University of Virginia-Main Campus Top Questions

While there are a few frustrating aspects, most are without fault. For example, the location of my housing is on a very steep and faraway hill, making it impossible to go without sweating while going to class. Even biking is incredibly difficult. The size of grounds also adds to the difficulty of going from place to place.

There is a clear socio-economic stratification here. As in, the majority of students come from affluent families and have trust funds to spend at their leisure. They tend to be pretentious and dress to show off their wealth yet drink like hobos. Extremely stingy with no reason to be. There was a strong drinking and hook up culture here with a 30% greek life. Yet then there were the rest of us who came from working families and are much more accepting and relaxed. You'll easily make friends across all lines so long as you chose carefully.

The most frustrating thing about the University of Virginia is the weather.

The most frustrating thing about the University of Virginia was the competition among other students. Being one of the top public schools in the nation means it has some of the smartest individuals in the nation. When coming to UVA most students are use to being the top student in their class but that changes very quickly for most.

The most frustrating thing about UVA is the drinking culture. I have zero desire to get drunk on the weekends (never mind that I am not even 21 yet) and I don't enjoy frat or sorority parties either, but low-key parties at my friends' houses aren't considered real parties. That is ridiculous. UVA's party culture is the one thing that I am really irritated about (I otherwise love it here).

Because UVa us one of the best schools in programs, it attracts the best of the best. The top students from high schools across the nation and the world go to school here. It is very competitive. And even though you may have been #1 where you came from, so was everyone else. When employers come here for internships and jobs, all the students are competing. It's very challenging and cut-throat.

The course loads can get a little heavy.

It would definitely have to be the party scene. Most people feel they have to be drunk to have a good time and that is not how I constitute fun.

Thomas Jefferson preached the ideal that every person ought to be born into a society wherein liberty and freedom allowed for them to become whatever they may choose. The University of Virginia was founded on this ideal, and has maintained the ideal by developing many diverse academic fields. As such, the diversity draws groups of people with varying personalities, backgrounds and ideas. Although it is a very positive notion to bring together differing peoples, it is a frustration in that it is difficult to find one's own niche and friends with common interests.

A large majority of the students at the University of Virginia are supremely intelligent, and a majority of said intelligent people know just how smart they are. It can be a great thing when bright people come together, and often it makes for stimulating conversation, but it is when people let their intelligence turn into arrogance that things become frustrating. Luckily, this is not often the case.

The way that people dress.

The most frustrating thing about my school is the fact that most students are involved in sororities and fraternities. If one is not interested in those types of activities, it makes it a bit more difficult to fit into a social group.

Whenever I have to deal with tuition I get a lot of run around being sent from one office to another and not being told everything you need.

Nothing really. I liked the environment, the financial aid office, the professors, the class selection.

Feel good at end of semester, but during the semester there is substantial work.

Upper level science classes are extremely disorganized

The work load. Also, for what we pay, the professors aren't that great.

That you have to find housing for September the October before! It made it hard when you were a first year, just met your hallmates and started being friends with people, and then a month later you had to decide where you were going to live and who you were going to live with!

The separation of resources between the different colleges within the main campus

pretentious atmosphere

class differential academic advising

Very hard classes, do a lot of work -- so competitive, and feel like a failure after not getting good grades

Two things: sometimes it doesn't matter how much work you do, you aren't getting an A; too much emphasis put on fraternity / sorority life.

Class registration is a painful process.

The off-campus housing system forced upperclass students to choose housing less than 8-10 weeks into the school year.

socioeconomic homogeneity

Students who don't expand outside of their social groups.