Rambler Network – Page 4 – College Admission at Loyola

Colossus 2015

By | March 15, 2015

This past weekend the Department of Programming ((dop)) and the Student Activities and Greek Affairs (SAGA) of Loyola hosted Colossus 2015! Colossus is a two night concert and comedy series presented annually, where famous people visit Loyola and put on a show for a reduced price to students and staff! In the past, people such as Ke$ha and Aziz Ansari have been scheduled to perform. This year, the performers were Jason Derulo on Friday night and Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias on Saturday night! Both shows were held at Gentile Arena.

Sadly, I was only available to attend the Jason Derulo concert on Friday night and had to miss Gabriel Iglesias. But the concert was really fun! My friends and I arrived at around 7:30 P.M. and were able to get in and find good seats before the opening acts began at around 8:00. There were two opening acts: the first was a student DJ and the second one was a student band. The DJ played really cool remixes of songs and really got the crowd pumped up before the show! He was really energetic and I could tell he really loved what he was doing. The student band was also really good and really energetic. They sang a mix of both cover songs and original songs. Their sound was a mix of pop remixed with rock and punk. I really enjoyed their covers and liked their original songs! I would definitely go to see them perform again.

Once the crowd was pumped up, Jason Derulo finally came on! I am not a huge huge fan of Jason Derulo, but he definitely knows how to put on a good and entertaining show! He performed all of his popular songs that I’ve known since middle school and it was fun to dance and sing along! He also performed a new song that only came out a few days ago. It was a really fun evening.

Although I didn’t go to Gabriel Iglesias’s show, my roommate did and said it was amazing! She said he was absolutely hilarious, and performed for an extra hour! I really wish I could have been there.

All in all, Colossus 2015 was a huge success, and I am so excited to see who will come to Loyola next year for Colossus 2016!!

Arch Madness!

By | March 8, 2015

Welcome back from spring break, Ramblers! This afternoon, about 60 Loyola students returned from St. Louis for Arch Madness this past weekend! I was lucky enough to attend this trip to support our men’s basketball team and to visit such a beautiful city. In this post, I will be talking about my experience attending Arch Madness in the beautiful city of St. Louis, Missouri!

Arch Madness is the basketball tournament held in St. Louis, Missouri every year to see which teams will advance to further tournaments. Loyola offered two student packs, one for $40 that included 2 dinners, a Rambler scarf, a commemorative T-shirt, and tickets to the games, and another package for $50 that included everything pre-listed plus transportation to and from St. Louis. I purchased the $50 pack, and paired with a cheap hotel price, ended up paying a wonderful price for such a great trip!

I have never been west of Chicago, and have never crossed the Mississippi River before. When I first heard about the trip to St. Louis for Arch Madness, I was really excited to go! All of my friends wanted to go too; it would be a fun thing for us all to do over spring break! When last Thursday finally rolled around, we all boarded the buses and departed Loyola ready to cheer the Ramblers on!
After the crazy 6 hour-long bus ride, we finally arrived in St. Louis. The next day, game day, was extremely long for us! We wanted to see and do as many things in St. Louis as we could within the small amount of time we had. We had complementary tickets to the St. Louis City Museum, which was basically a giant playground for kids and adults alike! We spent the whole morning climbing and crawling through tunnels and sliding down slides both indoors and outdoors! It was great to feel like a child again. I truly can’t remember the last time I yelled, “there’s a line for the slide!” This place was definitely worth visiting, and I’d love to go back sometime!

Later that day, we visited the legendary Gateway Arch. I absolutely loved viewing the arch from the ground, and was so excited to view the ground from the top of the arch! We bought our tickets from the Old Courthouse (which an extremely historic place all in itself! This courthouse held the Dred Scott case and many others, and was visited by many famous historic people such as Alexander Hamilton!) and headed over to the elevators! The elevators to reach the top of the arch are extremely tiny! They seat five people, are round in shape, and are really low! Definitely not something for people with claustrophobia! Once we reached the top though, the view was breathtaking and definitely worth the scary trip up! We viewed down over St. Louis and the Mississippi River from 630 feet up! It was an amazing experience!

Later that day, we began preparations for the big game! There was a huge pep rally in the hotel we were staying at, and with the band playing and cheerleaders cheering we welcomed the team and sent them off to win! Once at the game, the stands were a sea of maroon and gold! Everyone knew that the Ramblers were there to win! We cheered harder than we have ever cheered before, and it led to a victory against Indiana State University! That meant the Ramblers were staying another day to take on the University of Northern Iowa on Saturday afternoon! That game we unfortunately ended up losing, but the Ramblers played a good and hard game, and we never let our pride down!

