Washington and Lee University Top Questions

Two words. GREEK LIFE. parties are open, (but as people become affliated with their own greek org, they become more stratified and social networks get a little tighter) the alcohol is free (as in, the frats pay for it) and there is almost ALWays something going on. I love the social life here. Definetly party hard study hard environment.

Greek organizations are really big, but the way the system works there's a place for everyone, basically, and independants essentially become their own fraternity/sorority. if i'm awake at 2 am on a tuesday, i'm on facebook ignoring the homework i should be doing....tuesdays and sundays are the only days during the week when there are no parties going on. every other night there's something going on on campus, but a lot of students dont go out on weekdays. most parties are dance-oriented as well as drink-oriented, so if you choose not to drink (which actually a lot of students do) there's always dancing, and there's always movies playing in the commons and often there're theatre events at the arts center. lexington is small, so off campus is basically on campus, but the town is in proximity to a lot of road-trip destinations, and organizations on campus sponsor events as well.

Washington and Lee has a tremendous amount of clubs for a school of its size and because of that participation is often lacking even though membership is high because people generally have too many commitments. Washington and Lee is majority greek with the greek system running the school social scene. As there is not much to do in Lexington almost all fun comes through the greek system. If you dont like this I really wouldnt suggest this school, but come and try it, the greek system here is quite different from the stereotype. The school is full of too many fun traditions to name but it is really cool. There are a lot of guest speakers, perhaps too many as people are often too committed to attend. There is not much in the way of culture and excitement around W&L except through the school and to get to the nearest larger city it is an hours drive but most people are busy enough here they dont leave.

Alumni weekend, parents weekend, and homecoming are all fun events . The Greek scene is HUGE, dispite Jason Rodocker and the administration's most valiant efforts.

The activities and social life at W&L are, in one word, vibrant. Opportunities abound for greek and non-greek, drinkers and non-drinkers, those who enjoy the parties and those who prefer movie nights. Because of the prevalence of the greek system, most consider the greek life to be the social life. However, as an independent and one who does not typically party, I have rarely found myself unoccupied on the weekends. Activities range from movie nights to game nights to camping to hiking trips. Impromptu gatherings my freshman year were common place, given the security we felt in leaving our doors open and the closeness one developed among one's hallmates. Studying demands considerable time, yet the informal motto of the student body is "Work hard. Play hard." This phrase, I believe, embodies the social life of most students. Parties are commonplace, yet rarely get out of hand given the dedication to academics. Dating is usually casual (random party hook-ups are prevalent). Traditions, especially certain themed parties, are embraced -- not surprising at a school named after two such historically important generals.

Most students are in a Greek organization, and many have other involvements as well. A lot of students are athletes, some even two or more sport athletes, and football games and men's lacrosse games typically get a lot of support. Most freshman leave their dorm rooms unlocked because of the honor code, and things are rarely (if ever) stolen. There are a lot of guest speakers, and people go to the ones they are interested in or if they are required to for class, but guest speakers aren't a huge thing. I met my closest friends during fall term of freshman year mainly hanging out in the dorms before going out or sometimes out at night. The dating scene tends to oscillate between two extremes. Most people who date stay together for long periods of time and don't often date other people after they break up. Because of this, some people feel like everyone dates. On the other hand, there are PLENTY of single people as well, and just as many people say "no one dates" as "everyone dates." Washington and Lee is a very traditional school, so a lot of the same parties happen on the same nights each year, and there are a fair amount of date functions like homecoming, Christmas weekend, and Fancy Dress (essentially prom for college kids). Because of the size of the school alumni networking is easy and effective as far as the job search goes.

segregated, unless people are drunk.

an overwhelming majority of students are involved with activities at school-whether it is sports, student government, greek life, or various clubs. dorm rooms are often left unlocked, and students leave laptops, purses, etc unattended on campus. athletic events are not well attended. very interesting guest speakers- jesse ventura, bill nye, marvin hamlish very active social scene. big parties usually 3 or 4 times a week, but always something going on. parties are usually at the frat houses or off campus houses, not a big bar scene.

Frat life

The honor system does a great job. Expect to leave your purse by the keg and come back and find it there three hours later. Leave your dorm rooms open. Athletic events are sparsely attended. Students arrive in sundresses and seersucker for football games and ditch during halftime for the sorority receptions. Expect to make friends, then have your social life completely rearranged once rush is over at the beginning of winter term. Although the school would like to make you think non-drinkers are welcome, there is really not much else to do on the weekends except make the rounds in town and in the country and fraternity parties. You WILL get very drunk very often your freshman year, before it tapers off as you become a junior and senior. Formal date functions happen almost once a month; and they are an awesome time.

