University of Virginia-Main Campus Top Questions

Greek life is definitely a big part of the UVA social scene. I belong to a sorority, and spend a large chunk of my days and nights with my sorority sisters: I eat my meals there, lived there my third year, and crash on the couch after a night out. I know that there are many students who are involved in activities other than fraternities/sororities and are happy with that decision, but I feel that joining Tridelt completely changed my experience at UVA for the better.

Football is pretty big, the students really get into it. Go to a game at least once..The stadium is amazing!! Students are very involved in all kinds of different events.. Whatever you like, I'm sure you could find it at UVA (it's pretty diverse in activities, whether it involves sports, theater, writing, debate, academics, tons of random extracurriculars, etc ). If you're awake at 2am on a Tuesday, you're probably studying. People stay up all night, all the time studying (some libraries are open 24/7). Those people are kinda sad...They need to get a life & enjoy their college experience. Streaking the lawn is a tradition at UVA. Do it before you graduate. (Don't get scared about the rumors of cops arresting you & charging you with a sex crime. As long as you're not belligerently drunk, they'll just talk to you for 20 min. about how you were wrong & give you a warning.) Don't risk drinking in your dorm (unless you absolutely know you won't get caught). You will get written up, and have to attend a really long, boring, obnoxious alcohol awareness class (among other things they make you do!). It's NOT worth it. Frats & sororities are kind of big. Great bar scene too. You would think that once you leave high school, you're done with it forever. That's not true. UVA is kind of clicky, people still talk shit about others, spread rumors, etc. You'd think people would be more mature in college, but they're really not. There's lots to do off campus.. There's a great music scene. The downtown mall is nice (lots of shops, kinda artsy, you get to interact with the townies). Hiking/camping isn't far (Shenandoah mountain for example). Tubing & apple picking are also popular. There are a ton of wineries around Charlottesville so there's always wine tasting too.

Great Greek and bar scene.

UVA has something for everyone--the student body is so diverse that you're bound to find student groups that meet your interests and needs. About 30{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the student body is in a Greek organization, but there are plenty of opportunities to find a group of friends outside of sororities and fraternities. For myself, I did not join a sorority, but I led Young Life--a nondenomenational Christian organization geared towards high school students. I loved getting to be a part of a community of students committed to each others' lives, but also part of a greater community of high schoolers and their families in Charlottesville. And Charlottesville itself is incredible--so many amazing restaurants, coffee shops, music venues, hiking trails, beautiful drives/scenery...it deserves its title as "best city to live in in America."

Fraternities are great There are a lot of events on grounds

social life at uva is amazing. everyone is always out and about being social, meeting people, and having a good time. uva students work hard, but they play hard. dorm room doors are always wide open, you tailgate football games, go out to frats on Rugby Road. any night of the week you can find a party. my now best friend lived next door to me first year. we went to basketball games, shopping, football games, lacrosse games, parties, concerts, movies, performances, anything entertaining we could get our hands on together. if there wasn't anything that we wanted to do, we just stayed in and watched bad TV with the girls from the hall. it was ALWAYS a good time. traditions as far as parties go: XANADU. xanadu is an annual party put on by the sigma nu frat that is a fundraiser for their breast cancer foundation. they host a party, but sand in the basement, make the stairs a waterfall. it's like a tropical paradise. the next day they hold a concert with local bands. btw, the local bands in cville are GREAT! other traditions, there's always streaking the Lawn, other great traditions, lighting of the lawn, where there's holiday music, hot cider, and they light christmas lights all up and down the Lawn. and then there's the little kids who dress up and trick or treat on the Lawn halloween every year. if you drink, there is a party you can go to pretty much every night of the week, especially spring semester. if you don't, there are lots of groups that hang out and do non drinking stuff, but truthfully, dont know too much about that. frats are really where the parties are for first-years. sometimes you might have a little trouble getting in, but you'll get the hang of it. about 1/3 of UVA students are in a frat/sorority, a lot of my friends are in them, a lot of my friends aren't in them. it's really not that important to be in one. whether or not you are in a frat, going to frats is really the center of the social scene.

