Andrew Nathan 2014

Meet Andrew Nathan, the most mysterious Campus Cutie yet. Before settling in St. Louis, Andrew zigzagged across the globe. He took a year off after high school, travelling from Chicago to Barcelona for one semester and then moving on to Bolivia and throughout South America to end the year. He spent his freshman year at Vanderbilt in Nashville, ultimately applying to transfer to see where he would get in. Now, WashU is lucky to have this adventurous guy, for he is already making waves as the new president of the Gargoyle. And finally, in the words of one admirer, Andrew “makes girls swoon on a daily basis.”
 
Hometown? Glencoe, IL.
Grade? Sophomore.
Studying? Majoring in International Area Studies and minoring in Finance and probably Spanish.
Activities on Campus? I’m the president of the Gargoyle. It kind of fell into my lap – the position was available and no one else wanted it. It’s a lot more work than I thought it would be, but it’s a passion and I really like doing it. I’m also in Sig Ep.
Tell me about your year off after high school. I went to Barcelona for the first semester where I took language classes and just kind of had the European experience. I was in one terrible homestay and then I switched. At first I lived with this little old lady who would just stand in front of her TV, not sit, and pet her cat. There was no heat and no blankets, and it was surprisingly cold there. I went to Bolivia for second semester, where I worked for an environmental non-profit for three months. Then I took a month and did sort of a solo South American adventure. Spain was great, but South America took the abroad experience to another level.
What’s it like travelling by yourself? It has its up and downs. It is nice because you have no baggage – you can do whatever you want, whenever you want. But it can also get lonely or intimidating when you find yourself in uncomfortable situations. Its great though; I’m not the most outgoing person – I’m pretty comfortable going solo – but I would force myself to go up to other travellers and sometimes locals and strike up a conversation.  You can have the greatest conversations even though you’ll probably never see them again.
Why did you transfer?It’s not that I really disliked Vanderbilt, I just felt like it wasn’t as good a situation as I envisioned. I wasn’t set on transferring but I wanted to apply to see where I would get in. I had a different agenda coming here than when I first went to college. The people at Vanderbilt are different – it’s like night and day. There is a heavy southern influence.
Anything you miss about Vanderbilt? The Saturday football tailgates and the 6-day social scene, and the D1 sports. And Nashville is awesome. Nashville blows St. Louis away.
Who are you going to vote for presidency? Obama.
Can you do tricks off a diving board? No. I’ve never been a reckless pool-goer. I like to jump straight off and into the water, throwing an occasional cannon ball into the mix.
What are you doing for summer? Figuring it out. Potentially work for the Obama headquarters campaign in Chicago or a music-booking agency in New York.
Would you rather date a girl who is 4’3” or 7’3”?  7’3” I think. 4’3” is just too small. But 7’3” is too big. Both weird me out.
What issues don’t people our age pay enough attention to? I can’t totally say this, because I’m not sure that I’m the best example of an activist, but I think there is a lot of apathy. I think people should pay more attention to the news and the issues that matter to them, and then do something about it.
Favorite type of music? I can’t say I have a favorite genre. I like good music. If I hear something and it sounds good I can listen. Good music is good music. But I don’t usually like country. And I’m really into electronic music. It’s been an obsession for about 4 years now, and I’ve been into all of the genres, from house to dubstep and drum and bass to techno, at one point or another. Right now I’m loving the soon to be released Miike Snow album I managed to get my hands on, and Pretty Lights is always in the rotation. I’ll admit – I’m a huge music nerd.
Tell me about your DJ-ing. It’s a hobby more than anything. It’s more just for me. I just like the music and coming up with creative ways of mixing it together. I love going to concerts. I go to four or five music festivals every summer. I’m kind of a closet hippie. I like the camping with my friends and seeing artists I love and stumbling onto new ones I haven’t heard of before. That’s the great thing about the festivals.
What are you excited about after college? I think I actually like working more than school. I like that there is a beginning and end to the day. I like making money.
What makes you angry? Not a lot. I don’t like when people tell me how to live my life, and when people make unfair judgments about other people they don’t even really know. But other than that, I don’t really get angry. I’m pretty laid-back.
Where could we find you at 2 pm on a Saturday? Probably hurrying to get in line at the Village for breakfast. When I go out, I tend to stay out really late and then sleep really late, of course.
What about 2 am? Could be a lot of different places. I’m out somewhere. I’ve been known to hang out with several groups of people over the course of a night. No shortage of spontaneity here.
Anything you read or watch religiously? I guess I watch Chicago sports religiously. I always try to be reading a book outside of school, but that’s tough to do and doesn’t happen as much as I’d like.
What job could you never do?I don’t know. Garbage man? Or a high school teacher. You get no respect from students.