Washington University in St Louis Top Questions

A lot of people are in theatre. There are also a lot of people in greek life. But, there are a lot of diverse activities and a lot to do on campus. I haven't experienced much of a dating scene. On a Tuesday, if I am up at 2am I am studying. Last weekend I went to the LYNF festival at Wash U and hung out with my friends and did some homework. I never drink and there is still a lot to do. So there's a place for every type of person.

At Wash. U., the single most important part of your social life in the fall of your freshman year is your freshman floor. Expect every door on your hall to remain open at all times, tons of cheesy bonding activities, and making lots of trips to the frats on the weekends as one massive group. I met my two best friends through my freshman dorm, and now, as a senior, I still live with them. For most underclassman at Wash. U., whether or not they decide to go Greek, the frats provide the most significant source of a night life on campus. For the upperclassman, especially those in fraternities or sororities, the frats continue to be a part of the night life, but local bars -- especially those on the Loop or downtown -- tend to be more popular. As a member of a sorority, my weekends are typically taken up with mixers or date parties, as well as trips to bars with my friends. Other parties occur in dorms (for underclassman) and off-campus apartments (for upperclassman). There's no normal number of times per week for a Wash. U. student to go out -- some rarely do, and some do every night -- but the student body is fairly social, and if you want to go out, it's never hard to find something to do and someone to go with. For me, Greek life has been a crucial part of my experience at Wash. U. I've made some of my best friends in my sorority, as well as some of my happiest memories at the school. However, I know many people who aren't Greek, and for them, being in a sorority or fraternity isn't necessary. There are other things to do on campus than going to frats, including our biannual concert, W.I.L.D., as well as attending our never ending roster of impressive guest speakers, a capella performances, and, of course, sports games. The best-attended athletic events are the men's basketball team's games. The football games attract a decent crowd from the school and the area, but the basketball games get so crowded that it can be hard to find a seat.

I think the most popular groups are culture groups. Asian student groups have lots of activities and free foods throughout the year. And also, Greek organizations are popular too. On weekends, many students go to fraternities in groups. The largest event on campus is called W.I.L.D, short for "Walk In Lay Down." It is held once a year. It features many pop music bands. More than one thousand students attend every year. It's the time when we hang out with friends, sing songs, and drink beers and free ourselves totally.

Greek life is big, but not too big. It provides most of the social life and parties on campus, although off-campus activities can be found downtown, and in other areas, that are unrelated to greek life. I'm in a sorority, which I joined the second semester of my freshman year. It made a HUGE difference on my social life, I went from being rather unhappy at WashU to being very happy with so many new friends and social activities. Now, all my best friends are in my sorority. However, I still have girlfriends that are in other sororities, or aren't in greek life at all. Most of my guy friends, similarly, are in fraternities. Greek life at WashU is far different from what I hear about at state schools. It isn't very time consuming for girls, but is very time consuming for boys. There is no hazing for sororities, but I think there is some hazing for boys (as I think there are at all colleges, unfortunately). WashU tries very hard to eliminate hazing, but actually tries a lot harder for the girls. Sororities are kind of a side activity, but you can be as involved or as uninvolved as you want, which I love. It's a very easy way to get involved on campus! Two of my best friends aren't in Greek life, and belong to another extracurricular called EST, which is a completely student run emergency service that's on duty 24/7 on campus. That too, is a great organization, which I really recommend if you're interested in anything medical related. Students live in dorms until their second year (usually) on an area called the South 40, until their junior year when they typically move across campus to "the Village" to live in on-campus apartments. I lived in two very nice, new dorms my freshman and sophomore year, and lived in a less-nice on campus apartment my junior year. Housing at WashU is difficult, although I've personally had a very positive experience with them. I've gotten my first choice for housing all three years, which is extremely lucky, because most of my friends often get their second or third choice. Housing is rather unaccommodating if students don't get their first pick, which as a huge complaint among the student body. Some traditions that happen on campus include WILD, a biannual concert, which is so much fun. WILD, or walk in lay down, is a concert, that happens all day. It's the one day when WashU parties like a state school, which is about all we can handle. Past performers have included Shwayze, The Cold War Kids, Passion Pit, Method Man and Red Man, and even the Black Eyed Peas way back when. It's a lot of fun. Guest speakers are big at WashU. We held the last VP debate in 2008, which I really wish I had seen! A big comedian comes once a semester, including Seth Meyers, and Donald Glover. Shows are free...but have INCREDIBLY long lines, so come early and be prepared to wait! It's really cool having famous people perform for free at our school (for students, at least), and I really recommend going to some of the shows. It's a big drawing factor, since WashU is highly respected among many people. Next semester, Sofia Vergara from Modern Family is coming. Unfortunately, I'll be abroad, so I won't be able to see her! There are also many clubs and other activities, as well as volunteering opportunities and political activism opportunities, that are presented in a fair in the beginning of the Fall semester. I recommend attending the fair if you're interested in becoming more involved, which I also really recommend!

