U of washington out of state

Hi! I was wondering if it’s uncommon to attend the University of Washington as an out of state student from the East coast?

I’ve heard someone say that most people are from Washington or California if they’re not from out of the country, and that it’s difficult to make friends because of Greek life events that occur before school starts (for non freshmen), which would be difficult for someone who lives so far away.

Also, is Greek life prevalent? I was trying to avoid getting involved in it, but would I have no social life if I didn’t?

I’m interested in majoring in Communications and would also be grateful if anyone had any advice/information to offer about that.

I know this question is all over the place, but I’d really like to know more about U of Washington!!

Hi! I’m a parent who is also a UW alum.

Yes, I think you’ll find that a lot of students are locals, because UW is probably the best school for the entire region. So I think a lot of kids around here plan to go to UW their whole life. Back East, there are so many options that you might not even be aware of UW. That said, you will find people from all over. There will be plenty of international students too.

There is a Greek system at UW which I wasn’t part of. I think most freshmen are in the dorms and will meet people there, or in their classes/department. I think it would be easy to go through school without making friends; you need to take the initiative to get involved in things, whether it’s college events, dorm groups, a job, the UW Daily (newspaper), or the Greek system.

Good luck with your decision!

Just curious; did you receive admittance notification?

Do you have any information on the Allen school? It says online that the Allen school is mainly Washington students. We realize it is very competitive. Do you have any opinion how an out-of-state student would get along? We know it is a reach. Trying to compare to a traditional college town experience at UW madison. (Also Comp Sci)

Thank you!

Just in case someone else out of state interested in the Allen school Comp Sci, I found this online.

“(We make a small number of DA offers to out-of-state students, but the vast majority of DA offers go to Washington residents.)”

@michhaller , agree with everything @eastlakekid had to say. S would still socialize with his friends from our local WA HS but only minimally because they had different majors. If anything, his friends group expanded because of dorm life, classes, and work. As a resident advisor, one of S’s jobs is to do a group outing with his residents and to make sure he touches base with them a certain # of times a quarter. Lots of clubs for every possible interest there. As many friends as S has, quite honestly I only know of one who was in a fraternity. I went to USC (SoCal) for a bit- UW Greek system seems minor compared to theirs.

I have a friend whose S likes to keep to himself and, much to his mom’s dismay, is quite successful doing so.

Your UW experience is whatever you make of it. Good luck.