Q&A: What’s it Like to Commute to Butler?
If you’re thinking about applying to Butler as a commuter, know that you are not alone. Any student who lives with parents or guardians within 30 miles of campus is eligible to commute. So, is commuting right for you?
We chatted with Marissa Klingler, a junior Arts Administration major who drives to campus from her family home in the Indianapolis area, to learn more.
Why did you choose Butler?
It was my dream school. I loved the small class sizes—I do really well with that kind of close-knit interaction. It was also close to home, so it checked all my boxes.
Why did you decide to commute?
I personally struggled with the decision to commute because I wanted to be close to my family, but I didn’t want to be alienated by not living at school. But commuting doesn’t have to inhibit your college experience in any way.
My main reason for commuting is that it saves money. And I figured if I didn’t go home right after class—if I still spent time on campus by getting jobs or joining clubs—it would feel the same as if I lived there.
Commuting has allowed me to stay home, sleep in my own bed, see my pets and family every day, and not pay for a meal plan. But I’m still going to my top-choice school and having a full experience.
What does your day-to-day schedule look like?
My commute is about 15 minutes. I try to schedule my classes for later in the morning because I’m not really an early riser, and you never know what traffic or weather will be like.
When I have gaps between classes, I don’t go home: staying on campus helps me feel more connected. I work shifts at the Clowes Hall box office and tutor students in the Writers’ Studio. When I have extra time, I study at Irwin Library or have coffee with friends at Starbucks.
What advice would you give to new students who are thinking about commuting?
Don’t go straight home after class. I know the temptation is there, especially if you only have one or two classes that day. But do your best to stay on campus and find a few comfortable places to spend your time. And don’t overwhelm yourself, but find a community to join.
Don’t think of commuting as a limitation or restriction: I think I spend more time at school than I do at home.
Applying as a commuter:
If you want to apply to Butler as a commuter, first apply using the Butler application or the Common App. After receiving your admission decision, you should fill out the "Commuter Request" form in the housing application. You can also contact your admission counselor if you have more questions about applying or commuting to Butler.
Q&A: What’s it Like to Commute to Butler?
Junior Marissa Klingler shares her experience of commuting to Butler
Butler Adopts Test-Optional Admission Policy
PUBLISHED ON Apr 15 2020
INDIANAPOLIS—In a commitment to provide support and improve access for prospective students during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond, Butler University will no longer require applicants to submit standardized test scores. This applies to high school seniors in the Class of 2021, as well as to all incoming classes thereafter.
Beginning with first-year and transfer undergraduate applicants for the fall 2021 semester, the Butler Office of Admission will not require ACT and/or SAT scores for admission to the University. Some graduate programs will also waive requirements for GMAT and/or GRE scores. This change reflects Butler’s commitment to a holistic admission review process, offering flexibility as test-taking opportunities are canceled and future testing dates remain uncertain.
Applicants who still prefer to provide their test scores will be able to do so, and those scores will be considered alongside other application materials. Select undergraduate programs may still require or encourage the submission of test scores.
“As admission officers, we are very aware that the college application process may be stressful in any given year,” says Lori Greene, Butler’s Vice President for Enrollment Management. “Add the complexity of the COVID-19 crisis, and that process can be simply overwhelming. Our goal is to provide some clarity and reassurance to prospective students who are interested in the Butler experience, so they don’t need to worry about when and/or if standardized tests will be offered.”
More details about this change to the application process will be communicated to prospective students in the coming weeks through the Butler admission website. Students are encouraged to contact their admission counselors at any time to receive personalized support. Counselor information can be found here.
Butler’s test-optional admission policy will go into effect starting with the August 1, 2020, application opening for the 2021-2022 academic year and remain in effect for future admission cycles.
Media Contact:
Katie Grieze
News Content Manager
kgrieze@butler.edu
260-307-3403
Butler Adopts Test-Optional Admission Policy
Beginning with the fall 2021 incoming class, Butler will no longer require standardized test scores on applications
Beginning with the fall 2021 incoming class, Butler will no longer require standardized test scores on applications
'The Mall' Lets First-Year Students Publish
PUBLISHED ON Mar 22 2018
First-year class president Elizabeth Bishop is a Marketing and Strategic Communications double-major who has always had a passion for writing.
