The University of Alabama Top Questions

There are obviously racial issues here because tuscaloosa city is heavily african american. i wish the Christian crowd was more prominant on campus than it is. There is every kind of group here at UA so unless you cant find "your kind of people" then people dont seem to feel left out. freshman year might be the only time someone feels left out because of the strong greek system. which i think is very sad because once you make it to your sophmore and junior years you realize that none of that matters. t-shirt and jeans are a staple in student wardrobe in class. you might have a handfull in PJ's and maybe 30{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} dressed casual. Four tables: Sorority/Frat. table, Punk type people, "independants" (non-greek), African American. Most UA students are in-state. Birmingham, Mobile, Montgomery, Tuscaloosa, and Trusville are citys alot of instate people come from. A lot from Texas, North Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. Most prevalent finiancial background can be described as "Old Money". Very politically aware, and make their views known. You find all kinds from right to left.

I think the student body is diversified. They are also very laid back. People can go to class in sweats and running shorts when they are in undergrad. It's kind of nice. I don't feel like I can do that in grad school though.

The financial background most prevalent in UA is students whose parents have a little money to spare...until they have to pay tuition....

Alabama has a farily diverse socio-economic background. Students range in ethnicity from Caucasion to Asian to African-American to even South American. Being in the deep south, it is no secret that Southern Baptist Christians probably make up the majority of believers on campus, but there is also a great deal of liberal ideaology that is prevalent in younger people in Alabama. Most student are middle-class Americans, and a lot of interaction between different groups occurs the longer you are in school. One thing I will say is that Alabama does seem to be somewhat "grouped", in that most ethnical backgrounds seem to associate with one another, but as with income based issues, the ethical issue seems to diminsh with time.

Despite the Capstone's location within the heart of the Deep South, I was pleasantly surprised with the diversity of the student body. I personally am a caucasian male, and am deeply involved with the Greek community and my Southern Baptist church. However, there are many unique students throughout the campus, and i feel that the University and its students encourage diverse and unique individuality, specifically through the Crossroads program, which strives to connect students of different cultural backgrounds. There is also a multicultural sorority on campus that hosts many cultural festivals and events.

People don't dress up for class here. It's absolutely a jeans-and-Tshirt environment. People tend to be more conservative politically but there is also a strong base of liberals. The majority of people tend to kind of just go with the flow, not rocking the boat too much. Sports and food unite us, so racial tensions are not evident on the surface of probably 95-97{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of people. People tend to be religious but not so much as to discriminate against other religious groups. There are a lot of international students. Money is a major driving point in people studying and going to class.

There is a strict division on campus between greeks and independents. Although, contrary to what one may think, this division is more strongly perpetuated by the independent community. UA is also a predominantly conservative school. Casual wear is what you will find on most UA students. (t-shirt, or a knit shirt)

Like I said before, different types of students do interact. I am in a Greek organization but I also have many non-Greek friends. Being Greek gave me a lot of opportunities to make friends, which I am all about. By joining other organizations on campus, you can be sure to have a wide variety of friends. Just join organizations that fit your interests and you will be able to make friends with different types of people. There are always people who are stuck on their own group, but you don't want to hang out with them anyway; that's just so high school.

The Greeks (and I mean the "white fraternities and sororities") all look and dress the same, but there are a few that surprise me. A lot of students know each other from high school and a lot of students are from Birmingham (every single person I've met and friended has been from Bham!). UA is mostly conservative but there are definite liberal voices on campus.

While located in the heart of the bible belt, my experiences at the University have seemed nothing but tolerant and welcoming of diverse viewpoints and lifestyles. I have never seen or heard of any incidents of sexual discrimination or religious discrimination, although the historical tendencies of the South have colored the experiences of minorities on campus. For example, the greek system remains segregated, and leadership positions are typically held by white students. In my experience, students tend to cluster according to majors and departments. I have also observed that the students of higher socio-economic status tend to cluster, while students left out of the elite group divide into groups among themselves, largely according to racial identity.

Although the campus is predominately white, I feel like UA's student body is diverse. There are lots of student organizations for different ethnic, religious (or lack there of), and political backgrounds. One particularly strong group is Spectrum, the GLBTQ group on campus. Some political groups include College Dems, UA Republicans, and an anti-war, anti-oppression group Students for a Democratic Society (the campus as a whole is relatively conservative and politically inactive). The kind of student that you would see most is the Greek stereotype: blond women with pony tails and a gym shorts/t-shirt combo or the "bro": fratty dudes with a visor and expensive shoes.

Wildly diverse.

