University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Top Questions

Many students attend sporting events. RHA is a student organization that organizes events for students who live in the residence halls. I was involved with RHA last year, which participates as a student government for students who live on-campus. I'm also involved with CASH which is a student group for atheists, agnostics, and skeptics. We have guest speakers, discussions, and social events, once a week. I met a lot of my closest friends from student groups, my rugby team, classes, and from my residence hall. There is always a party going on around campus, especially at the Greek houses. Things get pretty crazy here during Spring Jam and Homecoming. There is also Gophers After Dark that is held at Coffman during the weekend. Its a good way for students to meet up with friends and do fun activities that don't involve alcohol.

There isn't just one "most popular" group/club/organization/team. Each organization has its own popularity; you can be involved with as many as you want, and many topics overlap. I have become involved in MPIRG through my desire to help create social change. I've played rugby for 4 1/2 years previous to college; it has helped shape me as a person and is something I would never want to give up. Part of the reason I came to UMN was because I knew they had a well established Women's Rugby Club. All of my closest friends now are either from rugby, MPIRG, high school, or the summer camp I work at. My social life is also based off these groups; I don't spend too much time with other people that live in my dorm. On Saturday nights, going out to hear local music at cafes like Acadia Cafe, or other concerts sponsored as fundraisers by student groups are a lot of fun. People usually go out at least once a weekend.

Lots of bars. I play with the women's ultimate disc club, so 3 days a week and about every other weekend I practice and go to tournaments - if I can afford them. There's no time for dating and the people that do are disgusting. My closest friends play ultimate. Tuesday at 2 am, every Tuesday, I'm working on projects. People party more or less depending on what they do outside of school. Frats and Sororities are important in that they take away the best housing location on campus, overpopulate the campus bars, and host large parties full of annoying, drunk people that wander home early in the morning. Last weekend I drove back from a spring break ultimate tournament in Savannah, GA for 25 hours then went home (20 min away) for Easter. Then I slept. A Saturday night without drinking means being home or doing homework because there's too much to cram into Sunday.

The wakeboard team is sick everyone is friendly and down to have a good time. You can party or not party as much as you want there are plenty of concerts, snowboarding, and hockey games.

I play lacrosse and I LOVE it. All of my closest friends play lacrosse with me and I live with 8 of my teammates. I love them and would not change anything.

Most varsity sports teams are very popular, like football, basketball, and hockey. I'm on the crew team, which I think could really use some more publicity. We always try to recruit at the dorms and rec center, but once school gets rolling most students have their mind set on what they will be doing for the rest of the year. My closest friends are actually people who came to the U from my highschool, even though I didnt hang out with some of them in highschool.

I met my closest friends at work. I am also on the rugby team, where it is a little easier to make friends. But I found that the team cliquey. I have some friends there, and people that I hang out with, but not anyone that I would call up just to chat with. Some people on the team are close, where others are on the outside. I am okay with that because I have closer friends elsewhere. Students in the dorms do not leave their doors open, compared to the dorms at other colleges. The dating scene I think is hard where ever you go. Or at least it always seems hard and frustrating because there isn't always a guaranteed easy way to win. If I am awake on a Tuesday night at 2 I am definitely working an overnight. I don't really do much off campus because I am really busy on campus that I don't do much off campus. That and the fact that I don't know anybody in Minnesota, excluding the people I have met at the U.

There are several different clubs and organizations on campus from debate to roller derby clubs. There are also ultimate frisby teams and a lacrosse clubs. I am currently the captain of the women's rugby team. I came to college wanting to get involved in an athletic activity and thought that I wanted to be on the rowing team but after getting some advise from my cousin I learned that there was a sport called rugby and that I would like it. I showed up the first day seeing a bunch of girls playing with an oddly shaped ball that looked like an over sized football. I asked one of the coaches "Is this rugby?" she said yes and told me to jump in on the drill whenever I thought I had the hang of it and I haven't looked back since. The rugby girls are like my family and I can't imagine my college experience without them. Over the summer we also had a visit from presidential candidate elect candidate Barak Obama. There are also several forums and guest speakers that frequently visit the university. There is a lot of dating around campus and a lot of good places to go. The Twin Cities has several exciting locations to go for a great night out. Minnehaha Falls is a beautiful waterfall that is only a short distance away. There are also several galleries, museums, theaters, and restaurants just a stroll or bus ride away. Most colleges are know for the parties or lack of parties. At the U there are groups to fit all levels of party goers. The dorms are drug and alcohol free and there are a lot of alcohol free events on and around campus for those seeking a clear headed alternative to the fuzzy vomit breath college norms. There are several nearby bars and several house parties worthy of acknowledgment as well. Last weekend I did a some homework and a little light reading. I went to some hockey games at the National Sports Center in one of the nearby suburbs. I played some beer pong and then went to visit the Gay 90's to dance and enjoy the drag show.

The greatest part of this campus is the fact that there are many people that arn't the "partying" type. Therefore if you are someone that doesn't like to drink you are most likely going to find someone else that shares a common interest. Some things to do that don't involve drinking are Gophers After Dark, going to the sporting events, having movie nights with friends, going to the mall. There are numerous possibilities, be creative. Many residence halls have activites through the week also, never worry about having nothing to do! When trying to meet new people, leave your room door open, or go around and look for others with their doors open. Sit next to someone when eating, just keep an open mind and you will meet many people. I met many of my froends through groups and organizations I am in. When considering living on campus or off campus, I would reccomend on campus at least the first year. First of all, it will help you become financially stable, by teaching you how to spend your money. Spend it wisely, being cheap is not bad! It also helps you figure out what kind of schedule you can really have, I personally like to stay up late and have late classes, others really like early. And usually when I am up at 2 in the morning during the week I am generally doing homework, or checking facebook. Don't allow yourself to get addicted to your computer, this is a very easy tool to keep you away from homework. If you need to, turn it off and put it away. Remember "out of sight, out of mind."