The University of Texas at Austin Top Questions

When you're in Austin, Texas; you are bound to run into some of the weirdest yet coolest individuals in the state. UT-Austin is stereotyped as the most liberal school in Texas, and possibly in the entire nation and that is completely true. It is also true that the city feels like a don't care what you are and has a be free -- hippie vibe. There's a motto you'll find everywhere : Keep Austin Weird. Once you're in the University, if your a big sports fanatic, UT is the school to be at. With so many championships in almost every single sport ranging from : football under Mac Brown, Basketball with coach Rick Barnes, swimming to women's Volleyball, that itself attracts thousands of highschool students to come be a part of. School Spirit is everywhere, and practically everyone wears their orange UT shirt proudly on a daily basis. However, you will definitely find the preppy sorority girls and guys in their sperry shoes, northfaces, or ralph lauren shirts. Another stereotype is that the dormitory "Jester" sucks and that no one wants to live there. That is entirely false. Being a second semester Junior, everyone I have run into never ever regretted living in Jester as their first year dormitory. You make tons of friends, and will likely find your new best friend just 2-3 doors down from your room. The dorm is incredibly alive especially since Jester City Limits aka JCL, is connected to it. The cafeteria is amazing yet a tad overpriced in my book. Fraternity Life. -Being a part of a fraternity, I can vouch that Greek Life is a once in a life time experience. You social network explodes through the roof, you have so much fun joking around with your frat brothers while doing community service, and the parties are "crunk" haha. Drinking underage is extremely common, but there are some who don't drink at all. You don't have to drink to be able to be in a fraternity/sorority, and no one will ever give you shit for it either. Also..... you meet a ton of girls.... West Campus. - After you lived your first and/or 2nd year in the dorms. Students typically find their new haven in West Campus. A lot of out of towners believe that West Campus is a crappy place to live but that's completely false. You'll find an apartment in almost every price range. I myself is living at the Quarters Apartments at 22nd and Pearl right now and I love it. I have a market store right next door and a school bus stop right next to that which takes me directly around Campus and to Downtown (only through Thursday - Sunday to downtown). On the weekend, you WILL hear a lot of people yellling, drunk shoutings, and whatever chanting but you have to remember that it is a college campus. I don't mind it, I actually kinda like it, it reminds you that you're in the college scene. Also, parking is ridiculously hard to find in West Campus, almost everyone who lives here gets a parking permit at a garage. School and Grades -IMPORTANT** If there's one thing i could tell a student coming into UT-Austin. It would be to take school seriously right when you get into your first class. There are so many first year students that party too excessively and knowingly allow their grades to slip. And once they start slipping, there grades tend to completely fall apart. Why though? We live in Austin, Texas. The university is located 5 minutes away from downtown, and almost everyone wants to run amok in the city. Not gonna lie though, downtown is a blast. Smart students organize their social life in moderation so that they keep school in check.

The University of Texas at Austin might have an image as being a party school, as walking on campus one can identify hundreds of sorority girls in their oversized t-shirts and nike shorts. The large number of greek houses on campus add to this image. Students at UT Austin know how to have fun but at the same time they work hard towards earning their degree as the courses get more challenging and the material gets harder. This gives UT Austin its other reputation as one of the most prestigious public schools, especially in the state of Texas. We are all proud to be Longhorns!

UT Austin students are stereotyped as party college students. The stereotype is far from correct.

There are some stereotypical students at my university. The only ones that stand out are the fraternity and sorrority people. Other than that, it is pretty diverse, which is what I really like about UT. I hang out with a variety of people. I'm a nursing major, and I primarily hang out with my nursing friends. Most likely you will spend time with people with the same major because you guys have a common interest. I also hang out with my friends from different organizations that I'm in.

Well, UT is enormous, so there are plenty of popular perceptions. The biggest one is probably the partying one, since we are typically ranked in the top party schools. I can't deny that, as far as I know, there are a lot of parties - many by frats and sororities - and that, if a party is what you desire, there are always options available for you. That said, it's really easy to avoid (I have never felt pressured to go to a party, and the few I have been to have been for my honors organizations). UT handles its party safety issues pretty practically. Similarly, while burnt orange does abound here, it's also quite simple and acceptable to hold little to no school spirit at all. The school is so big that you can find any stereotype - or not - that you want.

Although UT Greek life comprises 10{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of our student population, they make up for it in presence: raucous weekends on West Campus, the requisite neon sportswear, and fundraising booths sprinkled all over the 40 Acres. Given that 10{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} is still a huge amount of people at a state school like UT, you'll find your stereotypical boat-shoe'd, polo-wearing tanned jock as well as radical punk feminists rocking their letters (admittedly, these sorority girls are fewer). At its heart, UT is viewed as a party school dominated by Greeks. To a very large degree, this is true - frat parties are often the most visible events if you don't bother to look, but there are plenty of other parties going on as well in the surrounding apartments. UT is a veritable feast of weekend options, and one will rarely go hungry for it.

Its true in some manners but actually there all all kinds of people at UT. UT is very diverse with people from all over the U.S. and the world. Some students are very focused in their studies and are seen as not as social, but the majority of students are very social and casual when it comes to school. Students that come here are some of the brightest in the country and they can afford to be social and it not take a negative toll on their grades.

As far as a single stereotype that defines the entire University of Texas at Austin student population? I don't think there could be one. There are far too many (50,000+) students for one stereotype to define all of them. Stereotypes perpetuate college life. It really depends on what organizations, specifically Greek life, that you partake in. People who partake in Greek life often get stereotyped as putting partying and having a good time before their schoolwork. While this is not the case for all of them, many students who exist outside of the Greek circle tend to believe the stereotype.

The student body at my university is so diverse it's almost impossible to label the population as a certain stereotype, but that's what makes this place so fantastic... you meet so many new and different people!

When people think of Austin (especially Texans), we are the blue dot in a red state. We are the city with hippies and hobos, with the free spirits. But what I've learned since I've been in Austin and attended UT is that there is no stereotype about UT students that is true! We are such a diverse campus, I can't even think of a term that would correctly lump us into one category. Yes, there are liberals and hippies, but there are musicians, stoners, frat guys, book worms, preps, etc. There are so many different types of people at this school, and that is what makes it so great!

At The University of Texas at Austin, undergraduate enrollment nears 38,000 students, all from various backgrounds. While an outsider may assume that a UT-Austin student is liberal, from a top-notch high school (due to the Top 8{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} Rule), white, and from a higher socioeconomic standing, these stereotypes do not reign supreme on campus. Instead, walking across campus, a person can expect to see a wide variety of individuals of all races/ethnicities, genders, SES backgrounds, hometowns, etc., who have all come here for the same purpose--to get an education that will allow them to change the world.