Obviously our Greek Life domintates the social scene. Our weekends are filled with frat parties in basements with lots of cheap beer. Thats not to say that it is a bad thing and that there are not other options. If you are the outdoors type, there is wonderful hiking and fishing in the area.

Any activity that's not on campus you can create...there are countless amounts of resources at the students' disposal.

The most popular organizations on campus are greek organizations. About 88{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the student body is greek. There are traditional organizations and several historically black organizations. With such a large greek population there are lots of parties to attend. Everyone loves to talk about alcohol and parties, but some other things students like to do is participate or watch performances. Every few months the theater department puts on a show. My favorite event is the One-Acts, which are student directed one act plays. They are usually in March or April. The students who direct them try to choose plays that get students thinking and of course there is lots of humour to liven the night. The school does bring in various speakers, but from what I've seen, unless you are required to go for class, few students take advantage of the opportunities.

There is always something going on, whether it is a party on Wednesday or Friday night, a comedy show, a film, or an ice cream social.

The most popular extracurricular activity on campus is by far fraternities and sororities. They dominate the social scene, but while it seems at times that there are strong divisions amongst the student body, virtually all of the parties held by W&L students are open to all members of the community, regardless of affiliation. The honor code also deserves mention, because it makes life at W&L so easy. Students rarely lock their doors, and there is just an overall sense of trust throughout the student body. Because it is a small school, there is not a great deal of fanfare for activities such as sports or theater, simply because there are not that many people. There are some special activities at W&L, however. My personal favorite is Fancy Dress, which is a huge dance held every year for the past century in the gym. Everyone gets dressed up and has a wonderful time. Another activity is the Mock Convention, although it only happens every election year. The students get together to pick the nominee for either the Republican or Democratic Party, whichever does not at the time hold the presidency. This is truly a one of a kind event, and it draws a great deal of national attention, including well known political speakers.

The Greek system rules here, though there are plenty of other opportunities for non-Greeks and those who don't feel like partying: the drive-in theater, the movies in the Commons, plenty of excellent restaurants in town, productions in Lenfest and guest speakers almost every week. If you do like to party, the Traveller bus system shuttles students to major party pickup and dropoff points to discourage DUIs. One of the perks of the Honor System is that we can leave our stuff all over the place without fear of it being stolen.

I'm thinking very hard, and I can't name many elements of social life that don't in some way revolve around drinking and parties. If you're uncomfortable with the idea of partying every night, or if you don't want to know a lot of hard core alcoholics, don't come here.

The social scene here is likely the biggest +/- for most prospectives. The Greek system dominates students' social lives, though the university does provide alternative activities at times. Especially for men, more than 80{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of whom are in a fraternity, the pressure of the rush/pledgeship process is intense. Generally the fraternity/sorority system creates a tiered social hierarchy, and contact with members of the same sex outside one's Greek organization becomes limited after joining without special effort to maintain outside relationships. It has been my experience that the system also degrades gender relations, which seem to consist mostly of mixers/formals. Still, if you're looking for lots of partying, there will be opportunities every night your freshman fall term. There are many high quality band/theme/etc events, and a high sense of brotherhood/sisterhood for those in Greek organizations.

The greek life is almost rediculous at Washington and Lee, but most students relly like it. You can't do much on Saturday nights that doesn't involve drinking, and that takes some getting used to.

Social life is all about drinking... It is a shit show all the time. You can always find drugs and alcohol if you want them. It is much easier to get them as a guy than as a woman. It is a lot more acceptable for guys to do drugs than women. So women, just drink, but don't black out or you will be raped. It is a delicate balance. And if you drink, don't eat. If you are not thin, no one will like you. M, W, F, S are the big going out days. Tuesday and Thursday are reserved for special occasions. There is no bar scene, because if you have/use a fake ID anywhere in the US you will be expelled (if you are caught). Don't get a fake and don't use it in VA for sure. There is no dating scene. You hook up with people and then maybe you become bf/gf later. Guys are looking to hook up, not date unless you are exceedingly awesome.

There's no accepted social opportunities outside of the party scene. The administration keeps trying and trying in vain. If that's your scene, there's a place for you, safer than anywhere else -- we have a student-run sober-ride system that has made it extraordinarily safe -- and does, as a result, enable the irresponsible behavior. However, if that's not your scene, don't fret! The first week, it's overwhelming, and then you start figuring out that there's plenty of other students like you. I am a senior, and in all four years, I have never touched a drink at a frat party. You say "no thanks" and people respect that. I went out with my friends for a while, but after so many years, now we plan our own parties -- game night w a glass of wine, or a picnic by the river, or a wild excursion, or a movie, or hiking ...

