University of Massachusetts-Amherst Top Questions

The social life is fantastic. It's laid back, open-minded, and perpetual for some people. It doesn't get much better than Umass.

The best thing you can do to better your social life at UMass is to join a sorority or fraternity. Joining a fraternity like Theta Chi or a sorority like Alpha Chi Omega can give you an amazing experience. These are the types of friends you will forever remember and cherish for decades after college. They have the highest retention rates, as in students who join enjoy their experience at UMass and are less likely to transfer elsewhere. These fraternities and sororities no longer have the terrible "Animal House" image. These are driven men and women who value academics, the community, all while having fun every second of their college years. The locations are on campus and are a better living experience than in the dorms.

Hockey and football games were my favorite sporting events to attend! My closest friends were people that I met in my dorm second semester. My first semester I hated where I was put to live, so over winter break I requested a new housing assignment, and got placed into one of my top choices of where I wanted to live! Whether or not students leave the dorm room doors open depends on where you live and the people you live with. Leaving your door open is one way that can make getting to know people easier!

There is always something going on. Whether is be a concert, sporting event, lecture, musical performace, guest speaker etc. It is very easy to make friends. In my freshman dorm our doors were always open. At any given time of the day you could find someone to talk to. Some people party every weekend and some don't. You dont alwasy have to go to big parties either, you will meet people that know people etc.

The most popular sports teams are the hockey and basketball teams. The most attended games are probably the hockey games. I am involved in a group called Alpha Lambda Delta which is an academic honors society for freshmen who had GPAs of 3.7 or higher..I think. They have academic, fundraising, and community service events. I've heard that students keep their doors open, but mostly during freshman year. (During my freshman year, almost everyone kept their doors open, but I heard that after freshman year, more people start to keep them closed..I'm not sure why.) I met my closest friends in my dorm. Almost all my friends that I spend the most time with were in my hall. If I'm awake at 2am on a Tuesday, I'm just hanging out with my friends, maybe watching tv. A lot of people party often, maybe every weekend, including some Thursdays. Frats and sororities don't seem to be that important, but a lot of people go to frats on the weekends to dance and party. If you don't want to drink, there are movies at the campus center on Friday nights, or you can go to the mall or movies in Amherst (or maybe it's Hadley, a town nextdoor), or take the bus to Northampton. There are many arts events at the Fine Arts center or at the surrounding colleges (Amherst, Smith, Mount Holyoke, and Hampshire), you just have to find out when they are. Off campus there is a small mall and movie theater nearby and places like Northampton a bus ride away.

For three years, I have lived with many of the same people (in dorms) who I met my freshman year. Our dorm halls have always been places conducive to socialization. I've heard good things about most of the athletic events, but have only attended football games. The easiest thing to find to do on a weekend night? Definitely drink/party. Off campus, there are always lots of alternative activities though: independent movie theaters, concerts, great restaurants, etc.

Typically pretty boring. There are a lot of clubs and activities but they're not all that interesting and not many people attend.

The Marching Band is GREAT amounts of fun. We go to away games every once in a while, and the people you meet will be lifelong friends. I met my boyfriend while in Marching Band, and I don't regret it at all. Lots of people choose to leave their doors open, and some don't. If you want to make friends on your floor, it's a great way to meet people. Finding potential relationship people isn't so hard either. You can reach out to a club or activity, go to sporting events, or to frat/sorority parties and meet lots of great people, just be careful about the parties.

There is so much to do on campus, its amazing! The sporting events, which are free for all Umass students, gain a lot of attention and are usually packed with a sea of maroon and white. Since there are so many clubs and organization on campus, over 300, there are a lot of different performances or events that are hosted to attract students. Aside from that, there are thousands of lecturers and speakers coming to campus to either gain political interest or explain the newest research. I've attended some worldly performances like the Moscow Ballet and Symphony perform the Nutcracker, or an improvisational group from Chicago. The great thing about most of these performances on campus is that they are either free or have reduced ticket prices for students, which is wicked awesome. Aside from the different performances hosted by clubs or organizations, the University hosts barbeques, concerts, and fun events for students. During the spring, Umass is booming with different events like the Taste of Umass, which different restaurants and companies dish out free food and drinks for students. Point is, there is too much to do on campus.

Most of the dorms are pretty friendly. Sylvan can be really quiet and weird. I lived there for 3 years and people don't usually come out of their rooms or suites it seems. As long as you put yourself out there though it is not hard to make friends. There are a ton of frats and sororities and parties every weekend if you are into that thing. Night life is pretty busy on the weekends down in the center of town. There are lots of things to do without drinking such as movies, the mall, bowling and many other activities.