Rhodes College

Rhodes is what I would call a sub-par liberal arts that prepares its students to have zero skills. The professors are truly accessible and incredibly friendly, just of mediocre quality that you would expect from a tier 3 school.

Yes the campus is beautiful, but it gets old after a week and is far, far smaller than you could ever imagine after visiting just once. The same structure for all the buildings is literally an optical illusion that makes one think the school is far larger than it is.

Rhodes has a culture, and that culture is dominated by fraternities and those men and women largely from Texas, Tennessee, Missouri, and Georgia (mainly southeast/midwest with bits and pieces from the north and elsewhere).

Rhodes has allowed me to get into an excellent graduate school due to its weak academics (i.e., high gpa), and for that I thank it. However, one should not attend Rhodes if he/she 1) will absolutely not join a fraternity/sorority 2) is Incredibly driven academically 3) does not plan on going to either medical school or law school.

The sad reality is that having a degree from Rhodes as an mediocre student with a liberal arts degree will not further your career. Of course there are highly successful individuals who go into finance (generally stay in the south) and a few other careers, but it is difficult given the course offerings of the school to obtain a meaningful degree.

Oh, and the food is horrendous beyond belief. This is after they made renovations to the Rat.

4th Year Male -- Class 2015

Faculty Accessibility: A, Innovation: D

When you visit Rhodes College (or just their website, for that matter), the first thing you will likely notice is the gothic architecture. It's a big pull for the school, and a lot of students regard it highly--it is something they are proud of in their school. At some point I started to see it in a different light, and as something of symbol for the student body. It's hard to find much diversity here. Most superficially, the racial breakdown is PREDOMINANTLY white, followed by some Asians (many of whom are here from China), then a few African Americans or Africans, and less than a handful Latinos. On top of that, you'll find a large majority are just varying degrees of rich, and typically Southern. Being neither of those, I sometimes feel culturally and socially ostracized. Unfortunately, I've witnessed enough unconscious racism (as in the speaker doesn't recognize what they are saying is prejudiced, rather they think of it as "aware" or "intellectual") to come to the conclusion that many students are close minded and grew up very sheltered. While looking for colleges I often heard the mantra repeated again and again, "The real learning takes place outside the classroom in late night discussions." So far that hasn't been my experience, and I'm disappointed in that.

Greek life dominates the social scene, and if you choose to stay independent, you get labeled a GDI (which is basically a moniker for the least cool Greek organization--you can't escape it). I had, and have, no interest in joining a fraternity, and that makes it difficult to make many friends, as those that did pledge invariably have an established (and fairly inflexible) clique. I mentioned that the school is predominantly rich and Southern, and from an outsider's perspective, I think this contributes to the importance of fraternities on campus. The statistic is 50% Greek (if I had to guess, it's much higher for sororities, and then fraternities are lower, bringing it to 50% composite), but perhaps because people who don't choose Greek life are generally just less active, and perhaps because there aren't specifically non-Greek functions to get to know others, it feels much more overbearing than the 50% would suggest. With all that being said, all on-campus fraternity parties are open to anyone--a nice touch.

Academically, I've had an excellent experience. While I'm currently undecided on a major, all faculty interactions within my areas of interest have been terrific, and I find the professors to be engaging and engaged, as well as eager to interact outside of class. I am in more geared towards the humanities/history, so I can only speak to them. Class discussions vary, but I haven't had any class without any eager students, and at the very least they keep the discussion going. Additionally, study abroad opportunities are not hard to come by, and more people take advantage of them than not.

The school widely circulates their #1 ranking in service, and I think it's well deserved. Most students seem involved in some way, whether that be in community service, sports (one note on intramurals--fraternities dominate here, too, and it can be hard to find a team if you aren't Greek), or clubs. I have been asked several time "So what are you involved in?" when first meeting people. If you are looking for a way to spend time, it isn't hard to get involved.

The stereotype of a "Rhodes Bubble" is fair, and it can be very hard to get to see Memphis itself. An administrative body, "The Big Diehl," will offer some discounted or free opportunities like arts/culture events, Grizzlies games, or fun activities like Laser Tag, but really the walls around campus keep people out as much as they keep students in. If you're considering Rhodes, take your time. If academics are most important to you, be a Lynx, but make sure you understand the social dynamics. If you plan to join a fraternity/sorority, by all means, do, you'll probably really enjoy it. I have met plenty of people that embody the "Work Hard, Play Hard" ethic, and thrive in both the Greek and classroom setting. It hasn't been a good fit for me, but it is for many. You really just need to know what you're expecting, which I don't think I did when I originally signed on (mostly due to financial aid).

1st Year Male -- Class 2017

Perceived Campus Safety: A+, Individual Value: D

3rd Year Female -- Class 2009

Faculty Accessibility: A+, Education Quality: B+