University of Hawaii at Manoa Top Questions

Students who attend UH Manoa come from diverse culture groups and backgrounds. This relaxed but rigorous learning environment Paradise lures all kinds of people for different reasons. Many people who come to study here are those who have declared their field of studies in the astronomy, marine biology, oceanography, and volcanology areas of discipline. The student demographic embodies the "board" culture well as many of our students skateboard and surf.

I'd say the stereotype of students at our school is laid back, care free, and easy going. To some extent, the stereotype of UHM students are accurate. People here are very friendly and easy to talk to.

The stereotype at UH Manoa is a very diverse one with many different demographics represented here. I think that the stereotype is fitting for a school with such a collective mix of cultures.

One of the most common stereotype of our school by people not from Hawaii is definitely that everyone's always at the beach or surfing or whatever. And that's probably true, a lot of people do go to the beach and surf, but it's not something everyone does. Also, I think a stereotype that many people in Oahu have (myself included) is that it's just where you go to get your prereqs done and then transfer out. As if the school isn't all that good. But I have come to find out there are some amazing teachers. Of course there are some not so great teachers here, but what school doesn't?

A possible stereotype that some people have of our students is that everybody likes to just surf. However, this is inaccurate. There are a lot of kids who study and work hard here.

In my experience, the stereotypes people hold regarding the students at UH Manoa will depend on the stereotyper's background. Many people who attend private schools in Hawaii have a negative view of UHM, commonly viewing the quality of academics as inferior to those programs on the mainland. Most private school kids will (likely) believe that UH doesn't have a large population of private-high-school kids, and that most of the students that were educated in Hawaii come from public schools. They further assume that UH is a quick and easy program. For some public school students in Hawaii, the stereotype seems to be that UH offers a great social scene for a) the price of in-state tuition and/or b) with a relatively easy route to a bachelor's degree. For most people outside of Hawaii and within the US, the stereotype is that students of UH will go to the beach and surf every day, and that the stresses of school will be far less exhausting in the beautiful Hawaii weather. Most of the stereotypes for education in Hawaii are predominantly influenced by tourism advertisements. I cannot address international students' stereotypes to the same degree. The stereotypes discussed above are all not true, for the following reasons: 1. UH is NOT a school that offers easy degrees, and is NOT inferior to other schools. Our School of Ocean and Earth Sciences and Technologies (SOEST), for Travel Industry and Management, and for Business (notably International Business) are all very strong, and our English as a Second Language and Asian Language programs are some of the best in the nation. 2. UH is NOT made up (primarily) of lazy and/or unmotivated students. There definitely are students like that, but my experience at UH has introduced me to many hard-working and intelligent people looking for a top-class education. 3. UH definitely does have a strong social scene, but it is not nearly as prevalent as many would think, and not all students are involved with on-campus events. UH Manoa is primarily a commuter school with a good portion of the student body coming from their home towns, and most students find their social scene outside of campus. 4. Many UH students do NOT go to the beach every day, mostly because UH is not located right on the ocean. The Manoa campus is in a valley that is 3-5 miles from the closest beaches (in Waikiki - tourist center of Hawaii), which are not the most popular among the college kids and locals. The popular beaches are a 20-30 minutes drive's away, or 1.5 hours to the North Shore. 5. UH tuition is reasonable for out-of-state students, and very good for in-state tuition. It is definitely worth 'the bang for the buck.' ***All of the information described above represents my own views through years of experience at the university, and this in no way represents the views of the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

In my experience, the stereotypes people hold regarding the students at UH Manoa will depend on the stereotyper's background. Many people who attend private schools in Hawaii have a negative view of UHM, commonly viewing the quality of academics as inferior to those programs on the mainland. Most private school kids will (likely) believe that UH doesn't have a large population of private-high-school kids, and that most of the students that were educated in Hawaii come from public schools. They further assume that UH is a quick and easy program. For some public school students in Hawaii, the stereotype seems to be that UH offers a great social scene for a) the price of in-state tuition and/or b) with a relatively easy route to a bachelor's degree. For most people outside of Hawaii and within the US, the stereotype is that students of UH will go to the beach and surf every day, and that the stresses of school will be far less exhausting in the beautiful Hawaii weather. Most of the stereotypes for education in Hawaii are predominantly influenced by tourism advertisements. I cannot address international students' stereotypes to the same degree. The stereotypes discussed above are all not true, for the following reasons: 1. UH is NOT a school that offers easy degrees, and is NOT inferior to other schools. Our School of Ocean and Earth Sciences and Technologies (SOEST), for Travel Industry and Management, and for Business (notably International Business) are all very strong, and our English as a Second Language and Asian Language programs are some of the best in the nation. 2. UH is NOT made up (primarily) of lazy and/or unmotivated students. There definitely are students like that, but my experience at UH has introduced me to many hard-working and intelligent people looking for a top-class education. 3. UH definitely does have a strong social scene, but it is not nearly as prevalent as many would think, and not all students are involved with on-campus events. UH Manoa is primarily a commuter school with a good portion of the student body coming from their home towns, and most students find their social scene outside of campus. 4. Many UH students do NOT go to the beach every day, mostly because UH is not located right on the ocean. The Manoa campus is in a valley that is 3-5 miles from the closest beaches (in Waikiki - tourist center of Hawaii), which are not the most popular among the college kids and locals. The popular beaches are a 20-30 minutes drive's away, or 1.5 hours to the North Shore. 5. UH tuition is reasonable for out-of-state students, and very good for in-state tuition. It is definitely worth 'the bang for the buck.' ***All of the information described above represents my own views through years of experience at the university, and this in no way represents the views of the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

In my experience, the stereotypes people hold regarding the students at UH Manoa will depend on the stereotyper's background. Many people who attend private schools in Hawaii have a negative view of UHM, commonly viewing the quality of academics as inferior to those programs on the mainland. Most private school kids will (likely) believe that UH doesn't have a large population of private-high-school kids, and that most of the students that were educated in Hawaii come from public schools. They further assume that UH is a quick and easy program. For some public school students in Hawaii, the stereotype seems to be that UH offers a great social scene for a) the price of in-state tuition and/or b) with a relatively easy route to a bachelor's degree. For most people outside of Hawaii, the stereotype is that students of UH will go to the beach and surf every day, and that the stresses of school will be far less exhausting in the beautiful Hawaii weather. Most of the stereotypes for education in Hawaii are predominantly influenced by tourism advertisements. I cannot address international students' stereotypes to the same degree.

UH Manoa consists of two groups from my perspective: natives and Cali kids. You got your body-boarding, pigeon speaking, tanned and local pride Hawaii-born natives, with the occasional mix of stoners and asians on the side. And on the other side of the spectrum are West-coast Abercrombie dressed blondes and brunettes, partying up Cali style and dreaming of heavily missed Mexican delicacies. I wouldn't say these stereotypes are totally accurate, because you can't completely identify a person's total persona and interests with a group label. Not every local kid surfs and not every Cali chick dresses in plaid shirts.

Unfortunately, many of the in-state students at UH are seriously unprepared for college due to Hawaii's awful public schools. However, there are plenty of intelligent and well-prepared kids here. But maybe not so many intelligent kids who are here to be excellent students... Unfortunately the graduation rate is notoriously low, mainly because a lot of kids transfer out before they graduate. The people that transfer usually end up wanting a traditional college life, which UH is not. The allure of the beach, mountains, tropical activities, and of course surfing distract a lot of people from their studies. But for most of us, it just makes our studies that much more bearable. Class might be really hard or boring, but we can always go to the beach afterwords...even if it's December.