Hi guys, so I am being recruited by WashU , and I am having a hard time finalizing it with myself. I really really like the coach and the campus, its gorgeous. Everything to the dorms, food, class sizes, are perfect for me. But the one thing rlly holding me back is the lack of spirit at the school. I realize D3 sports aren’t going to be as big but I rlly don’t want to go to a school that is boring and doesn’t have fun. I wanna be proud of my school and be able to shout at sports games. Does WashU still party a lot? I come from a smaller school/ community but we do party, but not as much so I’d rlly like to so I wanna have that real college experience. I’m hoping there is still a turnout to other sports games that I can partake in but Im worried it’ll be “lame.” I see schools like USC and UCLA where they have such big sports and greek life it kinda makes me worried Im going to miss out on something at WashU. I do know it will be much much smaller than those schools though.
I guess I wanna know what WashU students like to do for fun and if nightlife isn’t dry! How much do ppl party, drink, blah blah u get the idea. What makes up for the “lack of spirit” if anything…? And also, WHY should I choose WashU?
THANKS
Just to add on your not going to get the small classes, good food and the nice dorm room. You are going to get the 150 kid classroom, the mystery food, and the old dorm room if you are not on s waiting list
What other schools are recruiting you? And what’s the timetable? Nobody is going to rate Wash U as a top fun school (but those of you who are there, correct me if I am wrong!) but it would be a great academic opportunity for you if the recruitment involves free tuition.
You point out many great things about WashU, however WashU is not known for its school spirit. Not sure if you are male or female, or what sport you play, but I would not anticipate big crowds at many games/matches/meets. Last numbers I saw there are roughly 1200 students at each football game. Only you can prioritize the various factors to decide whether the school is a good fit or not.
Are you female? It’s a priority to you to party and get trashed? Please don’t put yourself in a position in which you do not have control over your actions and are not able to make good decisions. It can’t end well.
@SouthernHope Wash U is D3 – so no athletic scholarships.
That being said, we know a few Wash U grads and they loved their school. Does that mean people paint their bare chests for the Wash U - University of Chicago football game? I have no idea, and I kind of doubt it. When my kid was going through D3 recruiting, we were advised over and over, that he should feel that he would choose the school even if he had a career ending injury the first day of freshman year pre-season. It sounds like the OP likes Wash U but it isn’t what they envisioned in terms of college sports.
I graduated from there over 30 years ago so hopefully you can get some fresher info, but back in the day, there were plenty of parties on Greek row. Also, basketball in particular was quite popular back then and the games were well attended and lively. It’s got serious academics as well though so if you are just looking for a party school, keep looking.
Hi, current WashU student here! There are plenty of parties here, especially with Greek life. If you want to get trashed, you can get trashed, but the same is true if you want to be sub free. The 35% Greek life number is actually low; that’s the count before winter recruitment, when all the freshmen join. The actual number is probably in the high 40s.
There’s really not any sports culture here, which was disappointing for me as well. In high school, football Friday night was huge, and I went to every game for all my years. I haven’t gone to a single sporting event at WashU that I wasn’t playing in myself. Generally, the sports culture on campus is more focused on everyone participating in the activity itself than watching the varsity team play. We have a 90% participation rate for our intramural leagues, and we have a bunch of club sports teams.
There is a baseball culture, though! People are big on the Cardinals or Cubs (due to high Chicago student population). Also, people do fantasy football and March Madness brackets. There’s just no school spirit for WashU; it’s all spirit for whatever team you grew up cheering for.