CollegeChoice, an online college information resource, ranked Hopkins freshmen as the 20th happiest freshman class in its list of the 50 Colleges and Universities with the Happiest Freshmen, which was calculated using only freshman retention rates.
Overall graduation rates were then examined to differentiate between schools with equal retention rates.
“We used the search engine at www.collegedata.com to create our list working off their outcome data and then cross checked it with stats from the National Center for Education Statistics and U.S. News World and Report information about freshman retention rates,” Katie Amondson, author of the July ranking, wrote in an email to The News-Letter.
In April 2013 Hopkins was ranked 24th on a similar list compiled by CBS News, which ranked 25 colleges on happiest freshmen. They also worked with retention rate. Amondson explained the reasoning behind this method of ranking.
“We are working off the assumption that colleges with a higher rate of students who return after their freshman year are provid[ed] a superior freshman experience,” Amondson wrote.
Some Hopkins students expressed doubt as to the validity of measuring students’ happiness from retention rates.
“While it’s very possible that Hopkins freshmen are one of the top happiest freshmen in the nation, I don’t think the way in which they [went] about [measuring] it was true, because I think that if you look at the retention rates over the last four years, it’s not an indication of people’s happiness in their first year,” Anna Bartoli, a freshman Applied Math major, said. “I think there’s a lot of other factors going into it that were overlooked in the study.”
Despite the covered grades policy, which offers freshmen the opportunity to explore different student organizations on campus and to meet new people without the pressure of keeping up their grades, many freshmen said that they found their first semester to be difficult.
“I think it was a hard transition, and it’s very difficult with the workload to be able to manage meeting your roommate and other friends and people you live with along with the work because the professors don’t acknowledge the fact that you are readjusting to a new lifestyle,” Michael Pozin, a freshman Mechanical Engineering major, said.
There are many different factors that go into creating a freshman experience, including roommates, classes, new friends, extracurricular activities and the need to adjust to a different lifestyle. For many students, Hopkins is much larger than their high schools, and they receive less individual attention in their classes. Many courses also mix freshmen with sophomores, juniors and seniors.
Some freshmen also said they struggled to learn how to balance academic obligations with their social life.
“I think that the balance between workload and social life can be really hard, and I don’t think that the transition time that they give you is well-adapted enough,” Sophie Mirviss, a freshman International Studies major, said. “It’s kind of like once you’re in college, you’re expected to be in college and to know... how to really balance the workload, which, for a lot of people, is very difficult, and it doesn’t help them socially when they’re already extremely stressed out.”
Hopkins has also long been recognized for its academic rigor. In 2012, Newsweek ranked Hopkins the ninth most stressful university in the United States. However, many students have found ways to cope with the stress they feel at Hopkins.
“I genuinely feel happy,” freshman Caroline Harris said. “I think [Johns Hopkins] offers a lot of resources if you’re not. I know people who take advantage of them,”
Freshman Lauren Pomerantz, a public health and behavioral biology major, agreed that Hopkins is not a wholly unhappy environment.
“When I came to Hopkins... the one thing I always heard was this was the most stressed out student body — everyone’s so competitive,” Pomerantz said. “When I came here, I realized it wasn’t the case. But nonetheless, we still do have a very stressful environment.”
Some students have found that coping with stress is a bonding experience that contributes to their individual happiness.
“I think the transition to Hopkins was easier than most colleges... It was the first time a lot of us failed in our lives, so we realized we were all sinking and we formed a family,” freshman Morgan Kuczler said. “I’ve absolutely loved it.”
Student Government Association (SGA) Executive Secretary Adelaide Morphett and Executive Treasurer Will Szymanski said they both feel that there is no streamlined place in which students can learn about all the events taking place on campus.
“One misconception is that Hopkins doesn’t have enough events on campus,” Szymanski said.
Morphett also said that living arrangements after freshman year may be less conducive to community-building as a class.
“After sophomore year when everyone disperses into their own living situations... then you don’t really have anywhere where you’re cohesively coming together with your class anymore unless you really seek it out,” Morphett said.
To rectify this situation, an upperclassmen apartment building on 3200 St. Paul St. will soon be built on the former Olmsted lot at the corner of 33rd Street and St. Paul St.
Another way that students can enhance their Hopkins experience is through exploring Baltimore. In a video released by the Office of Communications last year, seniors commented on some of the things that made them happiest about their Hopkins experience as well as their regrets. Some regrets included failing to explore downtown Baltimore during their freshman and sophomore years.
“A big part of the Hopkins experience for me is campus life and where we are in relation to Baltimore,” Morphett said.
Both Morphett and Szymanski referred to the TENx2020 plan, which lists ten goals that President Daniels plans to accomplish by 2020. Number four on his list of priorities is improving the undergraduate experience.
Szymanski also mentioned that there are many events and organizations on campus that students can take advantage of.
“It’s really just about looking for it,” Szymanski said.
Szymanski suggested that students search for events online. While finding out what is happening on campus takes effort, he said that the experience of finding them is very rewarding.
Overall, despite some stereotypes about life at Hopkins, many students are enjoying their experiences here.
“A lot of kids are proud to be Hopkins students. As freshmen, we have a lot to learn, and it’s an experience that people cope with differently,” freshman Perry Rudolph said. “Although school spirit could be better and some aspects of student life could be improved... I know as a freshman, I am very happy to be here.”
Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The News-Letter.