The Peer Health Educators probably got most of time at U.Va. in terms of extracurriculars. I loved the organization-giving "outreaches," or hour-long presentations on nutrition, stress management, sex, or alcohol and drugs to first-year dorms or greek life, tabling on the lawn with condom roses, or passing out t-shirts for our 4th-year 5-k (to combat the 4th-year 5th of drinking a 5th of alcohol during the last home football game). I was re-elected outreach intern for my fourth year, the only one in the program's history to do so. I loved what I did with them, and I'd recommend the group to anyone who's interested in health and the college population.

My roommate and I always left our door open as did most of our friends. Athletic events are very popular but so are guest speakers and theater. Dating is common but not dominant. Fraternities and sororities are definitely prevalent but there is plenty to do outside of them. I met my closest friends through my dorm, classes, and sorority.

I was in FIFE - Feminism is for Everyone. Basically all you can do is drink. There aren't things to do but drink on a Saturday night. You can go out to eat, go to a movie, then come back to an empty dorm sober. I didn't drink first semester and it really limited my ability to meet people. It's too bad, but it's true. Frats and sororities are extremely important.

Greek life is a huge part of UVA social life. I'd say at least 40{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the student body is involved. In addition, sports teams and 'Hoo Crew are probably the next largest group of people. Dorms are a social place, no matter if it's Old Dorms or New Dorms. The experience is just what people make it out to be. Lambeth Field (upper classman on-grounds housing) is also a very social place. As far as the dating scene goes, I would say it is fairly non-existent. At least in the typical guy asks girl on date to movies/dinner type way. People do date, but it's initiated through the party scene. As far as the party scene goes, it's a fairly large part of social life. If you're not a partier, it's definitely not the end of the world because there are plenty of other things to do, it's just not my scene so I don't necessarily look for it. There are movie theaters, plays to see, bowling alleys, ice skate rink, shopping, etc to do on a Saturday night. Or just hanging out with friends. Meeting new people is pretty easy, as long as you're willing to be friendly to people.

Like many other big schools, the social scene in the fall revolves around the football games. The game itself isn't even that important, but the pre-gaming is the real event. In general, people tend to go out on the weekends, and upper-classmen usually take advantage of the drink specials on the corner during the week as well. Fraternity parties also play a large role in the social scene, especially for first-years who are new to the school and are not 21 or have an I.D. that says they are 21. As you get older, the bar scene becomes more popular. Many of my friends come from my two basic groups on campus, the rugby team and Sigma Nu fraternity. I also spend time with people I knew from home and friends I've met in class, and I've remained close with many of the people I lived with my first year in dorms. Generally, people have an open-door policy and are open to getting to know people, and the social scene is not entirely dependent on drinking. I had many friends my first year that would not go out, but there are other activities to do around grounds and in Charlottesville.

Plenty of things to do, there's probably a club for anything that interests you (Buddhist tea ritual enthusiast? There's a club for that). The Honor Code is a big deal, so most students are comfortable leaving their dorm rooms open (everyone in my first year dorm did). Athletic events are usually always attended to full capacity; guest speakers and theater events usually sell out but are easy enough to attend if you sign up about a week in advance. Dating scene is good (better for guys if you're a third year, like most campuses). Most close friends are made through your first year dorm (especially if you get suite style). Frats and sororities are more active than most colleges, there's one for pretty much any type of person. Party frats, social frats, dry frats, service organizations, and ethnic frats. At 2 am, we were usually just talking about random stuff in someone's dorm room. You can find usually several parties Friday and Saturday, and there's usually a party on Thursday and the occasional Wednesday.

