The Real Diehl

Introduction
I chose Rhodes originally because I was looking for a northeastern liberal-arts style school in an urban area of the South. I've got to hand it to the communications department and administration--Rhodes is obsessed with its image. They pitch magazines filled with smiling faces in magazines and have a website full of "statistical flexing;" that is, filled with BS-laden profiles of perfect students who are "making a difference."

I want you to make your own judgement about the school. To do that, you need to visit Rhodes in person and see the school outside of the tours you're given and the perky "Rhodes Diplomats" you're assigned to. Rhodes is a school where certain kinds of people can flourish and others will perish.

Campus Life and Social Life
"Quality" parties become rarer and rarer each year. It used to be that students didn't have to get smashed beyond belief to have a great time; however, in recent years, it's been my experience that there are three kinds of people at the parties; People smashed out of their minds, people who are taking care of the smashed people, and people who don't really fit into either category and look utterly bored. Maybe this is the party scene at all colleges...?

Rhodes has a couple solid sports teams, but there's rarely a big student turnout for them. Clubs are small and clique-ish, but that's part of their inherent nature, I think. Academics
In many of my classes, participation and attendance are heavily weighted compared to the assignments. What does it say about a school's academics when professors have to heavily penalize students who don't show up for class? It reflects that students don't WANT to be in class which is troubling indeed for a campus that claims to have amazing professors and involved students.

A big thing I've noticed at Rhodes is that professors are quick to hand out busywork to create grades--a double-edged sword--which further frustrates students. They can't spend the time on the truly thought-provoking assignments because they're so busy scrambling around trying to "get everything done."

A huge problem with the Rhodes academics are their inflexibility in terms of the core curriculum. Rhodes just recently switched over to a new curriculum that is rigid and unforgiving. A failed or dropped course in one semester will almost assuredly mean an overload (at extra cost, of course) or perhaps even an extra semester later. The system is supposed to be better, but I have yet to speak to a student that likes it. On that note, Rhodes has taken the stance that AP credit does not count toward core requirements--so getting a 5 on your AP biology test isn't good enough, and you can look forward to taking Intro Bio. That's just one example, but you get the idea.

Student Body
I saw an earlier review titled "Liberal atheists." That couldn't be further from the truth. Rhodes is an unfriendly place to the unique and the independent people. If you're a white, wealthy, conservative Christian, you'll find no problems in terms of the social scene at Rhodes. While you may be fortunate enough to find "liberal sympathizers" if you consider yourself one (or heck, even a moderate,) they are a far cry from the majority here.

Students are stressed most of the time, and moreso than my friends from other colleges/universities. There's an overarching miasma of "I should be doing something right now," that even infiltrates the social lives of students. It's rare to find people who are content to "just hang out,". Students always feel the need to be going somewhere or doing something or feeling guilty over assignments they 'should' be working on. I'd rate it as a very mentally unhealthy campus in general--the counseling center (paid for by tuition, so it's "free of charge") is typically close to booked on any given day with people who are on the brink of a nervous breakdown. I see a lot (and I mean a LOT) of tired and haggard faces during the week. Sometimes, on weekends, students are so exhausted and stressed that they have no desire to do anything except shut themselves up in their rooms and sleep.

In Closing...
Rhodes has a lot of problems, currently. The administration is hostile and unbending in terms of the students and administrators seem to have forgotten that students are consumers and have a voice. There is a frightening tendency for administrators who advocate for students to be removed from staff (however the method/terminology used...they don't work here anymore!) and quickly replaced.

Free speech is a huge issue on campus right now. Another issue that the administration covers up as much as possible is that rape and sexual abuse/assault happens frequently on this campus. And diversity...oh, diversity. The administration pats itself on the back every time Rhodes gets another black student--because apparently to Rhodes, diversity = black. The culture is one of segregation (more often than not, the black students keep to themselves and the white students keep to themselves and that's okay?) which leads me to mention that the board of directors for Rhodes is--you guessed it--made up of white, wealthy "good ole' boys" from the Memphis area. Huge surprise there.

So you're probably wondering why this review is so negative; well, it's because I've read the other reviews, and they're so typical of Rhodes students--rank and file, pasted-on happy faces saying, "Oh, this place is so wonderful." It can be, don't get me wrong. But like any college, there's a lot more to it than gothic architecture and smiling faces. If you took the time to read these reviews, then you deserve to see more of the picture painted. Good luck in your college search, and I hope you find a college that is the right fit for you.