Upon returning, I am able to look back at this amazing trip with great memories and happiness. I had a wonderful time touring St. Louis with my friends, and an even greater time cheering the team on with all of my fellow Ramblers in our legendary Gryffindor-looking Loyola scarves! Our presence was definitely felt in that city, and we will be remembered! It was truly a great weekend to be a Rambler. Onward LU!

Residence Hall Bonding Over The Oscars

By | February 25, 2015

As many of you may know, the Oscars were on this past Sunday night! For many people the Oscars are really fun to watch, to see if your favorite movies and stars will win awards! I wasn’t sure I’d get a chance to watch them, though, because I do not have a TV in my dorm. Luckily, the second-floor lounge of my building had a large TV and a bunch of other eager people who wished to watch the awards ceremony too.

Living in a dorm can be a little difficult if you do not have a TV. You don’t get to watch all of your favorite shows as they air, movies as you wish, or record any programs you might miss! However, I have learned that many times, if there is a special program on TV, I will not be the only one who will wish to watch it! Sunday night, there were about twenty of us all gathered downstairs in front of the large TV awaiting the start of this magical awards show. I was with some of my friends, but large amounts of the people down there with us were people from many different floors, some that I’ve never seen before. It was a really cool experience to see that everyone can come down to the lounge and bond over watching a popular television program! I found myself talking to people I’ve never talked with before, and enjoying all that the show had to offer with them! It was a great bonding experience. I also had my overnight guests for the evening with me too, so they were also able to experience how easy it is to build a community here at Loyola and how friendly everyone can be!

Overall, Loyola residence halls are a wonderful place for bonding and building community. Many residents without television sets will seek to watch their favorite programs in the public lounges with other people who are in the same situation as them! This proves to be a wonderful way to make new friends with similar interests, while being able to enjoy simple things such as your favorite television program!

Defining Different Types of College Visits: Which visit is right for you?

By Lindsy Fagerstrom | February 24, 2015

Daily Presentations & Tours at the Lake Shore Campus
- Target Audience: Students who have yet to apply and guests
- Focus: General information about Loyola and the admission process; tour of the Lake Shore Campus
- Website: https://uao.luc.edu/VisitLSCFreshman/
Daily Presentations & Tours at the Water Tower Campus
- Target Audience: Prospective and admitted students interested in Business, Communication, Education, or Social Work.
- Focus: Tour of our full-service Water Tower Campus.
- Website: https://uao.luc.edu/VisitWTCFreshman/
Admitted Student Appointments
- Target Audience: Admitted high school seniors and guests
- Focus: Talk one-on-one with an admission counselor who can answer your questions about: Financial Aid, Scholarships, Next Steps, Orientation, Majors/Minors, Residence Life, Student Activities, Athletics, Study Abroad, Chicago, Campus Safety, Campus/City Transportation, Dining Hall Options, etc.
- Website: http://luc.edu/undergrad/getmore/comevisit/admittedhighschoolsenior/
Transfer Student Appointments
- Target Audience: Prospective and admitted transfer students and guests
- Focus: Talk one-on-one with an admission counselor who can answer your questions about: Financial Aid, Scholarships, Next Steps, Orientation, Majors/Minors, Residence Life, Student Activities, Athletics, Study Abroad, Chicago, Campus Safety, Campus/City Transportation, Dining Hall Options, etc.
- Website: http://luc.edu/undergrad/getmore/comevisit/transferstudents/
Class Shadowing
- Target Audience: Admitted high school seniors
- Focus: Meet with a current student and attend a class or two with them to get a taste of the academic experience on-campus. If possible, we will assign you to attend class with a student who has a similar major to you.
- Email: visitloyola@luc.edu
Overnight Visits
- Target Audience: Admitted high school seniors
- Focus: Get the full Loyola experience: stay overnight in the residence halls with a current first year student, eat in the dining hall, and attend on-campus events.
- Website: uao.luc.edu/apply/status
- Email: you@luc.edu
Multicultural Overnight Visits
- Target Audience: Admitted high school seniors with a multicultural background
- Focus: Get the full Loyola experience: stay overnight in the residence halls with a current first year student, eat in the dining hall, attend on-campus events, and learn about diversity at Loyola.
- Website: uao.luc.edu/apply/status
Basketball Socials
- Target Audience: Admitted high school seniors and guests
- Focus: Cheer on the Loyola Ramblers Division 1 Men’s Basketball team in the recently renovated Gentile Arena with other admitted students Loyola’s biggest fans.
- Website: uao.luc.edu/apply/status
Loyola Weekend
- Target Audience: Admitted high school seniors, admitted transfer students, and guests
- Focus: This is my favorite campus-event (and not just because I plan it!) This event highlights all aspects of Loyola: Financial Aid, Next Steps, Study Abroad, Academics, Lake Shore Campus, Water Tower Campus, Campus Ministry, Student Diversity, Leadership, Student Activities & Greek Affairs, Research, Residence Life, Alumni, Faculty, Staff, and Current Students!
- Website: luc.edu/loyolaweekend
Virtual Visits
- Target Audience: Prospective and Admitted Students who do not have the ability to visit campus
- Focus: Tour campus online to gain a glimpse of our community-oriented, urban, campuses.
- Website: http://www.youvisit.com/tour/luc

