Davidson College Top Questions

Probably eating houses (which are for women) and fraternities. There is also the awesome Davidson Outdoors Program, which speaks to the typical nature loving person that goes here. Club sports are super fun, and many people enjoy whatever the student activities board prepares for us, because they plan activities based off of student interest.

tennis,basketball and other varsity athletes

Statistically, the most popular group on campus is D1 sports-- a full 25{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the student body is a student-athlete. Many more participate in club or intramural sports teams. Sports aside, Davidson has a very active 'Environmental Action Coalition' or EAC which makes waves on campus. They have regularly sent students to events and conferences in Washington, DC! Davidson loves the outdoors, with a popular 'Davidson Outdoors' or DO club providing weekend trips for whitewater kayaking, mountain biking, hiking, rock climbing, and tons of other activities. They also have a litany of equipment and tools to use or rent. They'll fix your bike, show you how to belay, and WAFA certify you all in one. Other big groups on campus are the slam poetry group FreeWord, the step team Shades of Brown, the always lively DJ's of the student-run WALT radio, the DUFF ultimate frisbee team, the school newspaper The Davidsonian is always a favorite, the OOPS! improv comedy group, and probably 70 or so other groups are all active. There is a group for everyone. In fact, most people join several! One of the great things about Davidson is how easy it is to be involved. Sophomores are presidents of several majors clubs, and it's not unusual in the slightest. Recently a student decided to start an International Justice Mission group on campus. In under a year the group has over a hundred members and has raised thousands of dollars for their cause, and thousands of dollars in programming grants to further their IJM chapter. Outside of groups and clubs, Davidson students have interests as varied as they are. Which means that most people drink, but many people choose other things to do. There are always things going on both up and down the hill and there isn't judgement for whatever lifestyle decisions are made. Sober or not, everyone loves getting free Chick-fil-a or Moe's at After Midnight's. Before midnight? See a free movie screening, go to a lecture, laser tag in the union, cuddle with puppies during exam time, see a slam poetry performance. There is always something going on for everyone. In a frat or independent? You'll go to the same party and no one will question it or care. Of course, arguably the most popular tradition and activity on campus is the midnight scream. At midnight for the start of Reading Day the entire campus lets out their loudest screams in recognition of the agony that awaits.

Patterson Court is the focus of the social life. This is compromised of the Fraternities and Eating Houses that about half of Davidson students are a part of. The parties (except formals) are all open, so there is no need to join a fraternity if you are only in it for partying, but for that reason the fraternities are better organizations. People don't join to party but to be part of a greater good. Everybody can go to the parties, so the only people who join the organizations are those who want to be involved in the other aspects of fraternities eg community service, brotherhood, leadership etc.

The Union Board at Davidson sponsors many different events that do not involve drinking. For example, they sponsor April at the Lake (Davidson owns a piece of land on Lake Norman- a few miles away from campus), paint your own pottery, casino night, and many other activities. I met my closest friends from my freshman hall. Davidson students enjoy going to Bonsai, a sushi place, and the Soda Shop which are both located on Main Street in Davidson.

Man, I don't think I've gone to bed before midnight more than twice all semester. Now that's not true for all students, but for me, I just can't get enough of hanging out with friends, watching trashy TV, raiding the Union café, and cramming for reviews when it's one thirty in the morning. The glory of Davidson is that whatever your interests, there'll be something fun for you to do. There's been ice skating in the Union, brake-dance competitions, fascinating lectures, wicked good basketball, raging parties on the Court, and everything in between.

Fraternities and eating houses (similar to sororities) are strong on campus, but they do not dominate the social scene. There are plenty of other things to do besides party. I lived on a substance free hall my freshman year, and on weekend nights, we would watch a movie or play a board game together. The student union frequently provides activities that draw a crowd, also. Sometimes people just have parties in their rooms. Athletic events, especially basketball games, draw people, too. In general, people are always friendly and always open to new friends. It is fairly easy to connect with different groups of people, if that is what one wants to do. However, some people find a perfect niche in one group and they do everything with that group.

Students always leave their doors open in the dorms, and the Union is a great place to find people. The Student Government Association does a ton for the campus every year, and there are dozens of very active student groups on campus doing amazing, real things - the school is very supportive of impactful organizations and funds good causes. Dating scene is either hook-ups or living like married couples. Basketball games are fully attended but other games are smaller, lots of friends of teammates. Guest speakers are phenomenal, theatre is not.

Fraternities are mostly responsible for a social life. There is an overwhelming majority of guys at Davidson in fraternities (approximately 40{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c}). People find cliques, then party with their own cliques, which is typical. On a Saturday night, you can go to the Union and have a grand old sober yet fun time. People don't party much, compared to big schools (in the Big Ten for example).

The most popular team on campus is definitely the basketball team. I think some of my male friends idolize some of the players. Students tend to leave their doors open on the freshman halls, but even if they aren't people aren't that far away and you can always just go knock on someone's door to go hang out. People always complain that dating at davidson doesn't exist. They think it's a complete hook-up culture. It is definitely possible to have a relationship on campus - I did, but hooking up is definitely another popular option. I think it's really up to the person. If you're awake at 2am you're either playing halo or guitar hero with your buddies or studying in the Union with a group of other people who are still working too. People are pretty serious about studying during the week, with the exception of wednesday nights, and then the second friday hits the books are put away and everybody is in relax mode. People tend to go out and drink and then go out to the court to dance or hang out on Friday and Saturday nights. You can always find a place to drink by the senior apartments and a place to dance on the court.

