When I tell my friends about SMU, many joke about the school’s stereotypes. Some say all I have to do is breathe, have my parents take care of the tuition, and I'm set. Or like many of us have heard all too often—Southern Millionaires University. I couldn’t help but search how many people and websites have such a perception of us.
Where going to class is a formal affair and you can never re-wear an outfit. Guys sport Lacoste polo's with their Seven jeans and girls pop their collars underneath their sorority t-shirts. Where Rainbows, Northface jackets and Uggs are a staple for summer and winter weather. Where getting in the right Frat or Sorority house defines who you are for the next 3 years. Nobody cares what you drive, so long as it's a BMW or a Range Rover. Tailgating is a sport and watching football is a break between the pre-partying and the after party. No worries, we aren't sore losers we'll drink our weight in Alcohol whether we win or lose.
SMU- Southern Millionaires University
I do admit the post from Urban Dictionary is not terribly far fetched. With that said, I also think this post like others, are overly embellished making students come across as superficial and stuck up. Granted, many students come from affluent families, but that shouldn’t define who we are as students. It’s always a battle to defend SMU, because outsiders have such an idea of the school. If anything, those who see SMU in that regard should spend a day in our shoes, and notice it’s not all about wealth and a posh lifestyle. SMU is a work hard, play hard environment.
This was my parents biggest worry when I decided to come to SMU. Everybody says how snobby and rude the students are, and all my friends laughed when I told them where I was going. But I agree with you, nobody can judge until they themselves have experienced it. FIrst of all, I wear workout clothes to almost all of my classes, as do many of my peers. I don't see very many people getting dolled-up for class, but even if they do, that shouldn't matter. All of my closest friends are on scholarships, they work hard, and anything fun comes after the work has been done. I have amazing teachers who I believe truly care about how we do in their class, but I dont think anybody takes this into account when they think of SMU. And its quite sad. I'm not sure how we can shift outsiders opinion of SMU to something more positive, but we surely can do our best to try.
ReplyDeleteThe students are not the only reason SMU has the reputation it does. SMU is one of the most expensive schools to attend. The tuition here is more expensive then other well known private schools including Tulane and Vanderbilt universities. This fact is known throughout the South as well. So as students, I don't think we can blame SMU's reputation completely on ourselves.
ReplyDeleteJust like any other school we have a stereotype. USC has the same one, UC Berkley has the stereotype of crazy liberals. But the small percentage of "southern millionaires" that attend this school lead people into the idea that everyone is a spoiled rich kid. But just like how not everyone is a crazy liberal at UC Berkley, not everyone, not even the majority of students here are spoiled rich kids. The truth is the majority of students here are on scholarship or financial aid. If people want to view SMU as "Southern Millionaires University" go right ahead, I know the truth and I love it here whether I'm put in that stereotype or not!
ReplyDeleteSMU stereotype has and will always plague the students at SMU. The fact of the matter is that when walking to class, you are mostly like to see a BMW or Range Rover drive by, but most of the time when you see the person driving it, you had no idea that person came from money. Those who are rich at SMU do not go around announcing it to every person. We all got into SMU, so we are all good enough to be here. It doesn’t matter if you are here on scholarship or not. Students who go to other schools do not understand the atmosphere at SMU. The stereotype is not relevant to students, it doesn’t matter where you came from, and we are all here now so why not make the most of it.
ReplyDeleteJust about any school will have some kind of stereotype. Yes there may be luxurious goods all around our campus, but when we look at the bigger picture, a lot of students have financial aid or scholarships that brought them here. A lot of my friends have to work hard to keep their GPA's up in order to stay at SMU next year. It's not like SMU is where all the rich kids go to school. As if they just took all the rich kids and put them at one school. There are rich kids at other colleges too, but we are stuck with this stereotype. There will always be haters like these that try to knock people down when they are on the path to success.
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