<p>Thought will start a thread since this forum is very quiet!</p>
<p>Hi: I have posted here before with questions. My son has applied to SMU, but I am no longer sure he will attend if admitted. After reading some of the posts on the SMU thread, I contacted the school and talked at great length with the someone in the Alcohol & Drug Abuse Prevention office. They admitted that the school does have a big problem with alcohol and that this year there has been a jump in the number of violations. I was told that the biggest problem is with freshman, athletes, and the Greek scene. They do have drinking issues in many of the dorms. The honors dorms have fewer problems, but there are still problems. I was told that when polled, 30% of the students stated that they did not drink. That means 70% do, so with a legal drinking age of 21…the math speaks for itself.</p>
<p>Bringbackpluto, please read the other thread. I provided what my perceived explanation is for the increase in alcohol violations this year.</p>
<p>In addition, while 70% of students say they drink, I find that poll to be misleading. I drank as a freshman - but I drank responsibly and never once did I endanger my safety or that of others or never did I jeopardize my schoolwork. My parents were aware of this and trusted that I would make smart decisions. </p>
<p>With all due respect, a big part of college for parents is letting go. If your son wants to go to SMU, I hope that you will respect his decision and trust him to make wise decisions once he’s there.</p>
<p>Lots of new feedback. Interesting information and I wish more students would come on this forum and talk about the drinking and partying pitfalls at SMU - is it more than other colleges?</p>
<p>I am a new parent, kid in HS, so I have to rely on the boards to get information. SMU was in the running for us but our counselor warned us not to apply! I still think it is a good contender since my son would apply to Engineering, he is undecided. We cannot visit and that is causing us a lot of agony over which 10 schools to apply to.</p>
<p>This seems to get brought up frequently. And frankly, it drives me crazy to hear people talk about SMU having a drinking/drug problem. I currently attend SMU, and I transferred here form a state school, Texas State University. While attending Texas State, I PERSONALLY knew two people who died from from drug related incidents, and I heard of several more during the two years I was there. Drugs and alcohol will be prevalent at ANY university. SMU just gets the bad media attention because I think people are surprised a school with such great academics encounters these kinds of things. Perhaps, compared to a school like Harvard, SMU students might be a little more outgoing, but really, SMU is no different than most universities. It just gets more media attention.</p>
<p>Our GC says that the girls at SMU often get plastic surgery done right before coming to college! I mean isn’t that a bit over the top?</p>
<p>Oh, come on, pixeljig - do you really believe that? If you’re that gullible, then I don’t think your child would enjoy SMU anyway.</p>
<p>I know two girls at SMU who have had boob jobs - and they are the exception, not the rule.</p>
<p>Yeah, thats what I told the GC, to which she just shrugged her shoulders! I would hate to be judgmental like that. Hence my participation on here so I can get to hear the truth.</p>
<p>From what I read about SMU’s drive towards the future building the reputation makes me want to know more about it.</p>
<p>I wish students would post more often :)</p>
<p>Okay, but do you really think you’re adding anything the conversation by spouting off something <em>so</em> ridiculous? </p>
<p>Seems to me like you’d rather just add fuel to the fire of SMU stereotypes that get perpetuated over the years. Are you sure you’re not a TCU alum?</p>
<p>My daughter has applied to SMU for Fall, 2010. We have had two full-day visits to campus and were impressed with the appearance of the campus and the friendliness of the staff and students. She is mainly interested in Art History and we spent much of our time at the Meadows School, but while she was busy with interviews and attending a class, I roamed around campus and visited the student center. Having grown up in Dallas during the 50’s and 60’s, I am familiar with the SMU stereotype. I did not hear or observe anything that would support that stereotype. Several kids from my daughter’s school have enrolled in SMU over the past few years and have done very well there. Her high school is small (grad classes between 25-30), so if there were problems, just about everyone would hear about it.
Interesting comment from pixeljig’s GC. Does the GC live in Dallas?</p>
<p>I highly recommend that any student seriously interested in SMU participate in an overnight visit. The prospective student will gain more knowledge about SMU (or any school) during a one night stay in a dormitory than any guidebooks or postings can provide. My D was accepted to SMU and was very interested in attending there, because she was admitted into the Cox Business Scholars program. However, after her overnight stay she decided to attend another school, because she was concerned that she would not “fit in” there. She felt that Tulane was a better fit for her and she is now a very happy sophomore there. </p>
<p>I do think that a very important, but overlooked, factor in a college decision is whether or not the prospective student feels comfortable there. An overnight visit is a great way to help determine this comfort level. I would not worry about drinking and partying so much, as that element is present at virtually every university except perhaps for some devoutly religious schools. The best we can do as parents is to try to teach our kids to make good decisions and help them find a college environment where they feel that they “fit in.”</p>
<p>lol! I am just a worried mom! Son goes to an international school abroad. GC has visited SMU and has been in the business 20 years…Since we have not visited I have to rely on other sources. I am more than glad to hear what the real deal is, not just hearsay.</p>