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Because the campus (and student body) is so large, it's difficult to really say there's one overarching stereotype. However, if I had to think of some, I'd settle for either sports-nuts or alcoholics.

UConn's athletic department (particularly basketball) is quite impressive. With teams ranging from varsity, club, to intramural, there's no shortage of opportunities to participate in sports, and as such many students do. There is also a large portion of the student body that follows carefully with the university's games against other schools. However, there are students like myself who do neither... So in my personal experience, I'd say that stereotype is as true as you want to make it.

There is a similar situation with alcohol here at UConn. The campus is pretty far from... everything and unless you have a car you're kind of limited to its borders. While there is a lot to do on campus (from sports to the USG-run Late Night), its relative isolation does lead to a lot of partying. However, this stereotype also depends on the people you spend your time with--so in my case, alcohol is not really a part of my student life. But I will admit, on weekends my dorm does tend to be a bit... lively with the drunken escapades of some of my classmates. :P

Overall, I really do like UConn. Because it's such a large school there are groups and activities for everyone, and though the walking can be a pain the buildings are nice and the academics are strong. The isolation of campus is probably my biggest issue, however... and the longer I'm here the less entertaining the campus becomes. I tend to spend most of my time either in my dorm (almost all of my friends live here) or at the gym though, so I sometimes wonder if I wouldn't be more entertained if I went out more.

One thing I've found at this school is that the academics are what you make of them. Professors are always happy (at least, in my experience) to meet with you both in and outside their office hours, and all seem to really enjoy what they teach. As an Honors student, I'm used to seeking out the professors and they can be a real resource. However on the other side of the coin you have students who do nothing but attend lectures (or not attend at all) and cram for exams, just getting by. Logically they don't learn as much as someone who tries. The same goes for intellectual conversation--those who like school and academics will discuss it, and those who don't, won't. But if you're looking to really learn something and put the work in, UConn is a great school.

My major is actually Individualized, meaning there is no department for it: I have to make it myself. Since I've chosen International Relations, there is a rough guideline (as well as a few required courses) due to its popularity--but as long as you can justify it you can major in anything. I really like that freedom. However, this again requires that you put in the work: you have to get several advisors, write up a plan of study--even do an interview before you can officially declare an individualized major. But regardless of the work, it's nice to know there are options outside of the (many, many) majors already offered here at UConn.

The student body here is huge and diverse. I think it's pretty safe to say if you can name it, we've got at least one person that way here. Most students are from Connecticut, though there are a lot of students from out-of-state (even country) if only by virtue of the fact that there are SO many students. I think it's impossible to feel out of place-- there's a place for everyone. I want to talk about prominent financial backgrounds, political stances, or even what people wear but honestly there is so much diversity here I can't even begin to try.

The most popular student groups are probably the ones that are formed in the cultural centers. We have cultural centers ranging from those for Asian Americans to Puerto Rican and Latin Americans to African Americans, as well as centers for LGBT students, women and international students. Centers like ASACC (asian american cultural center) have a lot of related clubs, such as Japanese Students Association and Korean Student's association (open to anyone interested, not just people of those ethnicities).