College of Charleston Top Questions

There are many activities to get involved with. The Greek Life at C of C is good. There are many different physical activities to become a part of. Unfortunately, there isn't a football team. But there is always the beach to look forward to.

The bars in the city are great. Almost anywhere downtown is a short walk to the nightlife scene. Cars are not necessary and the are rickshaws available all over to bike you to and from the clubs.

There is a lot to do at CofC. Sororities and Fraternities are a great way to meet people freshmen year and have different events planned throughout the year (mixers, oyster roasts, formals, mountain weekends). They are not the center of the social scene. Intramural sports are fun. If you played a sport in HS this is an easy way to play and have fun. I've met a lot of people through it. SGA is the student government. It is responsible for a lot of the events that are held on campus. There are tons of clubs to join. Unfortunately, sporting events are not that popular because most of the fields are off campus. The school puts on several plays a year through the theater program. Once you move off campus you get to know the people who live in your neighborhood pretty well. Flyer's are posted around campus if a famous band or speaker is coming to campus. Also, local bands will often promote their shows. Music Farm is a fun place off campus to see bands. Also, the Charleston Riverdogs baseball team is a great way to have fun. The tickets are cheep and lots of students attend the games. Charleston has an endless list of great places to go out to eat. After 4 years here I am still discovering great new restaurants! Marion Square holds the wildlife festival each year which is free to go to and is something different to do that week. King Street, located near campus is a street filled with great shopping. There are chain stores like Gap, J.Crew, Urban Outfitters, Express, and other tiny boutiques. There is tons to do at CofC so you are never bored!

Charleston--Party town. Between the CofC, Citadel. Medical University of SC, you have 3 major institutions just miles from each other, so alot of students, alot of bars, alot to do.

Charleston always has something going on. People are always outside at the library or in marion square throwing frisbees, footballs, or just laying out. King street is filled with shoppers any day of the week and the students really embrace the life of the city and what it has to offer.

The best organization of campus is CAB (Cougar Activities Board). They constantly put on free events for students so they will come out and socialize with other students. Because of CAB, there is always something to do at CofC. I am currently involved with Phi Sigma Pi, a national honor fraternity, and having a great time with it. It is co-ed, and also made up of diverse members which is what drew me to it in the first place. If your not the traditional sorority/fraternity type, an academic fraternity may be a good choice because it looks good on any resume. As far as living on campus, I lived in Kelly House and I liked it alot. Many students left their doors open and had music blaring...the weekends were always interesting. Alot of international students live in Kelly House which gives others a good opportunity to meet people from other parts of the world. I went to few parties throughout the whole year, but while I was out I managed to meet quite a few people while I was there. Alcohol always helps you lighten up and become more personable, and I was able to meet many cool people. I met my closest friends from another friend and luckily we all lived in Kelly House so we hung out alot. In the fall I will be living in a house with one of them. Besides going to parties, many restaurants are open late so you and your friends can grab a bite to eat. Also, the clubs are alot of fun.

everything here involves drinking

Basketball is a big thing. A lot of people go to the games, so sometimes its important to get there early because of limited seating. Hopefully this won't be an issue with the new arena though. Everyone shows a lot of school spirit at the games. They're a blast.

No one cares.

They definitely try to get students involved, although sometimes it sucks when I didnt even know about something going on. I really do wish we had a football team, but thats just me. The basketball games are pretty popular, and I wish that I had gone to more of them over the years. I also wish that I had done Oozeball- a big volleyball game over mud pits. I didnt drink at all Freshmen year or have a car, and yes there is still stuff to do! Its fun to just walk around on King at night because tons of people are always out. Also- The Hav Nots are a really funny comedy group that plays on meeting street. Charleston has awesome music, and I went to a lot of concerts and The Music Farm on Ann street.