Enjoy your Campus Visit

Overnight Stays For Prospective Students

By | February 18, 2015

Overnight stays are wonderful ways for prospective students to get to know Loyola better before making their final decision on a school this spring! Prospective students can sign up for overnight stays through the Undergraduate Admissions Office and will get the chance to stay overnight in a Loyola dorm with a current freshman. This is an exciting way to be sure of your decision. In this post, I will be discussing overnight stays and the benefits of participating in one!

This past weekend, I hosted my first overnight stay from Sunday night to Monday morning. My roommate and one of my friends also hosted, so we were able to do things together and the students were able to meet some of their possible classmates! The night began when we picked up our guests from the Damen Den and went to dinner at the Damen Dining Hall. The guests are all given dining hall passes so they were able to get in and experience what dining at Loyola was like! Over dinner, we were able to talk with our guests more to discover what their interests and hobbies were. This gave us a great chance to bond with our guests and to make them feel more at home with Loyola. Our guests seemed to really enjoy the experience of eating at a dining hall, and were excited to see what else Loyola had to offer!

We then went to a scheduled trivia night held for overnight guests and their hosts. This was held in the Regis multi-purpose room and turned out to be really fun! There were about eight teams, all made up of overnight guests and hosts. There were six different rounds of trivia on a huge variety of different topics. Winners would win a Loyola blanket, so the game got to be a little competitive with all of the teams racking their brains to come out on top! Our team had so much fun trying to come up with the answers, and we bonded a lot over this activity. We ended up coming in third place out of eight teams! It wasn’t first, but I was happy! After trivia, we finally headed back to our dorms where we introduced our guests to the rest of the floor. Everyone was really welcoming, and our guests felt comfortable. Shortly after, we all headed to bed to get ready for class the next morning!

One of the best parts about overnight stays is that our guests get to attend a class with us Monday morning! This is so that they can get a feel for how classes at Loyola are run to get a better understanding of the school as a whole. I brought my guest to my core environmental science course, which was enlightening to them because they got a taste of a class that they would probably be required to take if they chose Loyola. She ended up really enjoying the class, even though it was all lecture and she just sat and listened intently.

When it was time to say goodbye to my guest at the end of her stay, she thanked me for a fun experience and told me her views of Loyola have bettered from the stay. This meant a lot to me, as I love being able to share the experience with others to help them make the best decision. There is definitely a huge benefit to participating in an overnight stay, for both the guest and the host! So, if you are still unsure of where you would like to spend your college years and need to experience Loyola more intently, I would highly recommend attending an overnight stay. The experience is beneficial, educational, and fun for everyone! I’m so excited to host another student this weekend!

Loyola Men’s Volleyball Games

By | February 6, 2015

I’m not much of a sports person myself, but one sport I have come to enjoy watching is Loyola’s Men’s Volleyball! For sports fans and non-sports fans alike, everyone can find enjoyment in watching two teams battle it out in an intense game of volleyball to reach the top! In this post, I will be talking about attending Loyola Men’s Volleyball games. (I’m sure women’s volleyball is very exciting too, I’ve just never personally been to a game yet!)

A couple of weeks ago, my friends and I decided to check out a volleyball game because we have never been to one before and we knew that they were undefeated! Loyola was versing Harvard, and I wasn’t too sure on what to expect, because honestly, sports games usually bore me. I was pleasantly surprised once I arrived though, because I found that volleyball is actually such an intense and exciting game to watch! (It also helped that I actually understood how to play and what was going on…) We watched and cheered as Loyola gained score after score, and felt the tension when there was an intense round of volleying the ball back and fourth over the net, hoping the play would end in Loyola’s favor! In the end, Loyola won the game, continuing their winning streak from this season as well as winning the championship last year.

All in all, whether you love sports and go to as many games as you can or if sports aren’t your thing at all, I would encourage you to go to at least one volleyball game to witness the excitement of it! I had my doubts, but am now so glad I went to that one game, because now I plan to go to every single one in the future that I can! The next time Loyola has a home game is Saturday, February 14th against Ball State. So, if you’re bored this Valentine’s Day, come on down to the game at 7pm at Gentile Arena! I know I’ll try to be there! ☺

My New Home Away From Home

By | January 28, 2015

Let me begin my saying that I have never talked so much, to so many people, in my entire life, as I have this weekend.