There are so many students on campus that everyone can find a place. However, the majority of students are preppy and a little more conservative than most. Students can be seen wearing anything from a UA sweatshirt and sweatpants and a business suit to classes. Most UA students are middle to upper-middle class and come from suburbs or rural areas. There are a lot of nice cars on campus and namebrand clothing is very popular. The students are moderate-- which is more conservative than most college campuses. There are activist student organizations for both parties of political candidates, but most students are apathetic.

Most students wear casual clothes to class (jeans, t-shirts, shorts, casuals shirts). If you dress up you will be looked at funny. There are many different religious, racial, ect. groups at UA. I don't think anyone would feel left out if they came to UA. There are plenty of people to interact with and fit in with. There are polical groups, but I am not very active in that subject.

Greek Life is big at UA, and I am a part of that. I don't think race matters as far as finding a group to fit in with and christianity is the predominant religion. Homosexuals may feel uncomfortable on such a conservative campus. Most students do not dress up much for class and tshirts are the common clothing to see students in during class. Most UA students are from the southeast, but there are also many from all over country. I think financial backgrounds differ greatly on campus. Students are pretty politically aware and active and predominantly to the right.

I am involved with a racial organization called Sustained Dialogue but there are other organizations on campus tailored to religious, LGBT, and socio-economic groups as well. The University holds a Get on Board Day so that you can sign up for anything you're interested in. The minority student that is not a people person would feel out of place. I was that minority student and still find myself uncomfortable at times. I came here knowing no one, and that was hard to deal at first. But with time you grow to meet new people thru these organizations.Students are pretty liberal with what they wear to class. A common outfit would consist of jeans and a tshirt. Unfortunately rarely do students from different backgrounds interact. That is what Sustained Dialogue works with. At Sustained Dialogue we try to bridge the gap between people that wouldn't normally interact through conversations every week. If there are four tables in the cafeteria, one would be the black Greek table, where you would see Delta Sigma Theta sorors, Alpha Phi Alpa fraternity members and possibly others having a good time. These students for the most part would be all black. The next table would consist of the foreign exchange students most likely speaking a language no one in the cafeteria could understand. Your third table would likely be the Mallet Assembly kids which would resemble your nerds in high school. They embrace the fact that they are different and do not try to conform to what is regularly accepted at the university. Yes they are the butt of a lot of jokes around campus but they do their own thing rather than try to fit in. The fourth table would probably be UA Athletics. There go your track athletes and football players- maybe a basketball player in the mix. But for the most part that's the UA cafeteria in a gist. The majority of the students that attend the University of Alabama are from the state of Alabama. Most of the majority is from Birmingham in one way or another. The other from Huntsville, and the smaller portion of that majority from "the Gump" or Montgomery. University of Alabama is a school that boasts having a very strong alumni base, so the students are normally well off. Students are for the most part politically apathetic because Student Government does no real noticeable changes on campus. As far as the Presidential debate is concerned, there are a lot of students with invested interest in getting involved with campaigns and there is a pipeline that establishes connections in DC for political science and history majors. Alabama for the most part is conservative making it a right-winged state and that reflects onto the University of Alabama campus. Suprisingly enough, many students you encounter are not at college for the money, but to do some good in the world. And that is refreshing.

Most students do not dress up to go to class, especially if it is at 8 am because most people just roll out of bed and head to class. Most people were T-shirts and jeans to class, but some people dress up. I would say that a majority of students are from Alabama, but there are still tons of people that are from other states and even out of the country. There are several international students at UA. There are politically active students at UA, but it really depends on whether or not you want to be politically active or not.

There is definitely a cliques at UA. Everyone has their own group of friends. Racially, I have not really had a big problem with it since I have been here but I do know people who have. Religiously there are a lot of opportunities to practice your belief if you choose to. I don't know a lot of LGBT's personally but I know they are here, but I don't have a problem with them as long as they don't approach me. You can tell who the "rich" kids are so to speak but is not to the point where I feel inferior in their presence. I don't know of any student that would feel out of place except for someone extremely Gothic. There is not too much of that here on campus. T-shirt, jeans, pajamas, or dressed-up. It is not a "certain" way you have to dress to class, but some upper level classes require business attire. In my experience yes, but that is just because I have a lot of friends. Greek table-the black greeks who have stood their ground and stare at everyone as they enter the dining hall. Exchange Student-mostly Asians are Japanese they cling to each other but they are cool people Single Table-one person who sits by themselves because they don' t have friends or their friends are in class Everybody table-just a mixture of just about anything Most students are from Alabama of course but was have a lot of out of state kids on scholarship or their parents are alums here. There is a lot of different financial backgrounds at UA. You don't have to be rich to come to UA. Just have financial aid. UA politics is definitely a very interesting subject. You have a lot of students who are deep in to politics and others who really don't care. Earnings is definitely a subject that crosses a lot of peoples mind's, but it is ultimately about you being happy.