<p>I'm just wondering if Miami is STILL considered to be a total party school. I saw it's ranking in Playboy, and I know that's because it has South Beach and everything, but are there any more laid back kids? After reading some reviews online so many people said that all the kids at UM care about is getting trashed as much as possible on South Beach. I live down the street from UM, and my parents work there, and as far as I've seen it seems a bit laid back, plus they have raised their academic standards lately so it's not like anyone who wants to party in miami can just get in. </p>
<p>I wouldn't be studying in my dorm 24/7, I am social and like to have a good time, but I certainly don't go crazy. I'm just worried that the atmosphere is going to be all about partying very hard all the time, and that is certainly not what I am into.</p>
<p>Not what my S has experienced, quite the opposite (he does not stay in the dorm 24/7 either). Reviews are sometimes written to sell magazines…I look at the #1 Playboy thing as a point of humor more than anything else.</p>
<p>Not easy, but you may be able to identify some U students at Sunset Place or Target…especially starting in August. Find out from them what they do, how they spend their time. Your in a good position being right there near campus.</p>
<p>Thanks, it does make me feel better. My mom said that with all the students she has worked with, she has noticed that they are bright and a little bit laid back, not into the whole clubbing scene. And don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind if a person is a club kid but I just want to meet people that have the same interests as me. Plus, they have been raising their standards, so I was thinking that it isn’t so much the average rich kids from up north going to UM just because of it’s location. Also, they give scholarships like mad so I’m guessin a lot of kids have to study more than party to keep up their grades. </p>
<p>And this is just a theory, but I feel like a lot of newbies coming to UM think South Beach is all where its at but that must wear off after a few months, right? Living in Miami, I know many many kids at my school that used to go clubbing but after about half a year they just got tired of it.</p>
<p>Go by Hecht/Stanford RC at the begining of the year…mostly girls who can get in the clubs at 18 getting into the taxis…as the guys age or can make the “connections” to club, they will, but again the laid back analogy fits the majority, with significant numbers of rich, snobby kids, clubbers, geeks and others. It is just a diverse place. I rail against Peer Assesments and rankings, but just looking at the unvarnished stats, the school is a consensus top 20% university; if you don’t work, you will be gone. My S got into every place he applied to, name schools with significant scholarship money. In the end, UMs solid academics, campus feel and faculty/staff attention, coupled with the “your just not a number” or "“Be happy we admitted you” feel from others places made UM the right choice. Everyone is different, UM is not the fit in a lot of cases. It all depends on the student.</p>
<p>This year there were kids that wanted to live on the substance free floors of the freshman dorm, but could not get in because there were more people requesting those rooms than rooms available. There is now a waiting list. So there are definitely kids that are not into partying at UM. But there are others who are, just like any University. I also think that with today’s economy, UM’s generous merit scholarships are attracting more and more top students.</p>
<p>My son’s experience - there was a good deal of partying at UM. Thursday night Coconut Grove is popular and most of the kids he met partied at S. Beach. He went totally not into the clubbing scene, but got into it because that’s where the social scene was. People kept inviting him to South Beach parties so he started going. It was that or house/frat parties. He was disapointed that kids just didn’t hang out or go to the movies, concerts, etc. It was all partying Thursday-Sat. He ended up deciding to transfer to a school with a more down to earth population and a low key scene. He is happy to have had the UM experience but glad it’s not his entire undergrad experience.</p>
<p>When I started at UM, I was very academically oriented (and remain so), but wanted to expand my social life to bars, clubs, etc. UM is a school that requires your best academic work (some more than others, i.e. pre-med) while at the same time offering many activities and parties to balance the experience. Attending UM gave me many opportunities, ranging from the Mentoring program in the School of Business (matches students with successful, motivated, service-oriented alums) to the main career fair each semester and some major-specific career fairs, such as Nursing and Accounting. The social life helped me grow and caught me up after four hardcore years of academics in high school. btw, UM offers scholarships to about half of the entering class. I was also accepted to grad school a few days ago at the last minute partially due to my work experiences I sought out during my time at UM (through the student employment office).</p>
<p>LilyMoon, that is what I am afraid of. I went to a very snobby high school where all the kids wanted to do was shop for designer labels and party till they passed out on South Beach every weekend. I am so the opposite of that. I want a school with a whole lot of school spirit and mostly on campus activities, in a laid back town. I’m only looking at Florida schools.</p>
<p>vacationsays - my son had a High School experience similar to yours and UM was more of the same. He also wanted to get away from that and in hindsight UM was not the best place to achieve that goal. Most of the kids there were similar to what he experienced in HS. I don’t know of any Florida schools that will give you what you are looking for. My son went in a totally opposite direction and went to a small upstate NY school. We looked at UCF when visiting schools and it seemed a bit more relaxed but hard to tell from just visiting. What sort of feedback do you get from other Florida residents?</p>
<p>Most everyone agrees that UM is a party school, and into labels and what not. UF is the type of school I would want to go to, but I’m really thinking FSU is a cool place (and it doesn’t look like I’ll get into UF). And I by no means am implying that I want to just sit around all the time, I’d love going to parties (and both FSU and UF do have a bunch of parties), but at UM it seems to be EXTREME partying and the club scene takes up a lot. And since Miami is such a big town, there isn’t too much on-campus activity. </p>
