<p>Hi guys! </p>
<p>I'm an out of stater,applying to Trinity and I was just wondering if anyone knew anything about the general feel of the campus. I've heard its very nice - clean, fairly new, ect, but what about the activities and people? Is it heavily a republican scene or hugely frat based? Do people seem laid back or is it so competitive academically no one has fun?? :) I've heard some comments along these lines so I wondered! Also, does anybody know what kind of art scene trinity has, mostly along the lines of film and video? I know it has a television studio, but how good is the program?</p>
<p>Hi silverscreen, </p>
<p>I am a current TU student, so I can give you some insight on my perspective on Trinity.
I would say that Trinity is a nice mix of democrats and republicans, we have groups for each, The House of Liberal Politics (THOLP) and a Student Republican group. It’s Texas, so of course there is the stereotype of being heavily republican, but it’s also a small liberal arts college, so you get a nice mix of people, no one group is too over bearing. </p>
<p>As far as the frats go, there is greek life on campus but it isn’t too overwhelming either. The greeks make up a pretty small portion of the student population, they are just more identifiable by their matching outfits. Parties at Trinity mainly center around greeks, but I think that’s how it is at any school. And the parties are not all greek-exclusive, so not to worry. </p>
<p>Academics are at the center of most of the students lives here, however, people are more competitive with themselves than with others. I would say, for the most part, Trinity students are pretty laid back socially. One fault would be that our student body is a little apathetic as far as school spirit and such. But students are also really involved on campus and different clubs and organizations. </p>
<p>I actually am working with the chair of the film studies minor to make it a secondary double major and it’s something I’m really excited about. TigerTV offers a lot of opportunities for students whether they are communications majors or not, and it’s a program that students should really take more advantage of in my opinion. There are three separate student run shows, you can get experience working on the crew and running the station, and we recently rennovated the studio so it’s now in HD. And it’s REALLY nice. The film classes I’ve taken have been amazing. And they offer a wide variety of classes whether your interested in the abstract conception of film (take Philosophy of Film) or the practicality of making films (take Visual Communications), or if you just like discussing films there are a lot of international cinema classes that discuss Chinese, German, Italian, etc. films. You can get as involved as you’d like, which is one real advantage of Trinity, it’s small so there’s always room for more people and more projects, and more creativity! </p>
<p>Hope that helps a little, let me know if there’s anything else on your mind!</p>
<p>sgwTU12,
You say the students are “apathetic as far as school spirit and such”, so are sporting events not very well attended? When I visited the school people told me that lots of people attend games.</p>
<p>When I was there a few weeks ago, our tour just guide came out and said that no one really has much in the way of school spirit (in fact, she was wearing a Longhorn shirt) and that sports weren’t very popular. She said that the administration is having to all but force people to tailgate and that sort of thing in order to boost game attendance - however, she did joke that Trinity has some of the best Ultimate Frisbee teams in the nation… </p>
<p>The other person on the tour with me (a football recruit) was NOT amused 
It was so funny… he asked who Trinity’s main rivals were, and she just kind of shrugged. This didn’t faze me but I guess it might bother some.</p>
<p>I’ve visited it a few times, so maybe I can offer my point of view.</p>
<p>From my impression, Trinity seems to fit the LAC mold fairly well. The students seem to be very active in joining organizations on campus and such, and I’ve been told that the sporting events have a decent percentage of the student base come to see it, though from the lack of specifics that I’ve heard, I’m not sure that the information is credible.</p>
<p>The campus itself is nice, though not as architecturally beautiful or cohesive as some places. It seems like buildings were just built haphazardly on whatever land Trinity could find when they needed to expand, which is likely exactly what happened. Not an ugly campus by any means, and the landscaping is very nice during the winter, but it’s not awe inspiring or anything like that. Which brings me to the last thing any students should note: the weather in San Antonio during August and September is HOT. Last August, we had at least ten days over 100 degrees, probably more, and not a drop of rain. So when you show up for orientation, don’t expect a lot of green; the best gardening services in the world can’t keep grass alive when water restrictions are on and it’s 100 degrees every other day.</p>
<p>From my experience with the students, they seem to be politically balanced, and the majority seem willing to talk about issues rather than simply tell you you’re wrong, even if they disagree with you. The greek scene seems to be fairly small, but they’re all local frats/soros, so they’re cheaper, but a much lower number of alumni. Academically, I’ve been told that they’re fairly laid back, and I didn’t get the impression that the students are “all study, all the time” or anything like that.</p>
<p>No idea about the art thing, honestly, not really my field, so I never really found out. I do know the theater they have is excellent.</p>
<p>buried, I think you had a dud for a tour guide! I’m a parent, but my impression is that, while Trinity isn’t a jock school, there’s plenty of school spirit. I observe a lot of kids who fit the “work hard, play hard” description. My D has been very, very happy there.</p>
<p>ilovethehillz --I guess I should clarify about games. Games are attended by students, but it is not a huge campus event like it is at larger schools, so don’t expect the kind of school spirit you would find at UT or A&M. Of course we all love and support our athletes, I just want to make sure prospectives realize that the size and scale of Trinity keeps it from comparing to larger schools that rally on school spirit. </p>
<p>also, I love trinity’s campus, there is actually some pretty cool architecture, of course, once again, its a smaller school so it is more pushed together, but I find that very convenient when walking to class :)</p>
<p>I am scheduled to visit the campus in July for a Trinity in Focus event. Will it be really hot then or just a lot of humidity? How is the area around campus? Also, can anyone comment on the International Studies program? Thanks.</p>
<p>July will be toasty. Area around campus is nice. The San Antonio Zoo is nearby along with historic Brackenridge golf course. Between Trinity and the Airport on 281 is the Quarry with shops, restaurants and a movie theater.</p>
<p>I want to add that it will most definitely not be high humidity. There’s a lot of truth to what people say about it being a dry heat; the humidity during the summer is almost nonexistent except right before it rains.</p>
<p>It will be hot in July, though. Last summer, we had something like 30 consecutive days over 100 degrees in San Antonio.</p>