So, perhaps a bad fit for OP's son. Though I am sure he can find some like-minded peers, if he winds up following through with his commitment.

I am not sure how kids get in these positions, but it is a high stakes decision and second thoughts are undoubtedly common.

It’s a party school with heavy drinking. It’s the culture of the school. Just what it is.

Note the numbers who DIE each year...and the types of colleges that have bigger problems with alcohol.

https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/college-drinking

I went to uva and was not Greek.

I did develop a drinking problem though, mainly because binge drinking was socially acceptable among my peers.

It was similar at other schools too, but I think UVa it is slightly more prevalent.

That said, I think I was more susceptible to binge drinking because I a) didn’t know how to manage my stress level in a healthy way, b) am prone to getting drunk easily and quickly.

I still drank for a long time after college, but gave it up in my 40s. I would say being at UVA and really any college atmosphere (most of them) where you don’t question binge drinking or it’s considered the norm was going to be a problem for me. It depends on how your kid is and how mature or self aware he can be in that environment.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We stayed in Charlottesville not long ago, at a hotel where many families of UVA students stay (and sports teams, it seems). We saw a lot of lunchtime / afternoon drinking on Thursdays in town - college age kids - and most of the girls were wearing micro-shorts and revealing tops. It was like hookersville not Charlottesville.

We also saw a very, very different set of college students walking into classes on the Friday morning, early. Not hungover, not wearing "last night's" clothes. Not dressed like hoes.

So clearly two tribes exist its just about which one you get into.

I have news for you. Those were probably the same kids.

Given that my eye sight is pretty good and I've already told you they were different kids - no. The kids on Friday were total geeks the kids on Thursday were sleazy-glamorous.

Again - no doubt some of the same kids. You do know that putting on makeup and party clothes one night makes you look a lot different and more "glamorous" then waking up early the next day for class, right? Have you ever gone to college?

haha. you're going to need to try a lot harder than that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We stayed in Charlottesville not long ago, at a hotel where many families of UVA students stay (and sports teams, it seems). We saw a lot of lunchtime / afternoon drinking on Thursdays in town - college age kids - and most of the girls were wearing micro-shorts and revealing tops. It was like hookersville not Charlottesville.

We also saw a very, very different set of college students walking into classes on the Friday morning, early. Not hungover, not wearing "last night's" clothes. Not dressed like hoes.

So clearly two tribes exist its just about which one you get into.

I have news for you. Those were probably the same kids.

Given that my eye sight is pretty good and I've already told you they were different kids - no. The kids on Friday were total geeks the kids on Thursday were sleazy-glamorous.

Again - no doubt some of the same kids. You do know that putting on makeup and party clothes one night makes you look a lot different and more "glamorous" then waking up early the next day for class, right? Have you ever gone to college?

Noooo, Sunday is Funday

No one forces anyone to go Greek, no one forces anyone to drink.

There are plenty of academic and religious based social groups on campus as well.

There are 4000 first years. “Most” don’t fit into Trin. Lol

It’s always the drinkers that insist “everyone” is drinking. It might be the only thing you do for fun, but there are lots of other things going on.

UVA’s Greek life does not run the social. Most first years hit the bar scene at Trin with fakes or friends that work the door. The “drinking culture” at UVA is a bit different because it’s very work hard/play hard. Grades are important and classes are tough. Parting is typically Thursday and Friday night. Saturday’s are Darties. Sunday’s are for the library. Greeks are just as likely to be at the bars than at Frat houses.

Not to mention, kids self-select into colleges, based in part on things like party reputation and greek presence. So, there is no truth to the posters who keep saying all schools are somehow the same in this regard.

My kid would not even apply to schools that still had fraternities. So, the schools are starting out with kids who were drawn to different cultures. It is somewhat self-perpetuating.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes UVa is a party school. Lots of drinking.

With only 35% of the student body in the Greek system. That segment parties hard, no doubt. But the other 65%? There's plenty of space at UVA to find a non-drinking culture.

The problem isn't necessarily that you can't find non-drinking people. In a school of 17,000 students, 35% Greek is 6,000 students, which is the entire populations of some privates.

And the Greek students are heavily centered around certain colleges like Business or Arts/Sciences (rather than Engineering).

The problem is the Greek system runs the social scene, especially if you are a non-Engineering student.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes UVa is a party school. Lots of drinking.

With only 35% of the student body in the Greek system. That segment parties hard, no doubt. But the other 65%? There's plenty of space at UVA to find a non-drinking culture.

35% is huge. By comparison-
Michigan 17%
UMD 17%
UCLA 13%
Berkeley 20%
Wisconsin 14%

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes UVa is a party school. Lots of drinking.

With only 35% of the student body in the Greek system. That segment parties hard, no doubt. But the other 65%? There's plenty of space at UVA to find a non-drinking culture.

I wasn't in the Greek system, nor were any of my close friends, but we still drank heavily. Granted, this was years ago, but if my kids turn out to be very studious, non-drinking types, I probably would steer them away from UVA.

Anonymous wrote:Yes UVa is a party school. Lots of drinking.

With only 35% of the student body in the Greek system. That segment parties hard, no doubt. But the other 65%? There's plenty of space at UVA to find a non-drinking culture.