Full disclosure: I’ve been a Harry Potter fan for only a little over a year (yes, yes…I know. Crazy). Some way, somehow, by the grace of Merlin’s beard, I had gone my whole life without Harry Potter spoilers, and was able to preserve the experience for my college freshman self.

I finished the series this summer, and was convinced that I was a Ravenclaw, only to come back to school and be handed the dreaded label of “Slytherin” by my friends (I know, I know, I had the same adverse reaction at first, too).

This new label began to grow on me a bit, I must admit (maybe it’s because my favorite color is indeed green, or perhaps it’s the fact that I have a limited tolerance for B.S.), but one night, I was encouraged to take the “official” sorting test while pouring over my work at our school’s student-run coffee shop, the Ronj. To my surprise, and to the surprise of my tablemates that were convinced I’m a Slytherin, I’m a Gryffindor. 

This sparked the age-old question within the group: “which House are you in?”

¾ of the table belonged to Hufflepuff. I thought that maybe this was a coincidence, but it was only the beginning of a fascinating discovery: nearly half of the Bates population belongs to the Hufflepuff House. 

After randomly polling Batesies that I encountered at the Ronj and in Commons, I was able to collect data on my theory. 

Here is the approximate break up of the Houses within Bates College – or, at least, Bates College students squirreled away at the Ronj on the night I was there:

Slytherin: 8.7%

Ravenclaw: 17.4%

Gryffindor: 26.1%

Hufflepuff: 47.8%

According to the data collected, my theory is correct: the majority of Bates students are indeed Hufflepuffs. Why may this be? Let’s explore this question further.

The Bates official mission statement says that “Bates educates the whole person through creative and rigorous scholarship in a collaborative residential community. With ardor and devotion we engage the transformative power of our differences, cultivating intellectual discovery and informed civic action.”

Let’s break this statement down. The definition of “ardor” is: enthusiasm or passion. Essentially, this mission statement is saying that Bates students are passionate and devoted to their involvements on campus.

Bates students themselves are characterized as “friendly, grounded, and kind” by sources such as The Princeton Review and Niche. These characterizations are made by past and present students at the College, and Bates students are historically known to be the friendliest and most welcoming out of the three Maine NESCACs. 

Comparatively, Hufflepuffs are characterized as people who have a strong sense of justice and people who are willing to help a friend and stranger alike. They are creative beings who are loyal and have a propensity for hard work. Essentially, Hufflepuffs align with the type of person that I meet at Bates– hardworking, creative people who have a strong sense of right and wrong. It makes sense that the majority of our student population falls into this House, as we were all hand-picked to be here – our essays meticulously poured over and our resumes critically reviewed. At Bates, it has never always been about how high your grades are, how perfect your test scores are. In reality, Bates has always strived to create a class of people who truly contribute good to their communities in various ways – ever since its founding in 1855. 

Since Bates is such a small school, with a population of less than two thousand students, it makes sense that the campus is relatively homogenous in terms of personality type. In conclusion, the traits of Hufflepuffs and Bates students generally overlap and align with each other. We are known for being a population of politically active, crunchy students after all.