While W&L is a very academically focused school, there is also a big concentration on the social/party life. There are basically 3-4 nights of parties a week. There is always something going on whether it is organized on campus or by the fraternities etc. Fraternities and Sororities in my opinion dominate the social scenes outside of the academic day. However, if you choose not to participate in that or not drink etc. there are campus organized activities and things around town to do. There is somewhat of a dating scence but mostly it is classified as "random hookups". With W&L's strong honor code people can leave doors open, bookbags lying around etc. and know that in 9 out of 10 times everything will be exactly how they left it.

The most popular groups are the sororities and fraternities. Students leave everything open and unlocked. The honor system stays true to its word on this: students do not lie, do not cheat, and do not steal. But don't for a moment think that any of this honor code applies to the raging parties on the weekends. People go out on average 3-5 nights a week. And they go out hard. If you're awake at 2am on a tuesday, you are drunk eating your Domino's pizza, possibly wondering how drinking all those gin buckets at KA earlier will affect your history quiz tomorrow at 11. If you want to do something on a Saturday night that doesn't involve drinking, it won't involve other people.

Doors are open at all times, all the parties are open, the beer is free and the dancing is fun. There is always an opprotunity to be social, but because it's an academic oriented school, nobody will question you if you stay in the library on a saturday night either. I've gone out Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and then stayed in on Saturday... that's not typical but it's totally acceptable. 90{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of students stay on campus EVERY weekend. More people come to visit us than we go to visit them.

Social life was my biggest concern when I was considering W&L, because I'm not into the Greek system or the partying scene, and I don't drink. People party a lot here, and you could go out every night if you wanted to. I've found that there are a lot of other interesting things to get involved with, though, and I generally feel comfortable with my social life here. My closest friends I met either from my fall term classes or actually during orientation week, and we like to do things like going out to eat, to movies, going to athletic events on campus, and hiking. I like to go see guest speakers and go to concerts and other activities on campus as well. Even though this is a small town, I think there is enough to do to keep you busy as long as you don't write it off immediately as a boring small town. I've actually come to appreciate the relaxed pace of life in Lexington. Greek life is a huge deal at this school, and most people I know are involved with it. I chose not to be because regardless of what the viewbooks and tour guides may tell you, the Greek system is very exclusivist and chooses people based on how attractive and wealthy they are and for other shallow reasons, and I wanted no part in that. Actual quote from a sorority girl before rush week: "Make sure you edit all your Facebook pictures and only leave the pretty ones so you have the best chances of getting in to your sorority." I might also add that though this is not always true, the "snob" stereotype fits people involved with the Greek scene much more than it does independents, likely because of the exclusive, "secret society" ideas the system promotes. Girls join the system through rush week, which is characterized by silly rules which tear down the sense of school community (i.e., freshmen girls cannot speak to upperclassmen that week unless they are wearing a pink scarf or some other identifying object, and you can't discuss sororities or even tell anyone which one you want to join). Even if you are not rushing, people make you observe these "rules," which are far better suited to a junior high clique than a prestigious university. For guys, joining a fraternity means eight weeks of "pledgeship," which is a politically correct word for "hazing." Don't be fooled by the anti-hazing policies--they aren't adhered to. The university also allows the Greek system to hold far too much power at this school and turns a blind eye to these serious issues. We say we value honor and character so highly, but what is honorable about hazing a freshman? We say we are a school of multitudinous opportunities, but yet the sororities are tremendously exclusive and use a lot of slick and polished excuses to limit the opportunities of others. I think it's high time that someone exposed this flagrant hypocrisy. Yet most people are afraid to do so because the Greek system has been allowed to become practically sacred here. It doesn't deserve that position. I could practically write a book about this situation, but that should give you some idea of the real deal.

Because Lexington doesn't have very much to offer college students, fraternity parties and greek life are a very large part of our social scene. People feel very safe here. Doors are left unlocked, valuable possessions are left unattended, and people can walk alone at night.

