Introduction

In April, the biannual Bowdoin Orient Student Survey (BOSS) was conducted to gather students’ opinions on topics related to campus life and the Bowdoin community. Representing nearly 20 percent of the student body, this semester’s survey gathered 376 responses and included more questions than in previous editions.

Who is the average Bowdoin student respondent? She is a white woman, identifies as straight (though there’s nearly a coin-flip chance she’s not) and plans to major in Government and Legal Studies, Biology or Mathematics. Her politics are left-leaning. She does not believe in God. She has a 3.79 GPA and goes to bed between 11 p.m. and 1 a.m. She drinks alcohol, is single, spends about four to six hours a day on screen time, the same amount of time a week on exercise and rates her mental health as “good” or “fair.” She has found community at Bowdoin and would choose the College again, though she’s unsure whether she would get in this current admissions cycle.

Politics and Current Events

When it comes to politics, students tend to be liberal. Respondents on average scored a 27.1 on the political leaning scale, with 0 representing the furthest left and 100 the furthest right. While the majority of respondents have remained relatively similar in their political beliefs, roughly 26 percent shifted leftward and 5.6 percent shifted rightward since coming to Bowdoin.

86 percent of respondents either support or strongly support Bowdoin’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs. When asked if there needs to be more dialogue and debate on campus, 77 percent of respondents answered yes. While 83 percent of respondents are somewhat or very comfortable expressing their political opinions on campus, conservative students are far less comfortable doing so. Respondents who reported being uncomfortable expressing their opinions scored an average of 59 on the political leaning scale, while those who were very comfortable had the lowest score at 23.9. Additionally, two-thirds of respondents said Bowdoin should have an official hate speech policy.

Respondents expressed concern about current global events, reporting a 1.38 level of satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10 with the U.S. military involvement in the 2026 U.S.-Israeli War in Iran. Respondents held similarly low approval scores for the Trump Administration, with the average faith in the current administration resting at 0.89. On a scale from 0 to 10, with 0 indicating the least concern about U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement’s presence in Maine and 10 the most, the average concern score is 6.73.

Students were asked which candidate they would most likely support in the upcoming Maine U.S. Senate elections. Among respondents planning to vote in Maine, 71 percent plan to vote for Graham Platner, with Janet Mills and Susan Collins next at 12.72 percent and 2.47 percent, respectively. The survey was conducted prior to Mills’ announcement that she had dropped out of the Senate race on Thursday morning.

Academics

The majority of respondents have used artificial intelligence (AI) before, with only 10.6 percent reporting they have never used AI tools, which include ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini. Alternatively, 67.2 percent of respondents who have used AI have not used LibreChat, the College-provided AI tool for all students. However, only two percent of respondents had not heard of LibreChat.

Fifty percent of the Class of 2028 have gone against a professor’s AI usage policy, compared to 34 percent of the Class of 2029, 38 percent of the Class of 2027 and 42 percent of the Class of 2026. Seventy percent of Digital and Computational Studies (DCS) majors and 64 percent of Economics majors have violated a professor’s AI usage policy. Almost 59 percent of respondents do not believe that a college-wide AI policy should exist.

In general, 21 percent of respondents across all grades have cheated on tests, quizzes or in-class assignments. Notably, 40 percent of DCS majors reported having cheated before, the highest percentage of any department, followed by education and physics majors.

Ninety-three percent of respondents strongly approve or approve of their faculty. A slight majority of students believe their major or prospective major needs more faculty members, similar to responses in previous years. Over 70 percent of respondents in Earth and Oceanographic Studies (EOS), Physics, Computer Science and Psychology report a need for more faculty members.

However, several more popular majors, including Government and Legal Studies, Biology, and Mathematics, do not identify a need for additional faculty members.

Amongst all respondents, the average reported GPA is 3.79, with the Class of 2029 reporting the lowest average GPA by class year at 3.75. The Class of 2028 and 2026 share an average of 3.80 while the Class of 2027 carries the highest average at 3.82. Furthermore, 66 percent of respondents do not consider grade inflation a problem.

Incoming Bowdoin Student Government (BSG) student body president Aidan Aybar ’28 has emphasized improving student sleep throughout his campaign. Students vary in what times they go to sleep, with 38 percent going to bed between 11 p.m. and 12 a.m. Students with perfect GPAs notably comprise the highest percentage of respondents who go to sleep before 10 p.m.

Approval Ratings

To gauge student opinions on various Bowdoin and Brunswick entities, The Orient asked respondents to rate their approval of individuals and groups. Ratings were converted to approval scores and ranked to better reflect student opinion. Points were weighted as follows: Strongly Approve (+2), Approve (+1), Neutral (+0.5), Disapprove (-1) and Strongly Disapprove (-2). These were then summed to create each entity’s total score.

