Love it or hate it, another year of school is beginning, and for you new freshman, Pepperdine, like most schools is probably going to be a school that you love for some reasons, hate for others, and hold mixed emotions for everything else in between. Here are some of my thoughts thrown in with a bit of advice for the newest members of our community (and some of the older ones). Hopefully a few of these tidbits will be useful in the future.
Loved it!
• Wednesdays: they’re great! True, you have to deal with Chapel in the morning, which will be a pain for (if I had to guess) about 75 percent of you, but after that you can spend the day at the beach, studying in your room or playing some pick up football or basketball.
• Los Angeles is awesome; really, it is. Get off campus and explore the city. Spend some time in Santa Monica and Venice and take in their unique cultures. If you branch out, LA will hopefully begin to feel like a home away from home.
• Groups and clubs are some of the best investments. Pepperdine has a reputation for not having a very diverse student population, and on the whole that claim is hard to dispute; but if you dig deep you’ll find a certain diversity of interests. Our students are not only intelligent, but are also full of passions from social justice to sketch comedy. As a result, Pepperdine has a great number of opportunities to meet like-minded people. Whether you’re a social butterfly, political junkie or artist, you will be able to find a niche or two that can make your college experience both meaningful and fun.
Something in between
• If someone were to take a poll on Pepperdine Caf food, I suspect the poll would get mixed results, with a slight edge in favor of the “unsatisfactory” option. Fortunately, there’s a Jamba Juice on campus and a few good local places for those with rides. Lily’s has acquired legendary status for its breakfast burritos for good reason. Also, check out La Salsa and Howdy’s. For Thai enthusiasts, Cholada and Thai Dishes are great.
• Then there’s the issue of glam. Maybe I was naïve, but when I used to imagine college life, I thought of being fairly broke and doing a bit of scraping to get by. I also expected that students wouldn’t care much for appearance: personally, I miss my simple Texas high school wardrobe terribly. The high level of fashion expectations can be irritating (and I’m saying this as a guy). Pepperdine’s large endowment (extremely high for its size) in addition to high tuition means that it has massive amounts of money to throw around and so do many of its students. Going to a school where the average student income is higher than the per capita income of some countries can be an adventure, but not everyone is straight out of Beverly Hills. Try not to stress out about appearing to be wealthy and “fabulous” all the time. Friends worth having won’t care.
• Pepperdine features one of the best set of international programs in the world, and was recently ranked No.1 in terms of the percentage of students that go abroad. Picking an IP is a huge decision, especially if it’s for a full year. It will be a life-changing experience, no doubt, and, hopefully, an overall positive one at that. However, it is very stressful, and it will certainly affect your social life. Studying abroad can make or break long-term friendships and relationships, considering how most of us have a tendency to favor our immediate surroundings. Making cultural adjustments can be tough as well. Before you apply for a program, ask about all of them, find one that suits you, apply, and make the best of your experience.
Hated it!
• Everybody has “that one class,” and for most of us, we know exactly what that is. There is a certain GE course that everyone has to take. The fortunate ones will be able to guess what it is and avoid it during the regular school year. That’s really all I can say.
• There seems to be an abundance of transportation issues here. Most freshmen at Pepperdine don’t have cars. I didn’t have one in my first year either. Not having a car at most universities wouldn’t be a big deal; it is at Pepperdine. Those who don’t have one should be sure to scope out friends that do. Those lucky few with wheels should pick their friends carefully. Hopefully, if the balance works out, everyone will be able to get out more often and spend more time at the beach.
• I may not speak for all of us, but I miss sports! It is a well-known and unfortunate fact that Pepperdine does not have a football team. Odds are most students don’t care too much; otherwise they wouldn’t have attended school here. Basketball games are fun, and so are volleyball and baseball games, but there is so little buzz about sports on campus that Pepperdine athletics usually won’t be a common lunchtime conversation topic. So, to those freshmen who care about sports, go to the games and then, please, talk about them afterwards.
As a result of its tuition, location, mission and size, Pepperdine offers a very different experience than the typical university. Some love it a lot more than normal, and others can’t stand it, but on the whole, most would agree that the experience here is a worthwhile one. So, freshmen, welcome to Pepperdine. Exploit to the fullest extent that it has to offer.