<p>FSU is what I think would be a nice fit for me, and I’ve always liked Tallahassee. I’m going to tour it in a few months so I’ll see if I get good vibes. I’m just nervous that my parents will make me go to UM if I get in, but I’ll talk to them about how I feel.</p>
<p>It’s not the partying per se, it’s the type of partying. My son still enjoys partying at his new school it’s just different than what he experienced at UM. Now it’s more like the low key bars in town. People are more fun, friendly and funky not snobby. Dress code is very different. Also lots more hanging out at small gatherings at people’s houses. Town and school within walking distance of each other so everything is centered around that.</p>
<p>Good luck vacationsays - I hope FSU works out for you.</p>
<p>LilyMoon, that is exactly what I was trying to say :). It’s the TYPE of partying.</p>
<p>I am a very social person and I like to go to parties and meet new people, etc. But I don’t want to go out clubbing and wear outfits that cost over 1,000 dollars. There was enough of that at my high school.</p>
<p>So yeah, I feel like I’d be much more at home at FSU. Hopefully everything will work out!</p>
<p>vacation- My S graduated from UM in May and we have spent a lot of time on campus over the last 4 years. The stereotype you desribe is definitely present but there are plenty of kids who are much more down to earth. You just may have to make more of an effort to find them as they don’t make as bold a statement (because they’re laid-back!). If you are looking for a school with an unpretentious, laid-back feel, UM is NOT it, but if you want a school full of spirit and energy with a diverse population, this is it. My son prefers to shop at thrift stores rather than A&F and had no problems finding a great group of friends and fitting in. He was involved in many campus organizations and activities, and loved UM and all its offerings. If I had to describe UM kids with one word, it would be confident.</p>
<p>Remember that most of the kids at UM, whether they fit the stereotype or not, are very bright and do take academics seriously (2/3 graduated in the top 10% of their hs class). The ones that are there for the glitz and beach don’t last more than a semester or two. It is no longer “Suntan U” as it was once called. That said, it is a work hard, play hard school.</p>
<p>Keep an open mind and good luck in finding a great fit.</p>
<p>You’ll find all different types of people at UM. Here’s an example of what my typical week was like this past semester:</p>
<p>13 hours and 10 minutes of class
12 hours of on-campus office job
~5 hrs/week sorority activities and meetings
1-hour yearbook meeting plus work for yearbook (~3 hours a week)
Coconut Grove on Thursday night
Baseball game on Friday night (if they were home)
Usually either Friday OR Saturday night, hanging out with friends, just chilling or maybe a small party/beer pong night (I live off-campus)
Go out to dinner about once a week with friends</p>
<p>I had a 3.82 gpa this semester and went out only 1-2 times/week. I am not a club person at all, I like the Grove and I like just hanging out with a small group of friends more than anything. Obviously I am not alone in this, most of my friends have a very similar lifestyle at UM. Lilymoon, I don’t know what type of friends your son made, but there are plenty of people who enjoy more laid-back evenings if you look for them. I’m glad he’s happy where he is now though. Vacationsays, there are all types of people at UM. There are definitely plenty of people who are like the people lilymoom described, but there are also plenty like me. UF and FSU are bigger party schools in my opinion, just more in the frat party let’s get wasted in the middle of the afternoon way, than in the let’s stay out on South Beach til 5am way. UM students are paying a pretty penny for their education, and that’s reflected in the school. Students work hard because most can’t afford to not graduate on time (I’m not sure I know of any non-transfer who did not graduate on time). Visit both schools and see which is better for you, but don’t let the rich, stuck up stereotype stop you from attending UM.</p>
<p>Honestly, if the kind of kids you want to avoid are all at South Beach (which is far away and not easy to get to)then what is the problem? Any school is going to have lots of partying, I would rather have it far away and easily avoidable than have drunken frat parties everywhere.</p>
<p>Even nerd-wad MIT has a lot of hardcore partying types… I would recommend visiting Miami first and see if you like it.
Chances are high you can avoid the parties…
If you’re a guy though, good luck getting laid…
If you’re a chick… you don’t need parties.</p>
<p>My daughter is at FSU (rising senior) and I would hate to burst your bubble, but there are PLENTY of party types at FSU. The partying starts on Thurs. night and continues through to Sat. (at least). There are also specific places that are more popular than others (Chubby’s, Mint). There are also plenty of expensive cars in the parking lots.</p>
<p>I went to UMiami and the Thurs.-Sat. partying was prevalent then, as well.</p>
<p>I agree with the person who said that you will find partiers at any school. Just live your own life the way you want without apologizing to anyone else.</p>
<p>The daughter of an acquaintance went off to the University of Miami two years ago. She had graduated near the top of her class and, while not a hard core partier, was popular and a high school athlete who was known to “party” now and then with the school’s social set. After an academically disappointing freshman year she told her parents she planned to transfer to a school back in New York State. She claimed that it was far too difficult to avoid the party lifestyle at Miami and, even worse from her point of view, too expensive to keep up with the fashionable set she wanted to emulate.</p>
<p>Here’s the irony. Her choice of a school to transfer to was SUNY Albany – onetime National Champion of so-called “Party Schools.” Granted, the student body is said to be not quite so fashion conscious. </p>
<p>Now, my personal belief is that there are plenty of students at Miami – and Albany for that matter – who are neither heavy duty partiers or slaves to fashion. If you want that kind of lifestyle you can find it for sure. But you can also find the alternative. I think my friend’s daughter went to Miami looking for an active social life as much as for a good education and got caught up in the former. From what I hear the jury is still out as to whether or not the move back home has worked out as she had hoped. Purely anectdotal I know, and it won’t stop my daughter from looking at Miami for graduate study in biology and marine science.</p>