A Cappella and the performing arts in general are really popular. You have top notch talent (auditions are very intense and selective) for a cheap price (most concerts are FREE).

There is everything. Literally everything. Campus is so inundated with groups and activities that there is no way to figure out what the most popular ones are. There's groups for theater, investing, salsa dancing, pre-med, politics, stand-up comedy, kendo, ultimate frisbee, butter churning (seriously - not making this up), mock trial... everything. There is greek life although it's not overbearing. If you join it, cool. If you don't, you're not going to be lacking a social life in any way. It would be downright bizarre if you could not find something to do with people who share interests with you.

Even though the students here aren't muscled and huge, many people do work out and are on club or intramural sports teams. I do club tennis, which is huge here. The team has about 60 members, even though only 6 to 12 people can generally go to the tournaments. The tournaments are awesome, and we go to other universities about five hours away and stay at hotels for a couple of nights. The football team is terrible, and nobody goes to the games. The dating scene is a lot more prevalent than random hookups. People pair off quickly, and since our school isn't huge, it can be annoying for those single and ready to mingle. Some notable events are W.I.L.D., in which students literally go wild and go to a concert by a mildly-famous singer or band, and Vertigo, which is a huge dance party with a light-up dance floor made by the engineering students.

Social life at Wash U is fantastic. Freshman and Sophomore social life is heavily dependent on the fraternities, while Juniors and Seniors tend to venture into St. Louis more. If the frat thing isn't for you, there are always other things going on, like movies, hangouts at Ursa's (a great late-night eating place with tons of flat screen TVs and board games), or even water fights (which turn into mud fights...) St. Louis has a bad reputation, but the area Wash U is in is fabulously wealthy (I think the average home price in Clayton is around $600k). A short walk from campus is the Loop, which is a cool, young street with bars, fro-yo, restaurants, and shops. The Central West End is an upscale area with great places to go as well, and the MetroLink (which is free to Wash U students) has a stop there and one right by campus.

The weight room and gym.

Volunteering is big on campus. Greek life does it, we have a community service office, and there is a place called the Campus Y that has 20 different programs to volunteer through. I am invovled with the Campus Y as well as play club frisbee (Wash U Women's Ultimate- WUWU) which invovles practicing three times a week, going to tourneys all over the Midwest and South, and partying together on the weekends. Everyone seems pretty invovled and 30{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} of the campus is in Greek life. At the beginning of each semester there is an activities fair where you can find out about and sign up for everything on campus. There are guest speakers every week (called the Assembly Series) and of course many departments have speakers come and you get on the email list to find out about those. The dating scene- plenty of people are in relationships, plenty are just "hooking up", and plenty are single. You will find a variety. I think as you get older, you may be more inclined to be in a relationship. People can meet in classes, activities, parties in Frats, other parties, or at the bars. People tend to party on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Some people go out on Tuesdays as well. It all depends on you, your friends, and how much you devote to studying and how much to partying. Frats and Sororities are definitely noticable on campus but only 30{4a082faed443b016e84c6ea63012b481c58f64867aa2dc62fff66e22ad7dff6c} are invovled and you are not excluded if you are not part of Greek Life. If you don't drink or party, you can certainly go to concerts in St. Louis, go to the movies, go to the Loop, etc. While many people seem involved in partying, there is definitely a mix and you can find other things to do.