My son visited Ursinus and loved the class he attended, Prof. he spoke to about his major and the level of seriousness among students about their studies. He’s interested in sociology/anthro. He does youth circus and is interested in music. Doesn’t do a sport. We liked everyone we met and he felt “at home”. He’s read that if you aren’t involved in sports, drinking and greek life, you won’t have much to do. If it were a big school, I don’t think he’d worry because he could find a different cohort of friends but Ursinus is tiny. Anyone have experience?
My son will be attending Ursinus in the fall (political science/history/social justice) and definitely falls into the slightly quirky category! He may be running for them – the coaches have been in touch and are interested in him, but I think the’re waiting to see his spring times before making a final decision. Regardless, he’s not a “typical” athlete.
I have the same concern about the small size making it harder to find a group – they’re just aren’t as many options. Still, we all feel strongly that it’s such a perfect environment for him. LMK if you’d like to discuss!
Your hs son may have some preconceived notions about sports, greek life, and drinking that will prove not to be true as an 18 year old or even a 20 year old college student. He may find a club sport he lives (broomball, ultimate frisbee, co-ed softball) that gets him a group of friends. He may find a fraternity that supports the local (or national) boys and girls club or does Habitat for Humanity and he really likes that.
If he had a really good time while visiting the campus, he must have found some things he likes to do, even if it was just eating.
@TDBC19355 - what is it about Ursinus that makes it a perfect fit? I’m trying to figure out this school.
I think that the party crowd gets a lot of press. As my introverted D says, there’s lots of people who don’t party, but we’re just in our rooms or hanging out more quietly!”
I think it doesn’t matter to you as long as you find your niche. Plenty of kids have no desire to be the big man on campus. They find their people in music or theatre or peer advocates or bio lab.
A colleague’s D is there, and she is definitely not a partying kind of kid. Has a good group of friends and is thriving academically.
Hi! Im actually a current student at Ursinus! I’d like to preface by saying that on campus I am both an athlete and involved in greek life. First off, sports. A lot of the campus population are involved in athletics. However, there are many other things to do on campus, and you’ll find that students are involved in so much more. We have both a dance and theater program. Additionally, there is a choir, two signing groups, ensembles (Jazz, Wind, and String)! I have many friends who participate in theater/dance as well! Addressing the drinking culture at the school, it would be a lie to say people don’t go out. However, there are plenty of people who stay in on the weekends, including myself! Throughout freshman year, my friends and I had many weekend movie nights in the common rooms! I’m not sure if your son likes video games, but some of my friends on campus also play DnD together, and other video games! While some of the student body population participates in greek life, you may find its not entirely what you expected. Our greek life full of students who participate in theater and dance, the science “nerds”, and really anyone interested in greek life! We have both national fraternities, and a local fraternity (local just means its just located on ursinus’ campus, while national is located on other campuses). We also have gender neutral fraternities. While your son may not be interested in Greek life, I would say our greek life at Ursinus is not probably what he expects. As for finding friends, you find your group(s) of people through your classes, activities and the tons of clubs on campus, as well as the hall of your dorm! Since the school is small, you get closer with your classmates and professors. I hope this helps!
Bumblebee38, Thank you for that explanation. My son is also quite “quirky” and could basically be classified as a science nerd. He takes that as a compliment. He is still struggling to make his final decision and his main worry about Ursinus is that he won’t find his “people”. He plays DnD with his friends on weekends and is a gamer. He heard that Ursinus is a “jock” school and that is worrying him. How easy is it to find kids like him? He is pretty quiet until he gets comfortable.