Greek events and apartment parties are virtually the only social drinking functions on campus. Do not come here if you are looking to go clubbing in Charlotte on weekends. Students also regularly attend art and athletic events, and the Union board sponsors a million events that are alcohol free if thats not your thing.

Basketball is huge. Dance Ensemble is big. Football is not that big but we will recognize it. The improv groups are cool too. Don't come here for pretty girls. The union board is really good about having events for students that don't drink, for example they had Chick-fil-a night this past weekend where you show up and get free food. One tradition is the midnight scream during finals. Most people party here but I would say its because of the workload.

Students rarely lock their doors. The Honor Code is a huge deal, and its effects are manifest throughout campus. Students just drop all their belongings, including laptops, at the entrance to Commons (the dining hall). These items are in plain view and not in anyone's line of sight. Yet, the students trust each other to live with Honor. It makes Davidson a wonderful place to be.

Students in dorms leave their doors open all the time. We have a pretty serious honor code, and although there are occasionally thefts/vandalisms, etc, they are very rare. Theater, speakers, and athletic events are all well attended, and the larger athletic events (read: basketball games) are VERY well attended. If I'm awake at 2am on a Tuesday, I'm probably studying for a test or chillin with friends. The dating scene isn't super well-developed, it's more of a drunken hookup scene, but there are definitely a good number of couples on campus.

Everything from theatre productions to a cappella concerts to basketball games, debates, guest speakers, benefit dinners - everything is well attended by both students and local families. Tuesdays you definitely don't see any parties. Wednesdays - Saturdays, if you want a party it's easy to find one. Tons of neat traditions. We are an hour from the mountains, 3 hours from beaches, and 20 from a big cities.

A large percentage of Davidson's population is involved in the Fraternities for men or the Eating Houses for women. Eating Houses are these really cool organizations that are kinda like sororities except people don't live in the houses and no pledging is required. There are many other types of organizations for people to get involved in as well. I am a part of a group called FLY (For Loving Yourself) which has done great thing around campus in an effort to promote positive body image. Basketball games are really popular events, as are Live Thursdays, a sort of open mic night performance put on every Thursday in the Student Union. There are three singing groups on campus that are awesome, as well as an enormous dance ensemble that puts on two sold out performances a semester. Davidson also puts on a big concert every year that usually attracts a big name. This year it was Jason Mraz. As far as partying go people usually go out pretty hard on Friday and Saturday nights. Wednesday is also considered a party night, but less people take part in mid week parties. Davidson does however, do a great job of providing weekend night activities that don't involve drinking such as movie showings, paint your own pottery nights, and midnight pancake breakfasts.

The more popular grounds would tend to be fraternities, eating houses, and athletic teams. Not all too different from most schools but I would say there is less of a divide between those groups and those not involved in those groups. There is an AMAZING honor code on campus that is able to work because of the small closeknit student body. I have seen many other "honor codes" in action and nothing that I've ever seen is followed like this one. Students leave their rooms open and unlocked, leave backpacks and even lap tops etc laying around while they go to get a bite to eat. There is trust and harsh punishments for those who break that trust. Athletics are pretty popular. Basketball is the main attraction but football, baseball, soccer, and others pull in good sized crowds as well. There is lots of dating and lots of "hook ups" that go on but things in this department are not quite up to the standard of most colleges. Your best friends will be your hallmates and if you play a sport your teammates (same for other groups like music, theater, etc). If you're up at 2AM on a Tuesday you're probably studying, but if it's a Wednesday or the weekend you're probably partying. There is a great party scene for as small as the campus is and honestly its incredibly relaxed about alcohol. Campus police, as long as they know you are being safe, will often just make you poor out a cup of beer if they know you are underage and see you out with it, with no further reprimand. And if drinking isn't your thing you can still enjoy the fraternity/eating house(Our version of a sorority) dance parties or the amazing amount of events they have in the Student Union on weekend nights.

Social life is well organized with a variety of activities despite the size of the school. There are always "court" parties (frat/eating house) going on during the weekend and certain weekdays. Also, there are a number of entertainment options including movies, plays, and other performances of various types that are popular among students. There are many restaurants and movie theatres away from campus for people who want something to do away from campus.

I feel like social life at Davidson differs from other colleges. There is a party scene available but its not dominating on campus. People respect students' choices on the weekends and during the week and there is not a huge pressure to party if you don't want to, yet it is there if wanted. Fraternities and eating houses are popular for students yet like I said, not a dominating factor. Many complain about the expense of eating houses and frats yet they provide a good sense of camaraderie and are a good way to meet other people. The dating scene is interesting. It seems like there are two extremes for dating... Either extremely serious relationships or random hookups. There is not much in between which I found surprising coming here.

Social life at Davidson is limited besides Patterson Court. If you like to party, you'll be fine. If you don't like to party, good luck having fun on the weekends. Occasionally there are activites in the Union to accomodate the non-partying crowd, but they are decently rare. Mostly, you'll have to find things to do with your hall. If someone has a car on your hall, that will help. Some choose to join frats, but there's no pressure to join. There are no sororities, only eating houses, the some girls participate in. If you're not partying on Saturday night, you'll probably play some game with your hall, watch a movie, or stay in your room. Social life here, unless you like to party, is bland.