So when Jim Keating, the instructor in her First-Year Seminar (FYS) course Utopian Experience, and some of her friends encouraged her to submit her writing to The Mall, she said she would.
The Mall is a journal dedicated to showcasing exemplary FYS work. First-year students can submit a piece of literary analysis and criticism, a creative writing piece, or a personal essay. Bishop said she will be submitting an analysis of alienation in literature and why it is so common among characters.
"I'm so excited to have the opportunity to have my work published in The Mall," Bishop said. "I've really enjoyed my FYS and I feel as though it has definitely helped me develop as a writer. I think it's wonderful that Butler is giving us this opportunity and I'm highly anticipating reading everyone's entries!”
The Mall, now in its fifth year, was created by Adjunct Professor Nicholas Reading, with a push from English Professor Susan Neville.
"She sparked the idea of publishing student’s work, and just needed someone to take initiative and do it,” Reading said.
He said students are not required to have a certain grade on their work to submit. It is also possible to submit multiple papers, and in some cases, be published twice.
The most recent edition of The Mall was 201 pages, with all different kinds of pieces submitted by students. In all, 34 papers were published.
Reading said The Mall serves three primary goals:
-To present to the Butler community the FYS program and increase awareness about the program and the work that is produced in FYS courses.
-To build an FYS learning resource for instructors so that they will have the opportunity to use published essays as learning tools in the classrooms and to provide models of exemplary FYS writing to new students.
-To empower first-year students and give their voices and opinions a forum to be heard.
The Mall is edited by FYS students. Throughout the process, students exercise the peer-review and collaborative learning skills practiced in their FYS courses. Similarly, the journal provides a forum for students to be published and have an opportunity to showcase their work.
“Our purpose is to empower students in their writing," Reading said. "That is the end goal. To understand that the written word will always be an integral and indispensable facet of our existence. To understand that as writers, we have the opportunity to participate in larger discussions that work to elevate us all. To own that voice, and use it passionately and responsibly, can be an exhilarating feeling. And we try to showcase the results of that journey.”
Goals of FYS
- To reflect on significant questions about yourself, your community, and your world.
- To develop the capacity to read and think critically.
- To develop the capacity to write clear and persuasive expository and argumentative essays with an emphasis on thesis formation and development.
- To gain an understanding of basic principles of oral communication as they apply to classroom discussion.
- To understand the liberal arts as a vital and evolving tradition and to see yourself as agents within that tradition.
- To develop capacities for careful and open reflection on questions of values and norms.
- To develop the ability to carry out research for the purpose of inquiry and to support claims.
'The Mall' Lets First-Year Students Publish
The journal is dedicated to showcasing exemplary FYS work.
The journal is dedicated to showcasing exemplary FYS work.
Butler's Winner of the Realizing the Dream Scholarship Is ...
PUBLISHED ON Nov 15 2016
Jacklyn Gries, a second-year Pharmacy major from Evansville, Indiana, has been selected as Butler University’s 2016 winner of the Independent Colleges of Indiana’s Realizing the Dream scholarship.
This scholarship goes to students who are first in their families to go to college, have been selected by their colleges for outstanding achievement in their first year, and are successfully advancing towards completing their bachelor’s degrees.
Gries and 30 other students from Indiana’s independent colleges and universities, and their most influential elementary or secondary teachers, were honored on November 5 at the 27th annual “Realizing the Dream” banquet. The event, made possible by a grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to the Independent Colleges of Indiana, recognizes first-generation students attending ICI campuses, along with their inspirational teachers and families.
Gries will receive a $2,500 check to help with college costs. Additionally, each student’s selected most influential teacher/mentor will receive a $1,000 professional development grant. Gries chose her high school science teacher Carl Voegel from Mater Dei High School.
Media contact:
Marc Allan
mallan@butler.edu
317-940-9822
Butler's Winner of the Realizing the Dream Scholarship Is ...
Jacklyn Gries has been selected as Butler University’s 2016 winner of the Independent Colleges of Indiana’s Realizing the Dream scholarship.
Jacklyn Gries has been selected as Butler University’s 2016 winner of the Independent Colleges of Indiana’s Realizing the Dream scholarship.