NSCS Chapter School
UNIGO SUMMARY
Auburn undergraduates love football, hate school parking, and pride themselves on their close-knit community. (By “love football,” we mean live for football.)
At over 20,000 undergraduates, Auburn is relatively large, but the sense that there is an “Auburn Family” makes the school feel small. The university’s relationship with the surrounding, very collegey college town helps make it feel homey, and community members support the football team with their own brand of “War Eagle” pride (though Auburn’s mascot is a tiger, “War Eagle” is its battle cry). Academically, programs in science and engineering are known to be the strongest, but whatever they choose to study, students create their own experiences. There are large classes and though professors are accessible, it’s students’ job to form these relationships. Greek life is big: though there are social opportunities outside of the Greek system, students say that those who aren’t in frats and sororities don’t really mix with those who are. It’s a happy-go-lucky place for those who fit the Republican, Greek, football-loving mold—but a northeasterner with a liberal bent might feel a little ungrounded.
UNIGO REVIEW
Football defines Auburn University (though some would argue it’s the other way around). Students are passionate about their team, the Tigers, and show their school spirit by yelling Auburn’s battle cry—“War Eagle!” — across campus. “
There is a ton of pride in Auburn. The whole university turns orange and blue on football Saturdays,” writes one junior. And it’s not just the school: the surrounding town of Auburn, Alabama is just as invested in the Tigers’ success. “
Auburn is definitely a college town. Spirit during football season is amazing,” a sophomore writes. In fact, some of the school’s most treasured traditions involve their neighbors in the community. After football wins and other sports victories, Auburn students and townspeople wrap trees at Toomer’s Corner—the intersection of College Street and Magnolia Avenue—in toilet paper in what’s known as “Rolling Toomer’s.” On game days, students head to Momma Goldberg’s restaurant, affectionately called Momma G’s, for nachos, sandwiches, and beer. And before the Tigers play the University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide, fans summon War Eagle spirit at the Beat Bama Parade.
Many Auburn students are conservative Alabama natives, and the demographic is mostly (over 85%) Caucasian. As one junior remarks, “
It is a southern school so [the] majority of the students are very republican and supportive of conservative views.” Most students report a strong sense of belonging to the Auburn undergraduate community and say the school feels homey despite the nearly 21,000 students. “
I think that Auburn is the perfect big school with a small town feel,” writes a sophomore. But those who don’t fall into the typical categories find it harder to establish a community. “
A student being another color from a totally different country not knowing English would feel out of place here,” a sophomore writes.
In general, Auburn students are passionate about their school and relish its spirit. But there’s one consistent complaint: parking. Students must purchase parking passes that permit them to park in a single zone, C-zone. Faculty and graduate students, meanwhile, park in higher zones but can use C-zone if they choose, often blocking undergraduates out of parking spaces. “
One thing that I think needs to be changed is the parking arrangements. People are constantly getting towed and there is not enough parking,” a freshman writes. Parking difficulties can make getting to class frustrating—students sometimes leave an extra 45 minutes to find a spot.
Most Auburn undergraduates have had a number of large classes and report that seeking out professors’ attention and guidance is up to students. “
I had one class where my professor knew my name in a class of about 240. The rest of my classes I am pretty sure they have no clue,” one freshman writes. Students who make an effort to interact with professors, though, find they can form solid relationships. The university’s core curriculum includes requirements in writing, literature, philosophy, fine arts, math, science, social science, and history.
Social life is largely centered on Auburn’s Greek scene. About 30% of students participate in Greek life; though many fraternities have houses, sororities don’t—to students’ displeasure. Students in Greek organizations love the scene: “
I'm involved in a sorority and love it! I've met so many people and life-long friends through it!” writes a sophomore in Pi Beta Phi. Some students maintain that though Greek life is a lot of fun, those uninvolved have many social options, too. But others lament the rift between Greek and non-Greek students: “
If there was one thing I would change it would be how the non-Greeks don't feel as included in the social scene,” writes a freshman in a sorority. But, rifts or no, Auburn students unite on two counts at least: rooting for the Tigers and against parking. War Eagle pride!