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Beloit College has once again compiled a list of items that best encapsulates the incoming freshmen class of 2018.
The list is entertaining, puzzling and at time, downright frightening. Nonetheless, it provides some insight into the abyss that is the mind of a college freshman.
For starters, the class of 2018 is comprised of students who were generally born in 1996. That being said, Tupac Shakur, Jon Benet Ramsey and Carl Sagan are just a few notable individuals who have never been alive during the incoming class’ lifetime.
To further date this incoming class of students, Madonna has a daughter, Lourdes Maria Ciccone Leon, who will be enrolling this year, so too will Sophia Stallone, daughter of Sylvester.
Continuing with the theme of important and famous people, the class of 2018 has seen dozens of actors portray Nelson Mandela, and during their lifetime, Bill gates has always been the richest man in the U.S., the Unabomber has always been behind bars and everybody has always loved Raymond.
The list is understandably packed with similarly mind-boggling stats. For instance, the class of 2018 had just started kindergarten when the 9/11 attacks occurred. Moreover, the incoming class has never known a world without both MSNBC, which made its debut in July of 1996, and FOX News that launched in October of that same year.
It’s media of a social variety that has come to define this generation of college students, despite the fact that the class of 2018 will have never used Netscape. Pressing “pound” on a phone now denotes a hashtag, while the resulting Tweet is likely to include a selfie. Positive feedback, meanwhile, has been awarded in the form of “likes.”
While Beloit College’s list for the class of 2018 offers a light and entertaining glimpse into the mind of this year’s incoming freshmen, there are some lessons to be learned as well. Campus administrators across the country are tasked with keeping up with the students that they serve, and really, what better way is there than to meet them at their level?
See Beloit’s full list here.