Sports are big, and most people seem to be somewhat physically fit. OAS is a fun group to join. The campus is generally safe. People usually hook up, dating can be frequent but relationships are scarce around grounds. Lastly, work hard and PARTY HARD!

Greek life is very prevalent here but definitely not everybody is involved with that. The Corner and Downtown c-ville are places that have a lot of fun restaurants and stores.

UVA kids are incredibly friendly. There were generally no closed doors on my hall in my dorm, regardless of what time it was. Within the first month of school, there is a huge activities fair when all of the 100+ clubs have a table set up where you can get information about them. Most kids are involved with 1 or 2 extracurriculars. Volunteering is big, and there are tons of opportunties to volunteer. Athletics are big--intramural sports are fun, and I'd say about 25{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of students compete in IM leagues. Of course, football and basketball games are a big deal. As far as partying is concerned, you can find a crowd that suits your style. Some people go out 8 nights a week while others never go out. Frats and sororities are big, and approximately 1 out of 3 students goes Greek. the bar scene is also pretty big; a lot of students have fake id's. but again, you'll stay busy and have fun regardless of how much you like to party.

Everyone here participates in Greek life. If you are not intending to join greek life at UVA then be prepared to be ostracized and not make as many friends. The greek system here is huge and can be a lot of fun as long as you get with the right group of people. Athletic events are huge here and people go to not just football and basketball, but all sports, including soccer, baseball, lacrosse, and others. Frat parties are huge but if you are an upperclassman you mostly go to Bars and such. People here party a lot.

I would definitely say that, being a big school, the most popular and common event to do outside of the classroom is attending a sporting event--especially football and basketball. UVA, all around, has great athletic teams and many students support them. Because football and basketball are so popular and the arenas so large, most students attend these games...but soccer, baseball, lacrosse, etc. are also extremely popular as well. You can always find people willing to attend games with you...and they're really fun.

There are so many clubs here at UVA that everyone finds at least one club that they can get really involved in. There are a lot of service clubs because giving back to the community is very important. It is not just clubs that have service projects, but the fraternities and the sororities as well. Fraternities and sororities are popular and a large number of students belong to them. I myself am not a sorority girl, but I know people who are. On the weekends people do like to have a good time after a long week of being buried under books, studying and class. So there is a good amount of drinking that goes on. One popular place to go are the frat houses and the bars(once your 21). However if you aren't a drinker, and there are people that aren't, then there are plenty of other things to do. Also I have learned that people that don't drink tend to be friends with other people who don't drink either. Lastly a popular place is The Corner which has all these wonderful places to eat( Bodo's, Qdoba, Mellow Mushroom, Christian's Pizza, Little Johns and so much more). Also the student bookstore is down there and their textbooks are cheaper than the UVA bookstore (Although just a hint, order your books online, you will save a ton).

Social life at UVA is hopping. What I think is really fantastic about UVA social life is that although the drinking scene is pretty big and a huge amount of fun, there are SO many things to do on a weekend night without involving alcohol. There's ALWAYS some sort of interesting event/function/dinner happening and what makes the whole thing better is that as I was pleasently surprised to find, there is no pressure whatsoever in relation to drinking etc. - one is in no way excluded from groups of people, organisations or friendships if they have different social habits (i.e. drinking/not drinking etc.) Football is huge here, coming from the UK I really had no affection for, or even understanding of American Football, but I have now become a major Cavaliers fan. Activities range from political groups, to advocacy organisations, to common hobbies. There's something for everyone and more here.

I guess I don't think UVA is that big of a party school because I'm from SEC territory, but students here definitely like to drink and like to party. That's not to say you have to drink, but most other people will. For the Greek crowd, that's a lot of fraternity parties and bars. If you're not Greek, the Greek scene probably won't impact you much. In the fall, football weekends are big for tailgating and watching the game. Activities wise, there's a mix of big, well-established groups like Honor (which is a huge presence), and smaller groups that people start. It's really easy to get a group off the ground.