University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Top Questions

A stereotype University of Illinois students are commonly stuck with is we are all farmers. I think this assumption comes from the fact that the city of Champaign, where the University is located, is surrounded by cornfields. Although Illinois definitely embraces the culture of corn, and even celebrates it annually at the Sweet Corn Festival, which is a delicious event with food, music, art and more, most students who attend the University of Illinois have never lived on a farm. One of the greatest things about this school is that there is so much diversity among students and their backgrounds, whether that may be where their family is from, what their parents do, their class, religion, interests, and more.

Students at Illinois party, but are among some of the most academically driven in the state. Illinois is a party school, but is also a tier-one research institution.

While there are not many campus-wide stereotypes at the University of Illinois, there are many stereotypes among different groups. The engineers are often considered the nerds, who are believed to be socially awkward. Those participating in Greek life are thought to be the outgoing, popular type. Pre-professional students have a reputation of taking school too seriously and never having fun. I could go on and on, but if there is one thing I have learned at U of I, it is that you cannot trust stereotypes. Even if those stereotypes do comprise part of a person's personality-which oftentimes they do not-that is only part of what makes them them, and there is so much that goes beyond the stereotype.

Some common stereotypes are Greeks/Frat Kids. This is because the University of Illinois has the largest Greek system in the nation. There are Greeks and then those that call themselves independents. Another common stereotype is that everyone is from the Chicago suburbs, so some students feel out of place when they are from another area. There are also quite the abundance of international students on campus. Many of the students are preppy, but there is quite the diversity in terms of where people come from background wise. It has been a great experience to connect with these students.

There are a lot of stereotypes based on the size of U of I and how selective the admissions process is. A lot of people think everyone is a frat guy or sorority girl because the Greek system is so big. Others think we're all nerds because of the school's prestige. Truth is, there are so many types of people here, no stereotype can label all of them, and there's a place for everyone.

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has the largest fraternity and sorority population compared with any other university in the world. Boasting 95 chapters on the campus, approximately 7,000 belong to UIUC's Greek life. Nonetheless, our school consists of 40,000 students, and there are a significant number that socialize and network with students outside of the Greek population. Our basketball team and football teams are an incredibly popular part of school spirit and the fraternities and sororities contribute to a major part of the enthusiasm. There are extracurricular activities for everyone at Urbana-Champaign, including social justice activism, business groups, art and music, and many more. Being part of a fraternity or sorority can help contribute to this atmosphere, but it is not necessary and it is up to the student to make the most of their time at the University of Illinois.

I always heard people talking about how big greek life is at U of I so there's a little bit of a stereotype of how fratty U of I can be. However, a more pervasive stereotype I have heard is that people who go to U of I are nerdy. Both of these stereotypes are true and false. As with any college you go to there are always fratty kids and always nerdy kids. That doesn't mean that everyone on campus fits into one of these two groups. While I see myself fitting into both of these categories at times, I have never had a problem fitting in or finding someone I share common interests with. U of I is such a big school that there is a lot of diversity on campus, one or two stereotypes cannot be used to generalize the entire student population.

I always heard people talking about how big greek life is at U of I so there's a little bit of a stereotype of how fratty U of I can be. However, a more pervasive stereotype I have heard is that people who go to U of I are nerdy. Both of these stereotypes are true and false. As with any college you go to there are always fratty kids and always nerdy kids. That doesn't mean that everyone on campus fits into one of these two groups. While I see myself fitting into both of these categories at times, I have never had a problem fitting in or finding someone I share common interests with. U of I is such a big school that there is a lot of diversity on campus, one or two stereotypes cannot be used to generalize the entire student population.

A stereotype University of Illinois students are commonly stuck with is we are all farmers. I think this assumption comes from the fact that the city of Champaign, where the University is located, is surrounded by cornfields. Although Illinois definitely embraces the culture of corn, and even celebrates it annually at the Sweet Corn Festival, which is a delicious event with food, music, art, and more, most students who attend the University of Illinois have never lived on a farm. One of the greatest things about this school is that there is so much diversity among students and their backgrounds, whether that may be where their family is from, what their parents do, their class, religion, interests, and more.

A stereotype University of Illinois students are commonly stuck with is we are all farmers. I think this assumption comes from the fact that the city of Champaign, where the University is located, is surrounded by cornfields. Although Illinois definitely embraces the culture of corn, and even celebrates it annually at the Sweet Corn Festival, which is a delicious event with food, music, art, and more, most students who attend the University of Illinois have never lived on a farm. One of the greatest things about this school is that there is so much diversity among students and their backgrounds, whether that may be where their family is from, what their parents do, their class, religion, interests, and more.