I met most of my closest friends from my dorm or from keeping up with people after orientation. I am involved in Alternative Spring Break which is where students plan and lead service trips for spring break and I have met a lot of my friends through that as well. I tend to go out just on Friday and Saturday but there is always something going on Thursday night. Charleston is definitely a bar city so as I more of my friends have gotten older it is harder to go out without a fake ID but there are always parties going on. The ratio of guys that are in fraternities is pretty large but for girls I think it is less important to be in a sorority. I have friends that are in sororities and not and it doesn't seem to matter too much for the social life. The dating scene on campus is a little harder if you are not in a sorority however since there aren't that many guys to begin with and a majority of guys are in fraternities.

I can't really tell you about the most popular groups or ogranizations on campus because I don't know of many. Although its obviously not as big here then at state schools, but there is a decent population of greek life and they are constantly holding events and fundraiser activities for charity. This isn't the kind of school though where if you aren't in a frat or sorority you feel like an outcast. Athletic events as a I said earlier are pretty weak. The most popular are basketball and baseball games, but still only a handful of kids go to those on a regular basis. To kind of sum up the dating scene: You go to a friends keg party or a bar, start talking and keep drinking, and hook up with a girl. Occasionally the people will actually get along and start dating, otherwise its the same thing the next night. Saturday nights here that don't involve drinking are probably typical to everywhere else, bowling, movies, or just hanging out. I'll go off campus a decent amount because there are a lot of good restaurants, malls/shopping centers, and a boat load of golf courses. Most kids here though don't even bring cars because you can pretty much find anything you need in downtown Charleston with in walking distance.

CAB- (Cougar activities board) has neat things to do. I am in a sorority on campus and really enjoy it. I've found that sororities are more laid back and not as strict as some schools. I went to a guest speaker on the female orgasm and i thought it was halarous and really interesting. There is definately 3 girls to 1 guy down here. I met my closest friends through my sorority and who i lived with in my dorm. The basketball games are a pretty big deal. One fun thing I did was go to probates. I thought they were really fun and interesting.

There's a lot of sororities on campus. I don't live on campus so I can't really say anything about it.

Life on campus is fast and fun, even if you just like staying indoors. There are always events going on that cover everyones taste. Life in the dorms are fun and trust me when I say this; everyone is shy in the start. Each person will not know a single other person and they will open up to you the moment you say hello. The first few weeks, all the doors are left open so that people can stop by.

C of C is known as a party school. and its true, there is a party going on just about every night. But the kids who party every night, normally don't last to long. haha. Its a different scene every night. and then you have campus events that take place. Every Wednesday night there is a movie playing that isnt' out on DVD yet. and before exams, they have a midnight breakfast where you get to do things like build a bear, make wax hands, various things to release the stress. Frats and Sororities aren't all that important. It may seem like alot of people are in them, but they really aren't all that predominant on the campus. They throw parties, that's about it. Saturday nights can be occupied in so many ways. I mean really, the college is in Charleston... you can find just about anything you want to do there.

Just as with the student body, the activities are diverse. While the majority of organizations are Greek fraternity/sorority houses, there are quite a number of major/religious/political/ethnic/miscellaneous activities to satisfy everyone's interest. There's bound to be an organization for everyone, and if someone feels left out, that's because he or she haven't been proactive in seeking a group that meshes well with him or her. And even if pro-activeness isn't successful, there's always encouragement to create one's own organization. While the number of activities are limitless, the one hindrance is the dating scene. Fortunately for guys, and unfortunately for girls, the ratio of guys to girls is disproportionate, as the girls outnumber the guys.

The most popular organizations seem to be the greek social organizations. Basketball is the most prominent sport at CofC. There are about three or four mainstage (professor-run) productions per semester and two to three centerstage (student-run) productions per semester. If I'm up at 2am on a Tuesday, I am most likely studying.

There are tons of organizations to get involved in and lots of ways to volunteer, which looks great on applications and transcripts! Also, Greek Life is great, but it's not a do-or-die. Less than half of the students do Greek Life so you don't HAVE to be in a sorority/fraternity to be involved and have fun.

I have loved being involved in greek life! It has made me feel a part of something and welcome from day 1. Not to mention, I have met some of the most amazing people as a result!