Since last fall, going through Panhellenic sorority recruitment was something that I had looked forward to with eager anticipation. However, no one warned me of what was to come, which some have said is comparable to speed dating, for three straight days, essentially non-stop. After 22 hours of meeting and chatting my way through all the members of different sororities, I now have nearly two hundred friends, whom I call sisters. Through this process, I found a home away from home, and I am extremely grateful to be part of such a wonderful family. Nevertheless, the path to here comprised somewhat of an arduous and exhausting, yet rewarding and exciting journey.

This year was the first time that recruitment was held in just one weekend during the spring semester. On the first day, Friday, potential members, me among them, visited the six different PanHellenic sororities on campus, staying for 20 minutes at each. The following day, we recruits visited at most four sororities for 30 minutes each. Then, on Sunday, the final day, we spent 40 minutes at each sorority. Making a decision that will impact the next years of college life and beyond that, based on 90 minutes of interaction, really places a huge amount of importance on first impressions.

This experience has allowed me to meet many fellow Loyolans with whom I would not have otherwise crossed paths and has enlightened me in several ways. Of course, not everyone who goes through recruitment will end up “loving” Greek life, and that is okay. I think the most important thing is giving it a try, so that you will not have to wonder ‘what if,’ the most haunting question of all time. If you have even the slightest possible interest in an activity, try it out, because you never know what the outcome may be. In addition to broadening your social, academic, or career network, you might be surprised to discover a latent interest or talent, and the experience itself is likely to leave you with insights that you can draw upon down the road.

I have to admit that choosing a ‘sisterhood’ was probably the most difficult decision that I have ever had to make in my life. Yes, it was even harder than choosing a college, because the only deciding factor was “how I felt,” in other words, my impression of the sorority. It took me two long and grueling hours of going back and forth, to decide between my top two choices. I was uncertain until the very last second. In the end, I went with my gut and chose the sorority with which I had always felt an affinity. Today, having rebooted back into the calm of my daily routine after a turbo-charged Greek weekend, I can safely say that I made the right decision.

Getting Back Into The Swing Of Things

By | January 13, 2015

Welcome back to classes, Ramblers! I know I haven’t written in such a long time due to winter break, but I’m back! I hope everyone had a great holiday season and a happy new year! Classes for second semester began this past Monday for current students, and personally, adjusting back into the swing of things has proved a bit difficult for me! Although I’m excited to be back and studying again, getting used to dorm life once again is taking some time compared to living at home with free laundry and no shower shoes! In this post, I will be discussing the start of the new semester and readjusting to dorm and class life!

For all current Ramblers, brand new classes began on Monday! For many, this is an exciting new start with new subjects, professors, and friends. However, jumping back into classes so soon after winter break takes some getting used to. Waking up early again, setting alarms, studying, and doing homework is hard to get back into after not having to worry about any of it for about a month! I personally think after the first week people will find that they are fully ready to continue in their studies for a successful second semester, I know I will!

In addition to readjusting to class life, students must readjust to dorm life as well! After a month of living at home with free laundry, home-cooked meals, and no shower shoes, returning to school can take some getting used to! For the first week, I’m sure sleep schedules will still be a little bit off, but I know that students will be back in the routine in no time. I already feel at home after two days of readjusting, and am glad to be back in my dorm with all of my friends!

Although it was wonderful to be home with no worries of classes and homework, it’s great to be back at Loyola for the spring semester! Readjusting honestly was not that bad, and I’m glad to be continuing my studies at such a beautiful school, with all of my new friends that I’ve missed for a month! Enjoy the spring semester, Ramblers!

Using Social Media to Explore Loyola

By Lindsy Fagerstrom | December 2, 2014

Hopefully, by this point you have a short list of schools left on your list (and hopefully these applications are complete, if not, submit them ASAP!) If you have narrowed it down and are waiting for decisions, use this time to get to know the schools better.

Social media is a great way to get to know schools more closely – by following these accounts, you can get an inside look at events, classes, experiences, and life at different universities. Use this as an excuse to spend a ridiculous amount of time getting lost in pages upon pages of social media.

Here is a collection of some of my favorite Loyola social media sites:

Twitter:

Facebook:

Pinterest:

Instagram:

Flickr:

YouTube:

Weibo:

Loyola Chicago

Enjoy browsing! As always, contact me with any questions you might have!

Thankful Loyolans

By Lindsy Fagerstrom | November 25, 2014

In order to show their gratitude and thankfulness this year, Ramblers took hundreds of post-it notes to a chalkboard on-campus to share what they were thankful for: