University of Miami Top Questions

Bros and Japs. The guys wear tank tops and snap back hats and basketball jerseys. Girls are daddy's girls (Japanese American Princesses) with lots of money and think they are hotter than they are. These two stereotypes are true for some of the population. More true for the South Beach club goers and party people. There are a lot of kids from New York/New Jersey/Philly and they seem to have dominate personalities so they stand out. There is a lot of good looking people that tan and party a lot, but the school is becoming more academically challenging.

On the surface, many Miami students may seem superficial. Since it's a private pricey college, there are a lot of kids there whose parents are paying 50,000 dollars a year for their education and they want you to know it. It's not uncommon to see a frat house with 3 BMWs parked outside and girls carrying their books in $2,000 Louis Vuitton handbags. But, of course, not everybody is like that. There are also kids from the music school with their hair in dreads and other kids who will have thousands of dollars in loans when they graduate. And in addition, Miami also hosts many international students from all over the world, who add an interesting dimension of diversity to the campus life. To be perfectly honest, people for the most part stick with kids who have similar mindsets about a study/party ratio. It's easy to get carried away and drop cash you should be saving trying to keep up with the Jone's. Basically you have to remember that you're at college to do what you want to do, not to achieve this ultimate lifestyle. I know it's corny but if you stay true to who are, you WILL find people to connect with.

One of my favorite aspects of U.M. is its diversity- culturally, politically, financially, religiously, etc. Despite its hefty tuition, U.M. is generous with scholarships, and so there is a balance between extremely wealthy and more financially tight students. It is not awkward or uncomfortable- the discrepancy is not starkly obvious and everyone intermingles. A large percentage of the student population is composed of international students, and it is common to hear different languages as you walk through campus. This is not to say, however, that there is a strict divide between the different cultures; students from all different nationalities compose friend groups. In addition, there is a strong presence on campus of politically aware and active students; we have hosted presidential debates in the past and are planning on doing the same this year. Students are comfortable protesting or demonstrating (peacefully) when they support a cause or disapprove of something. Most students do put an effort into their appearance, although this is not a requirement. Our students aren't usually decked out in gym clothes or sweats for class, unless it's midterms/finals week, and most students usually look very presentable.

Students at UM are very diverse. You have many students who are part of the LGBTQ community, you have many religious students-and all religions might i add-and everyone is accepted. Every race, every group, every student will have a club that caters to their need. If you love anime, there is a club for that. If you love video games, theres one for that too! If you enjoy reading, dancing, learning salsa, learning to cook, anything, there are all types of opportunities for that. Students here are relatively wealthy. That's because their parents are successful and they too will become successful. They party hard but work even harder.

Very diverse. Seem to be tolerant of other religions and people. Many atheists. Mostly rich students. Mostly all are fashionable and look good for class and around campus. Most have a car it seems. Most are Hispanic. Many many have lived in Florida their whole life. Many are inconsiderate and only think of themselves, but there are people who are the nicest most thoughtful and selfless people in the world. There is really no one who would feel out of place here, because there are so many types of people and ethnicities.

Growing up as a Cuban-American in predominately Cuban-American Miami, I am happy to say I am no longer the majority at the University of Miami, as odd as that sentence may seem. In fact, I’d reckon there does not exist a majority in the student population of UM. UM’s student body is incredibly diverse, gathering bright, unique students from all over the globe, not just the United States of America, to bring something different to the University of Miami experience. I have made friends from different cities, states, countries, religions, incomes and creeds, all of them wonderful people. Perhaps the best statement that can be made in demonstration of UM’s diverse student body is a close friend I made while interviewing people for an article in the Hurricane, the student-run newspaper, a resident at UM. She is a Jewish girl from Philadelphia, who took a gap year after high school to live in Brazil where she learned fluent Portuguese and Spanish, and is now a Latin American Studies major. We bonded over a plate of my grandmother’s Cuban food leftovers I brought in Tupperware as lunch one day, me teaching her Cuban Spanish colloquialisms and her telling me about her time abroad. That is just one example of the kind of interesting people that can and will be met as a part of the University of Miami experience. Being the University of Miami, of course, there is a strong outspoken LGBT community on campus, much loved and supported by the rest of the student body. In fact, one of the most anticipated and hilarious events of the beginning of Fall Semester is the annual drag show put on by the local LGBT organization on campus. Politics, though not particularly prevalent on campus, do surface from time to time, particularly during Occupy Wall Street movement, whose Occupy Miami branch spent many loud days gathering supporters at the University of Miami. As might be expected of a private university, students are predominately liberal though there are both Young Republican and Young Democrat groups present on campus and open to anyone interested in joining. As far as I have noticed, students seem to come from very diverse economic backgrounds (I myself come from a Miami suburb middle-class one), though there is an undeniable presence of some very nice, expensive cars in the school parking lots. I have yet to see this ever affect student relations, however; if anything these differences only aid them. I first made conversation with and befriended a student from Dubai when I watched him park is 911 Porsche right next to my own car. It should also be noted UM supports 49 percent of full-time graduated with an average of 23, 552 dollars in scholarship money (according to US News), so monetary issues don’t often become an obstacle in applying to UM.