The Dining Service continues to reign at the top of the rankings, with a net approval score of 601.5. Faculty held steady in second place at 492, followed by the town of Brunswick, Maine (454.5), the Libraries (426.5) and Academic Advisors (420). All five saw increased scores compared to last semester.

Student governance suffered in its approval ratings this spring. BSG decreased 82 points to 125, dropping to 27th place—its lowest ranking in BOSS history. BSG President Alex Kruse, who debuted at 210.5 last semester, fell 49.5 points to 161. The Entertainment Board has the steepest decline among any entity on the list, dropping 110 points to just 49, ranking second-to-last. The College House System also slid dramatically, dropping 70.5 points to 120.5 and finishing third-to-last.

Several administrative offices experienced notable recoveries. President Safa Zaki climbed to 9th place with a score of 334. Dean Jim Hoppe continued his rebound, rising to 15th with a score of 254—a 164.5-point swing from his low of 89.5 last year. The College as an institution jumped 54.5 points to 389.5, its strongest performance. The Health Center (380) and the Office of Safety and Security (392.5) also saw strong gains.

The Viewpoint Exchange Series, a new addition to the approval rankings this semester, placed 25th with a score of 132. The series drew an overwhelming number of neutral responses, suggesting that most students have had limited awareness or engagement with the program. Among those who did weigh in, opinions were polarized between 66 approvals and 53 disapprovals. One student described the program as “a joke meant to placate real and meaningful political discussion,” and another noted that it “is unnecessary and shouldn’t exist.”

Health and Lifestyle

Over half of students have used Counseling Services in their time at Bowdoin. However, only 14 percent currently take advantage of Counseling; most students report “good” or “fair” mental health this semester. A promising statistic shows that students rating their current mental health as “poor” or “very poor” are the most approving of Counseling Services.

Of the 22 percent of students who identify as neurodivergent, roughly 57 percent specifically identify as having ADHD.

Allegedly, 37.4 percent of respondents use screens for two to four hours a day. While the data reports this statistic, we at The Orient aren’t sure about its accuracy. Shoutout to the 1.1 percent who were honest about their 10+ hours.

The history department stickers are false. Based on BOSS data, history majors do not get more dates. In fact, English, economics, physics and anthropology majors are less likely to be single.

This year’s Spring Concert lineup, featuring opener MGNA Crrrta and headliner Peach Pit, was evenly spread in its reception. Thirty-two percent approved of the artists, while 32.4 percent disapproved. The remaining did not attend or were unaware of the lineup.

Sixty-four percent of respondents engage with the anonymous social media platform YikYak. The other 36 percent might be on Fizz. We don’t know. We stopped asking that question.

This year, The Orient collected data regarding alcohol, nicotine and other substance use, as well as data on fake ID ownership. Eighteen percent of underclassmen respondents report owning a fake ID. Around 87 percent of respondents have consumed alcohol, and around 56 percent have consumed marijuana/cannabis, both within the past year.

The mean Rice Purity Score among respondents is 57. The Class of 2029 has the highest average score at 69, while the Class of 2026 has the lowest average score at 50.

Reflections

When asked to list their favorite restaurant in downtown Brunswick, the top choice for students was Watami at 18 percent of responses. Shere Punjab trailed in second at 15 percent, followed by Little Saigon, Dutchman’s and Little Tokyo for the top five choices. Speaking of food, 29 percent of students are embarrassed to eat alone in the dining hall, which is the average for each class year except the Class of 2026. By senior year, embarrassment drops to 22 percent.

At the end of the day, respondents report satisfaction with their decision to pick Bowdoin: 90 percent of respondents would go back and choose Bowdoin again, although only 77 percent think they would get in if they applied today. When it comes to self-identification, 81 percent of respondents described themselves as a “Bowdoin student,” while 19 percent described themselves as a “student who goes to Bowdoin.” Nearly all—92 percent—of respondents report finding a sense of belonging and community at Bowdoin.

Around 40 percent of students do not believe in God, with a similar figure being unsure or agnostic. At 23 percent, only a minority of students believe in God.

As summer approached, the survey asked students about their plans after the academic year.

While 85 percent and 79 percent of students in the Classes of 2027 and 2028, respectively, have an internship lined up for the summer, only 40 percent of the Class of 2029 have one. Additionally, only 59 percent of the Class of 2026 have post-graduation plans.

At 83 percent, a majority of respondents give a damn, which marks a slight decrease from around 87 percent last semester.

A runaway trolley is heading toward five people. You can pull a lever to divert it to a side track, where it will hit one person. Would you pull the lever? Eighty-seven percent of respondents said they would.

Our last question asked students for potential questions we should add to next semester’s BOSS. We were amused. Some of our favorites include “Do you do pepper flips?,” “U up?,” “What would you name the Bowdoin Polar Bear?” and “Would you love Safa Zaki if she were a worm?”

Ava Arepally, Abdullah Hashimi, Evelyn Dyer, Shihab Moral, Sadie O’Neill, and Miles Palmer contributed to this report.