Students study in the newly renovated Garland Hall, as captured on Aug. 28, 2025. (Hustler Multimedia/Alice Chen)
GENDER
The Class of 2029 first-year survey received 205 responses and several demographic measures were compared with official university statistics to assess how closely the sample reflects Vanderbilt’s broader student population. Of the respondents, 58% identified as women and 42% identified as men. According to Vanderbilt’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions, roughly 47% of the Class of 2029 identifies as male, suggesting that men were slightly underrepresented in the survey responses.
RACE
The racial and ethnic breakdown of survey respondents was as follows: 43% identified as white and 27% identified as Asian. Additionally, 13% of respondents identified as multiracial, indicating that they selected more than one racial identity in the survey. Smaller portions of respondents identified as Black (6%), Hispanic or Latino (5%) and Middle Eastern (2.4%), while 0.5% identified as Native American.
RELIGION, HOME REGION
RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION
HOME STATE
STUDENT REGION
A majority of respondents, 62%, graduated from public high schools, while 27% attended private schools. Smaller portions of the sample attended charter or magnet schools (6%), boarding schools (2.9%) and parochial schools.
The regional distribution of respondents reflects Vanderbilt’s position as a national university located in the Southeast. The largest share of students reported coming from the South, followed by the Northeast, West and Midwest, along with a smaller group of international students. Among domestic respondents, students represented 37 U.S. states, with the largest numbers coming from California, Texas, New York and Tennessee. Overall, approximately 87% of respondents identified as domestic students, while 13% identified as international students or students from U.S. territories.
SOCIOECONOMIC DIVERSITY
Many students emphasized the role of socioeconomic diversity in shaping their first-year experience. For some, Vanderbilt represented a shift toward greater financial awareness.
“At my high school, most people didn’t really have to worry about finances—but here, I have friends working jobs or thinking about how they’ll afford med school,” first-year Alex Chen said.
Others described the transition in the opposite direction, noting a move from lower-income environments to a more affluent campus.
“At my high school, around 80 to 90 percent of students were low-income—that’s not the case here,” said first-year Alex Shepp said.
For many students Vanderbilt’s academic and club culture was a shift away from their high schools.
“Back home, everyone was focused on the same things—STEM, competitions,” First-year Ryan Soliman said. “Here, people are a lot more varied in what they care about.”