If you’re involved with social media at all, whether it be Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, etc. you may have heard of the Instagram account known as BentleyChicks. Known for capturing some of the more outlandish and entertaining activities of the Bentley University student body, the account is wildly popular with students, staff, and faculty, with just over 2,600 subscribers on the Instagram Account. The account also features different stories, such as Hot Take Tuesdays and Student Life, which helps to highlight the different opinions on Bentley’s Campus. BentleyChicks is not affiliated with Bentley University in any way, however, it does rely on Bentley students to send in content about their lives on campus to be posted on their various accounts. In addition to the account runner being anonymous, the posts also endeavor to respect the anonymity and privacy of the individuals who submit the content. The Vanguard recently DM’d BentleyChicks on Instagram, asking if they would be willing to answer a few of our questions about what it looks like to run such a popular account. BentleyChicks was more than happy to speak with us, and the following are the questions we asked, and the account runners’ responses to the inquiries.
Questions & Answers
Vanguard: What inspired the creation of the Bentley Chicks account, and when did the account first start? Are you the first person to run the account, or was it passed down to you?
BentleyChicks: Bentleychicks was started before I took over the account this past September, but it has existed since 2020 I believe. The first admin actually reached out to me when I first took over the account which I thought was cool; I currently have a class with them, and they don’t know I run the account now. The account doesn’t necessarily get passed down, you have to apply for the position on the Barstool website since the account and Chick’s brand is owned by them. I applied in late August, heard back mid-September, and I’ve run it alone since then.
Vanguard: Do you have someone lined up to take over the account once you graduate?
BentleyChicks: There isn’t anyone pre-chosen to run the account, once I graduate, I’ll let Barstool know that I’m leaving and then they open up applications; it’s fair game at that point.
Vanguard: What's your favorite hot take question that you've asked so far?
BentleyChicks: My favorite question definitely has to be “What’s the strangest thing a professor has said?”. This generated a lot of responses that were completely out of pocket. People were DMing me trying to guess which professor said what and adding on to the stories which was great. It’s such an entertaining segment and I never know what responses to expect which is why I continue to do it weekly.
Vanguard: What is one of the best things someone has DM'ed you?
BentleyChicks: One time someone dmed me a video that I was in but since I’m anonymous they obviously had no idea. I couldn’t react or anything, but it was pretty funny. I guess the perks of running the account is that I know I’ll never be posted looking stupid. Aside from that, there are oddly a lot of videos of people being thrown into pong tables. It’s such a bizarre, recurring event but I love it.
Vanguard: On your Instagram, you say you're affiliated with @barstoolsports and @chicks, can you explain in more detail what this means?
BentleyChicks: So basically, I operate as a Barstool “ambassador.” I have a manager who works at Barstool headquarters that I respond to and I’m able to communicate with other university admins. Chicks is a brand of Barstool that focuses more on pop culture and entertainment where Barstool as a whole focuses on sports. Bentleychicks is ultimately owned by Barstool and I’m working through them as a campus social media manager where I run bentleychicks instagram, twitter, and tiktok.
Vanguard: How many content DM's would you say you get in a week, and from those, how do you decide what to post?
BentleyChicks: It really depends on the week but on average I’d say I get about five or six per week. From those, I really just post what I think is funny; it’s very subjective but I like to think I have a good sense for those things. Some people will send pictures or videos that are very niche and would maybe be good for a story, but posts have to be objectively funny I’d say. A lot of times people will send golden videos or photos but they don’t abide by certain guidelines so I have to be very mindful of what I post. Additionally I don’t want to defame any students so I’ll refrain from posting anything with personal information or will edit it out.
Vanguard: Do you think it’s important for every school to have an account like BentleyChicks to highlight the opinions and experiences on campus?
BentleyChicks: I think every school should have an account that highlights the college experience outside of classes. My goal was to highlight that Bentley isn’t just all business, we have a party scene and make stupid decisions that turn into great content just like any other college. Even though we don’t have a huge social scene or sports life, we still know how to have a good time. Weirdly enough it’s also a great way to stay informed in a way and form a community on campus. Making memes and content that is Bentley specific is just fun and it creates campus-wide inside jokes.
Vanguard: What would you say is the best class to take on campus?
BentleyChicks: Best class to take on campus is anything with the lovely Lynn Wolf.
Vanguard: If you could give one piece of advice to the student body, what would it be and why?
BentleyChicks: My piece of advice would be enjoy your college years, make dumb decisions, and video them so I can post it :)
A large part of the student newspaper revolves around capturing the history of the Bentley Students, and in many ways, that’s exactly what BentleyChicks is doing. In particular, I found the account's response about creating an online community through memes and inside jokes to be a unique, but accurate, take on the purpose of the account. Every aspect of our lives now resides online, and it makes sense for our feeling of campus community to grow online as well. If the BentleyChicks account runner is reading this, thank you for the interview, we’ll be sure to be on the lookout for what you post next.
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