You’re both wrong

Sometimes, roommates don’t get along.

Recently, I found myself playing the role of mediator for my own roommates to ease the tension in my house. I tried to remain as neutral as possible, to hear each point of view and to focus on what should be done to satisfy everyone. I didn’t think it would work. I did what I could, but ultimately, it takes willingness from everyone to actually stop the disagreements.

Now, I find myself in the same position once again. This time, however, I’m not dealing with individuals. Rather, I am speaking to the student body. The differences between students was brought to light after the recent protests against JP Morgan Chase at the Kelley School of Business. This divide was most seen in the comment sections of the IDS articles regarding the protests. The opposing parties are essentially Kelley students versus the rest of the students. Although over-generalized, they are all liberal arts majors. I should also note that, while it is a hot topic right now, this separation is not new.

In general, Kelley students have a tendency to look down on other majors. I think it’s safe to say that Kelley students don’t often believe other majors are working as hard as they are. Perhaps the competitiveness of the school, both internally and externally, feeds into this belief.

Conversely, other majors have a tendency to make sweeping generalizations about the character and the goals of a student in Kelley. Greedy is a typical description. Evil is another adjective used to describe the finance industry many students are entering. This tension was present before, but with the Occupy movement and increasing lack of trust in corporations, it is reaching new heights.

While I am a Kelley student, I don’t think my point can be made without stepping back from the both sides. I am nothing close to the stereotypical Kelley student. Those who know me will agree, and if you don’t know me, I can tell you from experience, business wouldn’t be your first guess.

Thus, I believe I hold a more neutral position to this argument than most. With that said, I’d like to address both sides and say you’re both wrong.

Can Kelley students be arrogant? Of course they can, but I think much of the perceived arrogance is a result of young, confident and prideful students. When people have noticeable confidence, it’s almost guaranteed someone will label them as arrogant.

It comes with the territory; however, they aren’t greedy or evil. Additionally, choosing to study business doesn’t mean a young person has any less desire to help the world. Conversely, I believe the majors outside of Kelley work plenty hard. I studied abroad last spring, and for the first time in three years, I was not taking a single business class. I was mixed in with students of all majors from across the United States who were taking classes that varied from history to public relations. Other than the obvious cultural differences I encountered between countries, the largest realization I experienced was how much I had underestimated people from other majors.

Those students were extremely smart. Even more notably, their strengths were in areas I didn’t know I was lacking — not that I couldn’t adjust to the differences in study, but different majors develop students in different ways, and it isn’t always easy to translate across fields of study.

I don’t expect everyone to agree. Such an idea is utopian, and frankly, it isn’t productive for society. But students should respect each other. Being quick to write someone off or make judgments about character because of his or her major is stupid and immature.

There are brilliant people in all fields of study. There are good people in all fields of study. I hope this article proves both to you, and that you won’t write me off in the same manner Kelley students and liberal arts students do to each other.

­— agreiner@indiana.edu