<p>My daughter is likely to go to Tech next year. We've only been in GA (Augusta) 18 months, having relocated from a very liberal suburb of St. Louis, where she grew up. My daughter is freaked out about the level of conservatism down here, so my question to current Tech students is this: What's the political climate on campus? Are there lots of liberal students? How about organizations...? She got a fee waiver to attend Connect With Tech next month because of her SAT scores and I know her primary worry is that she'll meet a bunch of Bush supporters, Atlanta's cosmopolitan atmosphere notwithstanding. I don't mean to be offensive, but this is crucial for her. (I'd ask about musical tastes, but that's going too far...!) Any help is much appreciated.</p>
<p>I've actually met a good amount of liberals down here. I am by no means liberal...or conservative for that matter, but I find most Tech students dont talk about politics very much. The only time politics came up is when I was talking to a fraternity brother about it or something during rush. Just tell her not to go into the KA house and talk about politics and she should be fine</p>
<p>Well.. from the OP's description, his/her daughter won't be likely to just keep quiet about politics. Someone who feels that strongly isn't going to be content staying quiet. </p>
<p>I'd say Tech is indeed conservative, with more support for Republicans than otherwise. There are indeed organizations, such as the popular College Republicans and College Democrats. However, the College Republicans seem to be a lot more visible on campus. </p>
<p>Georgia, aside from the city of Atlanta, is heavily Republican. Bush won Georgia easily, and the governor is a Republican. The Talk Radio is conservative. </p>
<p>Who knows, maybe being in Georgia will be a good experience for her. It isn't normal to be so distraught about these kinds of things to this point. Sure, being into politics is important.. but she needs some perspective first.</p>
<p>GAtransplant:
She can hang around with my very liberal son if he ends up there next year. :)</p>
<p>He tells me he survived (thrived, actually) at a Jesuit HS, and so he can handle a conservative college...But in my mind picturing him at school down south is a bit of a stretch.</p>
<p>Though I don't agree that it's "not normal" to want to be around some other people who feel the way you do about something as vital as politics--in fact, I think it's not especially normal NOT to care--my daughter is capable of getting along with most people. Frankly, I'm freaked out, myself. After living in St. Louis, Chicago, San Francisco, Cleveland and a bunch of midwestern college towns, the political/religious climate in this state is somewhat of a shock.</p>
<p>If she winds up at Tech, I'm sure she'll find some Green Day-loving compatriots.</p>
<p>My freshman son is not very active politically, but he sure likes Green Day!</p>
<p>2sonmama, I took my daughters to see Green Day at Phillips Arena in Atlanta last year (as well as to Charlotte, NC) and I think one of the things that attracts my daughter to Tech is the availability/proximity of big time concerts. In any case, she'll be glad to know there's another Green Day fan (esp. a boy) at Tech.</p>
<p>Although it sounds as if there's not a lot of time to do anything but study...</p>
<p>Augusta is MUCH different from Atlanta. The big reason the Atlanta METRO is still conservative is mostly economics, especially on the northside. However, the city/downtown area tends to be very liberal (one of the most liberal in the country surprisingly). Now, many of the kids are from "feeder schools" from Metro Atlanta (mainly Cobb/Marietta (especially East Cobb), Gwinnett, North Fulton, etc.) They've grown up in fiscally conservative environments (not so much religious, IMO). But, you generally won't hear kids spouting "Bush is God" or anything like that; in fact, many of us don't like G Dubya. Like others on here have said, most don't get into politics here.</p>
<p>GAtransplant</p>
<p>One of the things that has surprised me most is how easy my son thinks the classes are at GT. I had heard horror stories about CS 1371 (Computing for Engineers), but he says it is designed for kids who have never done any programming and that the teacher says it will be a cinch for those who have. He is also finding himself well prepared for Chemistry and the Linear Algebra for Calculus (he had concurrent college credit for Calc 1 & 2). He is only taking 14 hours (6 classes), but two of those hours are marching band which takes up a lot of time.</p>
<p>He loves it there, is having a lot of fun, and has a steady girl already. I hope he is not underestimating the difficulty after only 3 weeks, but so far so good.</p>
<p>^He's underestimating it. I did that. I thought everything was easy-peasy until test days; I think I've bombed 2 tests. Then again, he could just be a bonafied genius.</p>
<p>I'll most likely be attending GT next year. Your very liberal daughter can hang with very liberal me! :) Haha, my dad is conservative, too. We have interesting conversations. </p>
<p>I wouldn't worry too much about it. There's a little bit of everything at Tech, from the times I've been there.</p>
<p>
I don't know either, but I was just at the Connect with Tech program and the speakers said 2 things repeatedly. One was that almost every incoming FR was great in math in HS and at first doesn't think Tech is difficult. But eventually at some point, it becomes harder than they could have imagined. For some it is the first test, others maybe 5 weeks in, others may be in the second term, but eventually everyone gets to that point. The other thing that was emphasized repeatedly was how much free tutoring is provided to FR: 5 nights a week from 8PM to 12AM, for calculus, chemistry, and physics, in the basement of every FR dorm. There is also tutoring for every class at any level available. Their point was that these kids were typically the tutors themselves in HS, but now need to realize that help is available and it's OK to seek it.</p>
<p>I can't help but find this thread funny. I don't think that I have ever heard about someone nervous about going to college and getting exposed to conservatism. :)</p>
<p>No slam is intended here. I just find the irony to be funny.</p>
<p>She'll have no problem finding a group that she fits in well with, and I don't get the impression that GT is all that politically active anyway. She can always go hang out with the G Staters if she needs some liberalism. :)</p>
<p>Tell her that it will be a good test for her convictions and ideals to have them challenged rather than automatically confirmed.</p>