The most popular organizations are fraternities/sororities, fancy dress committee, and cathekon. I am in Kappa Delta and absolutely love it. It is incredibly rewarding and being on council is a great experience. Students leave their dorm doors open, as well as unlocked all the time. Our honor code is second to none and people simply do not lie, cheat, or steal here, and if they do, they are kicked out. Athletic events are not very big here, but everyone goes to the football games, at least for the first half. W and L always has noteworthy guest speakers come and lecture, which is great. Theater is not very popular. The dating scene at W and L is that you are either not in the scene, or you are hooking up with someone but things are not official, or you are in an incredibly serious relationship. I met my closest friends on the pre-orientation trip before my freshman year and from joining my sorority. If I am awake at 2am on a Tuesday, probably working, on a Monday, Wednesday, or Thursday, I am probably out. Each year we have different greek affiliated events that happen annually, such as derby days. People usually go out an average of three to four times per week. Fraternities and sororities are responsible for the social scene at W and L. An astounding percentage of students are greek affiliated. Last weekend was the end of spring break, so I was traveling home, but on a typical weekend go out Friday and Saturday. If you want to do something on Saturday night that doesn't involve drinking, you can either go out sober, go to a movie, or go to UVA and have dinner there since they are located in a larger, more populated area with more choices. Off-campus is the country, where everyone lives their Junior and Senior year. When the weather is nice, students tube down the Maury river and go to Panther Falls and jump off of the cliffs/falls there and lay out in the sun.

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There is tons to do at W&L. There are always students around campus and things going on. Students can go to a frat party, a concert, a free movie, or just hang out any weekend. There are guest speakers throughout the week as well as workshops, fundraisers, movies, and parties. Students leave their doors unlocked all the time in the dorms, and often you'll find a group of people just sitting in the hall talking.

Greek life is a very big deal here. Partying is also very common, but as a non drinker I can testify that drinking is not necessary to have fun here. There is a drive in theater nearby which is really fun. It's also fun to go to parties with bands and just dance without drinking. Most traditions center around Greek life, life Sigma Chi's derby days and Lip Sync where all the new pledge classes preform a lip singing routine. I love my sorority and am so glad I rushed. I met a lot of great girls I would not have otherwise known.

The fraternity system runs the social scene, and it all starts the first day the freshmen arrive. An entire semester is devoted to fraternity/sorority rush. This is a great opportunity for freshmen to meet each other as well as to find a house to join. Unfortunately, after freshman year ends, your circle of friends (especially for guys) will also shrink because sophomores live and eat in their respective fraternity houses, leaving little time for interaction with guys in other houses.

big party scene, not much dating actually happens though, frats/srats are a big deal, almost everyone goes greek, the party scene revolves heavily around drinking but you don't have to if you don't want to, lots of religious people choose not to drink and are fine.

The most popular groups on campus are Kappa Delta, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Phi Delt, Kappa Alpha, Phi Kap and Sigma Chi; those are the sororities or fraternities you want to be in. I am involved in Kappa Delta and it has been one the greatest experiences; if you go to W&L you have to be in the greek system. There is nothing to do on the weekend besides drink; that's what everyone does.

greek organizations are the most popular with 76{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of students being greek. i am invovled in the panhellenic council which governs the sororities on campus. it is a group that is respected on campus and plans recruitment, programming and education for the sororities. football games are the most popular and tennis matches are pretty popular too. most people go to events that one of their friends is involved with. we get great speakers and those are always well attended. i met my closest friends in my sorority and one fraternity where i hang out a lot. that is also how i met my boyfriend. he was a friend of a friend and we met sophomore year. i have amazing friends who i am really going to miss next year. we are moving all over the country. we take trips together and go out to dinners together. they are great. some people date, some don't. those who do are typically in long relationships and have been together for awhile. if i'm awake at 2am on tuesday i'm studying and cramming for an exam or writing a paper. there are lots of events that happen ever year: homecoming weekend, christmas weekend, fancy dress, alumni weekend, buffalo creek, derby days, foxfields, maury river tubing...lots of things. people party pretty much every weekend. fraternities and sororities are pretty important and most people are in them. they define the social scene as in parties but only define what you do if you let them. last weekend i watched a movie with my boyfriend on friday night and went to a saint patrick's day party on saturday night. there are events on campus like dance-a-thons, movies, bands, etc. if you don't want to go out to a party. off campus there are movies in town, sometimes speakers, always musical events or plays.

The honor system at Washington and Lee prevails above all. Everyone is comfortable leaving their bags outside the dining hall when they eat and their doors unlocked. As a whole we trust each other.

Greek life is a big part of life on campus here, we have five sororities and are getting a new one next year, also we have something like fifteen fraternities, and Washington and Lee is the founding school of KA. Dorm rooms are never locked and everyone feels comfortable that nothing will be stolen. An event that happens every year is Fancy Dress, a dance that everyone in the school (including faculty) is invited to... it is a fun way to come together as a community. The big party nights are monday, wednesday, friday, and saturday. EVERYONE is welcome at all parties and it is perfectly acceptable to stay in when you are tired or have a paper or test... we work hard and party hard.