For years now we've been ranked as having one of, if not the, most diverse campuses in the country by Princeton Review. We have students from over 100 countries and something like 35{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of our students are minorities. If it's diversity you're looking for, this is really the place to be. But we don't just stop at cultural diversity. We have people studying across all disciplines hanging out with each other. It just isn't very cliquish here. I think we must be too big a school to be. And students are relaxed, which is a huge plus. I couldn't have dealt with a high maintenance or high stress school, but everyone here is really low key. Some people dress up for class, but most go very casually. Jeans and t-shirts, leggings and long tank tops and summer dresses are the norm. It's probably the Miami weather -- we rarely go below 50 F in the winter, so clothes remains pretty constant all year round. The one thing I've found is that students are not always enthusiastic. Some don't have much to say in class and aren't the most engaging in conversation. But I also think that might be because they have their specific interests and I just haven't found them yet. But don't worry, you can always find your group. Is LGBT rights your thing? Just knock on SPECTURM's door, they'll be glad to see you and let you crash on one of their couches. Passionate about the ocean? Rho Rho Rho, the SCUBA club and the Aquarium club are always on the lookout for new people to join them. Are you a massive Harry Potter fan? We've got Muggle Quidditch too. Or do you just want to build things? I'm pretty sure there's a robotics club too. We have almost 300 official organizations. There's no way you won't find your crowd here. At the end of the day, you might not be able to relate to everyone on campus, and you probably won't think highly of everyone, but everyone will be friendly. And then once you do find your niche, you'll probably have the time of your life.

For years now we've been ranked as having one of, if not the, most diverse campuses in the country by Princeton Review. We have students from over 100 countries and something like 35{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of our students are minorities. If it's diversity you're looking for, this is really the place to be. But we don't just stop at cultural diversity. We have people studying across all disciplines hanging out with each other. It just isn't very cliquish here. I think we must be too big a school to be. And students are relaxed, which is a huge plus. I couldn't have dealt with a high maintenance or high stress school, but everyone here is really low key. Some people dress up for class, but most go very casually. Jeans and t-shirts, leggings and long tank tops and summer dresses are the norm. It's probably the Miami weather -- we rarely go below 50 F in the winter, so clothes remains pretty constant all year round. The one thing I've found is that students are not always enthusiastic. Some don't have much to say in class and aren't the most engaging in conversation. But I also think that might be because they have their specific interests and I just haven't found them yet. But don't worry, you can always find your group. Is LGBT rights your thing? Just knock on SPECTURM's door, they'll be glad to see you and let you crash on one of their couches. Passionate about the ocean? Rho Rho Rho, the SCUBA club and the Aquarium club are always on the lookout for new people to join them. Are you a massive Harry Potter fan? We've got Muggle Quidditch too. Or do you just want to build things? I'm pretty sure there's a robotics club too. We have almost 300 official organizations. There's no way you won't find your crowd here. At the end of the day, you might not be able to relate to everyone on campus, but everyone will be friendly. And then once you do find your niche, you'll probably have the time of your life.

I have often heard UM described as an elitist school. I do not agree with that statement because we have so many different students from so many different places and circumstances that the school doesn't seem elitist. We have students from all over the world here at UM, so the school does it's best to make sure that have the opportunities to interact with many different people and cultures. Since we are so diverse we have many different organizations which cater to our needs-- be it religious, sexual orientation, race, or even living arrangements (commuter vs. resident). However, no matter how different we are we all CANES and UM emphasizes that very concept.

Everyone's different. Really a very diverse student body. You'll find people whom are interested in just about anything.