<p>I am from the Seattle area and considering attending UT austin, smu, and baylor. Are people at these schools friendly towards people from my area? Also, do fraternities at these schools tend to exclude northerners?</p>
<p>Austin is the liberal heart of Texas, and there are plenty of people there who migrated from all over the country to attend UT Austin. I imagine Austin is quite a melting pot of people from different ethnic backgrounds, socioeconomic backgrounds, political backgrounds.</p>
<p>Baylor and SMU are both private Protestant Christian affiliated schools. That said, I’m sure most students are friendly.</p>
<p>Thank you. I’m fairly conservative also, so I figure I would fit into the political climate at smu and baylor</p>
<p>There are plenty of conservatives at UT Austin. I would not make this decision based off politics.</p>
<p>You’re going to attend college to learn. Broaden your selection beyond politics.</p>
<p>Hey there. I’m a native Texan and I got to UT. I’ve met very few people here who have anything against someone being from the north for that fact alone. Sure there are some not so friendly people here, but that is not something that is unique to Texas or anywhere else for that matter. H&B is right. UT is a very diverse place. You’ll find people of all religions and political backgrounds. Making a decision based solely on politics is a very bad idea. People here are generally pretty friendly. </p>
<p>I don’t know why people outside of Texas think we all hate northerners or whatever, but it’s not true at all. You’ll be judged based on how you are as a person, not which state you come from. Being from the north is a non issue and you have nothing to be concerned about.</p>
<p>bdoobie I think you will find the people of Texas very welcoming and friendly. I am from Texas and Texans have a reputation of being friendly. I sincerely hope you find that to be the case. Any one of those universities are excellent! As far as sororities that might prove a little more difficult. They will certainly NOT exclude you for being from Seattle - it might help you to stand out. BUT, sorority recruitment is as time consuming as filling out all those college applications! All three schools have summer rushes which means you are going to need to be getting information now on what they will require. All sororities at those schools are going to require recommendations from sorority alums. Be asking around now if your mom has any friends who were in sororities. That may be where you are at a disadvantage as sororities are not as big a deal in the northwest so you may have a challenge finding alums who can write letters of recommendation. Here is a site to visit out of Houston. Contact them and ask what you need to do to be ready for summer recruitment. [Houston</a> Sorority Recruitment](<a href=“http://www.houston-panhellenic.org/recruitment/recruitment.htm]Houston”>Recruitment Information and Committee) or they can suggest who you need to contact. Best of luck - they are all great schools and being a part of a sorority is a lot of fun!</p>
<p>My son went to UT and he grew up in Maine. After a day or two in Austin, he called me and said, “Mom! People here actually come up to you and TALK to you!” He couldn’t believe how friendly everyone was. I have lived in Texas and up north, and I can tell you that Texans are friendlier! Northerners warm up after they get to know you, but it takes some time.</p>
<p>Oh I wasn’t saying I’m going to make a decision off of politics. I was just acknowledging that smu and baylor tend to be pretty conservative. Thank you all for the input!</p>
<p>While you consider applying to those schools also consider the cost. UT will be $50K/year or more.</p>
<p>I would definitely visit before I moved from North to South (or visa versa)…the culture is very different.</p>
<p>Texans will love you. They—we—will find you exotic. </p>
<p>I am a transplant. Texans are welcoming.</p>
<p>I am half northern and half southern and like the South much more (even though I love my hometown of Philadelphia).</p>
<p>as long as you don’t start rooting for them 'boys, SF!</p>
<p>That would never happen</p>
<p>Fly Eagles Fly!!</p>
<p>I was a northerner who moved to the south a while back. Everyone here was welcoming. Where I came from was never an issue. In fact, it is not moving parts of country that is ever an issue. People in small towns do not tend to be accepting of outsiders. But you are talking about going to a college. That is 100% fine. Only thing I found a bit difficult, as a northerner moving to the south at a college was how traditional it was. Ok…some would use the word sexist. I would be shopping for a camera and the guy would talk to my then boyfriend instead of me, even though I was the one asking questions. I could not get help at a car dealership. And the dorms were separated by gender. The lifestyle I had become used to was just not acceptable in the south. However, I understand that UT Austin is very “northern-ish” in the social environment. Way more is acceptable there than would be at other schools in Texas. But if you are right out of high school, you won’t even notice the differences. I had gone to college in the north. Then I worked a couple years. Then I moved to Texas and went to grad school. Despite being a grown adult paying all my own bills, I found frustrating in not being allowed to have my boyfriend come to my dorm. I had never heard of visiting hours before also. If things had been that way in my undergrad, it would have just been normal to me.</p>
<p>It’s good to hear your experiences, it seems that many of the stereotypes we hear about southerners disliking northerners are big misconceptions!</p>