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Social Setting: What Do You Want From Your Campus?

Find a campus with a social setting that meets your needs for a happier, healthier college experience.

College isn’t only about books!

The college’s social setting will effect nearly everything you do outside of class. For the best college experience possible, you’ll want to figure out what kind of social setting you want to live in for the next four years– or more.

Location, Location, Location

When considering the location of a college, there are a few questions you should ask yourself:

• Is there a geographic region of the United States that you prefer to live in, or know that you definitely don’t want to live in?
• Does weather matter to you?
• Do you hate the cold or do you love snow?
• How far away from home do you want to be?
• Do you want to be able to go home on the occasional weekend, or would you prefer if mom and dad were far across the country?
• Would you prefer to attend a rural campus in a smaller college town, or do you want to be in an urban space with access to a big city?

Significance of Sports

If sports at college are an important factor to you, it’s imperative that you research what type of sports programs a school has to offer you. Do you want to play intercollegiate sports in college or would you prefer to play less competitively by playing intramural sports?

Another aspect of sports that many students don’t consider is how big of a role sports play in campus  life.

At some schools, social life can revolve around the football team. Students go to every game and have huge parties when their team wins big. At other schools, sports are less significant and most students couldn’t care less whether the football team is winning or losing.

Student Diversity

How important is it to you to have diversity on campus? The people comprising a school’s social body can have a major impact on the social setting. Most college books include diversity rankings, so if you are interested in attending a campus with a diverse student body, be sure to check these out.

Some student bodies are uniform. Others are more diverse, with students from different geographical areas in the US and abroad, and from varied ethnic, racial, and cultural backgrounds.

Co-Ed vs. Single-Sex

Deciding whether you want to apply to co-ed or single-sex schools is important. Obviously, having an all-male or all-female campus will offer you a significantly different social setting than a mixed-sex campus.

Would you feel more comfortable attending a single-sex institution or can you absolutely not imagine a predominantly single-sex social setting on campus? Make sure you determine the answer to that question when applying to schools.

Make a Campus Visit

The best way to determine if a school’s social setting is a good fit for you is to make a campus visit. If that’s not possible, find out what you can about a campus’ social setting by researching the school and asking plenty of questions.

It might seem frivolous to focus on the campus social setting while applying to school.

It’s not!

You’re going to spend the next four years of your life on campus. The right social setting will make you a happier student, and your happiness is definitely something worth taking into consideration.