning from Michigan to Bethlehem, PA in terms of location?
It was definitely weird at first, but being on a team makes you not think about home. It’s only an hour and a half plane ride home, so it’s not bad.
Can you describe the level of safety you’ve experienced on and around campus?
I’ve never worried about it.
Social Opportunities
What kind of nightlife or weekend activities do you participate in at Lehigh?
I don’t party during the week, but I party one night on the weekend. I go to parties and bars.
Who hosts the parties? Where are they located?
They are on Saturday, either in my house or a teammate’s house.
What is the impact of Greek life on nightlife?
Greek life takes up a majority of the options, and a few sports teams depending on their availability. People if one fraternity can’t go to another fraternity’s party unless it was pre-arranged and you split the cost of the party with them. [31% of undergraduate students participate in Greek life.]
How did the nightlife differ before and after you joined Greek life?
It increased and you meet more people. A lot of the people you meet are willing to go out most days, so you’re exposed to different people who like doing those activities.
How happy are you with the weekend options at Lehigh? Is there anything you would change about them if you could?
I’d make another bar because I don’t think the bars are that great.
Campus Culture
How did you meet your closest friends?
Through my sport.
How would you describe the overall social scene?
I think it’s pretty good. It’s not a Big 10 school, but it’s pretty good for a small school. If you want to do something there are things for you to do.
To what extent do you feel people of different races and sexual orientations mix socially?
On the sports team, they do mix, but off of the team they don’t. Most of the parties are just White. [The undergraduate population is 62% White, 9% Hispanic, 8% Asian, and 4% Black or African American.]
To what extent do people in Greek life and not in Greek life mix socially?
I don’t think they really mix. It’s not common for guys not in a fraternity to hang out with people who are in fraternities.
How do you like the size of Lehigh in terms of undergraduate enrollment? How has that impacted your experience? [Lehigh has about 5,200 undergraduate students.]
I think it’s a decent size, but it could be bigger. I think going to a small school is an advantage because you’re not just in lecture halls all the time, you’re actually in classrooms which makes you learn more in my opinion because you can connect with the teacher.
How would you describe the student body?
I think people are privileged and come from good families. People are social and outgoing. [Socioeconomically, 67% of students come from families in the top 20 percent.]
Careers
Have you learned any computer programs or computer languages that will be helpful professionally?
We used Excel in my Real Estate and Finance courses.