A Day in the Life at Notre Dame

My name is Claire Ann Santos, and I am a rising junior at the University of Notre Dame! I am originally from Bolingbrook, IL, about two hours away from Notre Dame’s campus. ND was one of my reach schools while applying to colleges; I had a 4.3 GPA in high school and a 34 ACT superscore. With hard work, determination, and stellar essays and extracurriculars, I got in, and I am forever grateful.

An Introduction to Notre Dame

The University of Notre Dame is a private Catholic university located in Notre Dame, Indiana. Although we are known for our football team (Go, Irish!), the University of Notre Dame is one of the top universities in the United States, with an incredibly rigorous liberal arts curriculum and a beautiful campus filled with Gothic architecture and amazing facilities. Founded by French priest Edward Sorin in 1842, the University of Notre Dame’s emphasis on growing the good in our community is shaped by our underlying Catholic foundation, but you will find our campus to be filled with diverse students from all faith backgrounds.

I truly believe Notre Dame is the embodiment of the phrase “Work hard, play hard!” Although it is a very difficult school, it is possible to achieve a very healthy work-life balance at the university. For example, my roommate and I walk along the beautiful St. Mary’s Lake during our homework breaks. On weekends, we spend my Saturdays watching our incredible football team before a Sunday of hard work in the library.

A Classic Morning at the Golden Dome

Good morning from the Fighting Irish! Today is Wednesday, one of my busiest yet most fun weekdays on campus. Since my first class, Principles of Management, is at 11:00AM, I usually wake up at about 9:30AM either to exercise or take my time getting ready for the day. If I have the motivation to work out, I make my way downstairs to my dorm’s gym for a short session.

We have an incredibly unique dorm system here at Notre Dame. I would put it this way: If the Hogwarts housing structure and the classic American dormitory system had a baby, it would be our Notre Dame residence halls! Before their freshman year at ND, incoming first years are randomly assorted into a dorm. On campus, we have 17 all-male dorms and 15 all-female dorms. Each dorm has its own unique community, traditions, mascot, and more. It is a great way to get to know your fellow classmates from the comfort of your hall! I am a proud member of Welsh Family Hall, located on West Quad. Roll Whirlwinds!

If I have more time before heading to class, I usually walk to Duncan Student Center to grab an acai smoothie at Hagerty Family Café. Duncan is Notre Dame’s newest student center. Basically everything is in this building, whether you need a bite to eat or a study space or career counseling.

My Principles of Management class is located in the basement of the Mendoza School of Business. My class is fairly small with about 30 students, so we are able to have fun in-class activities while learning about the most effective business leadership strategies.

Afternoon Activities

After Management, I have about 45 minutes to grab lunch before heading to my next class, Introduction to Business Analytics and Technology, conveniently located in the same building. Luckily, across the quad lies my absolute favorite on-campus dining location, Garbanzo. Garbanzo offers Mediterranean food and my go-to order is a chicken shawarma bowl.

I usually eat my bowl at Garbanzo. However, when I am looking to multitask eating and getting some work done, I bring my food to the glass box at Debartolo Hall. Debartolo Hall is known to host the largest lecture halls on campus, but I believe it is an incredibly underrated study spot as well. I specifically love the glass box, which is a giant room with endless windows, allowing the natural light to shine in as I work.

After lunch, I head to one of the numerous computer labs inside Mendoza for my next class. My professor of Intro to Business Analytics and Technology is one of my favorite professors. He starts out the class by giving us an update on his life and children before delving into the ins and outs of Microsoft Excel.

My last class of the day, Marketing Research (MR), takes place immediately afterward. I head upstairs to my classroom to give a presentation on my group project about the skincare industry. After class, my professor joyfully gives my group recommendations on how to further improve our project. 

After Marketing Research, I make my way towards the Eck Visitors Center for my shift at ND Listens, the telephone center on campus. I work as a student caller on campus, calling alumni and members of the ND community to wish them happy birthday, thank them for their gifts to ND, or simply engage in conversation with them. This is one of my favorite parts of the day. These callers love to share their amazing stories from their time at Notre Dame, and it is beautiful to see how the university has continued to stay with them as they proceed to the next stage of their life.

What a Busy Evening Looks Like

Following my work shift, I walk back to my dorm, Welsh Fam, to take a short break in my common room. I live in a “quad” inside Welsh Fam, which consists of two doubles (two rooms with two roommates in each) and one common room connecting the rooms. After plopping myself on the futon, I either watch a few YouTube videos, read one of my favorite novels, or FaceTime my family back home in Chicago.

For dinner, my friends and I usually go to South Dining Hall, a short two-minute walk away from my dorm. At Notre Dame, we have two dining halls: North Dining Hall and South Dining Hall. Although there is somewhat of a rivalry between the two dining halls (If you ever come to campus, ask your tour guide which dining hall is better!), I truly believe that both are AMAZING in their own ways.

After dinner, I walk to O’Neill Music Hall for rehearsal. I am a proud member of Halftime Acapella, Notre Dame’s premier co-ed acapella group! This is my absolute favorite part of my day where I get to spend two hours of my evening making music with my favorite people. We happily rehearse for our upcoming concert, make TikToks for our viral TikTok account, and goof around as usual.

After rehearsal ends at 9:00PM, I walk back to my dorm to finish the rest of my homework in my common room. Although I absolutely love my Wednesdays, there is no denying that it is my busiest day of the week; I usually shower then go to bed around 2:00AM. Luckily, Thursdays are much more chill, and just as fun!

A Weekend In the Bend

Every weekend at Notre Dame is fun and busy, but football weekends are obviously the best. My acapella group usually performs a short setlist for game attendees all around campus. There is nothing like performing right in front of the golden dome surrounded by family, friends, and the ND community!

As for the game, it is one of the best experiences ever. One of my favorite game day traditions is “Touchdown Pushups.” After each touchdown, we lift a friend in the air, tossing them up and down for every point the Irish have scored. I remember being lifted after our score reached 36; although I was almost dropped a few times, it was loads of fun to be in the air for that long.

Lastly, nothing beats a beautiful weekend walk around St. Mary’s Lake. Notre Dame’s campus is enveloped in nature. Every once in a while, when the crazy Midwest weather cooperates with us, my friends and I love to do a group walk around the lakes of campus.

Notre Dame is an incredible university with many exciting experiences. I am proud to be part of the Fighting Irish community!

Written by Claire Ann Santos, PathIvy University of Notre Dame Ambassador