Buy our guides
Read our blog
Login Register

Baylor University
- Local Atmosphere

RT
Currently attending or alumni?
Review this school!
Are you interested
in this school?
Yes, let this school know
Maybe, bookmark for later
No, get better matches
Saving your decision
Yes
Maybe
No

Your information has been sent to this school through our partnership with .

This school has been saved to your schools list.

This school has been removed from your recommended schools list.

For your next recommendation, check out .

Jump to a section:

Grade
Quick Stats
Student Author Overview
Student Reviews
Student Polls
Facts
Listings
Take A SurveyWrite A ReviewUpload A PhotoLink Up A VideoWrite The Guide
Baylor University - Local Atmosphere - College ProwlerCollege Prowler2.69

Local Atmosphere

C+
Where does this grade come from?View all Local Atmosphere rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

Comparable Schools' Local Atmosphere Grades:

Quick Stats

Points of Interest
  • Cameron Park
  • Cameron Park Zoo
  • Dr Pepper Museum
  • Governor Bill and Vara Daniel Historic Village
  • Harry and Anna Jeanes Discovery Center
  • Heart of Texas Rodeo
  • Hippodrome Theater
  • Lake Waco
  • Texas Ranger Hall of Fame
  • Texas Sports Hall of Fame
  • Waco Suspension Bridge
  • Westfest Czechoslovakian festival

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

The thing about Baylor, and especially Waco, is that if you don’t get involved in something, you will die of boredom. Waco does a fantastic job of accommodating the school. Most of the businesses cater in some way to students by giving discounts with school IDs or hosting special events. The school itself has tons of events throughout the year such as campus athletic events, club sponsored events and concerts at the local coffeehouse and town halls that are free to students, and many community service opportunities.

The biggest drawback is that, just like the motto says, everything is bigger in Texas, which also means more spread out. If you go without a car, you better start making friends fast, because otherwise, it’s tough to get anywhere. A lot of events are held on or near campus, but to get to movie theaters, grocery stores, Wal-Mart, shopping, and nightlife, it’s all a little too far to walk. The city does have a trolley service and city buses, but few Baylor students actually take advantage of them. Even the Holy Grail of Texas, the football stadium, is off campus. If you’re not the social scene type, and would rather spend your evenings playing computer games, the school’s bandwidth is taken up constantly by online gaming, and the telecom department hosts Halo tournaments all the time. Most students combat boredom by taking trips to Austin or Dallas.

See how you stack up against students who were accepted to this school . . .And calculate your chances!Register to get started

Baylor Student ReviewsWhat's This?

Sort by:

Loading...

Local Atmosphere at Baylor University

camillecozart

'14

Neuroscience

5.0
A+

Great Campus Atmosphere

When you're on campus at Baylor University it's like you're in a whole different world. Once you set foot off campus, however, you'll find yourself in the city of Waco, which pales significantly in comparison to the happy little world of campus life at Baylor. I love just taking a random walk around campus, I've never seen a school as beautiful as Baylor.

Jan 15, 2012

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate

Local Atmosphere at Baylor University

imatwin93

'15

Mathematics Teacher Education

3.8
B+

Kind of Weird

Baylor has a mix of the good and the bad. Waco is not exactly the safest place a person can be, but it's not that bad if you follow the general rules of not going out alone at night, and staying out of the bad parts. One of the things you have to do in Waco is go tortilla tossing off the suspension bridge. It may sound lame, but it's more fun than you would think. Another thing to do is visit the Dr. Pepper Museum. Waco is huge into Dr. Pepper, so you don't want to miss out.

Dec 05, 2011

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate

Local Atmosphere at Baylor University

HannahOndersma

'15

Pre-Medicine Studies

3.5
B

Very Diverse Community

Sometimes you've got to be creative to come up with things to do in Waco. While there is your movie theater, which isn't far from campus, and your mall, which is just a short drive down the highway, there's not a lot of variety. A few of the attractions include Cameron Park, which is huge and offers a lot of hiking, biking, and jogging trails along with great areas to picnic and hang out with friends, Cameron Park Zoo, which is one of the nicest zoos I have been to, Wild West, a local joint which offers dancing, a bowling alley, skating rink, and the Dr. Pepper Museum, which is a must see as Dr. Pepper was created right here in Waco. There is a great little shopping area called Spice Village just a short drive from campus with a lot of unique stores and items. Common Grounds right on the edge of campus is also a very popular favorite among students and serves lots of unique coffee, tea, and smoothie drinks and has live entertainment some nights which is quite good. It's a great place to study, or hang out and it has a very unique atmosphere. Overall, as long as you're willing to come up with something, you won't get too bored on the weekends.

Nov 28, 2011

Comment actions: Rate
Report as inappropriate/inaccurate
Page 1 of 14

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate the local atmosphere on the following topics

What is the local atmosphere like at your school?

What is the proximity to other universities? Is there much interaction?

Can you see yourself living here after graduation?

Facts

Shopping Centers
  • Central Texas Market Place
  • Richland Mall
Major Sports Teams
  • Dallas Cowboys: football
  • Dallas Mavericks: basketball
  • Dallas Stars: hockey
  • Houston Astros: baseball
  • Houston Texans: football
  • San Antonio Spurs: basketball
  • Texas Rangers: baseball
City Web Sites
Distances to Nearest Major Cities
  • Austin: TX: 1 hour, 30 minutes
  • Dallas: TX: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Did You Know?

Five Fun Facts about Waco:
• Western Settlement brought the Chisholm Trail through Waco when it was nicknamed “Six-shooter Junction.”
• Just outside of town is the site of the now-famous Branch Davidian Conflict, involving the loss of many lives in a cult led by David Koresh and a sting held by Janet Reno.
• Cameron Park’s 450-plus acres of forest include many different climates and elevations as well as more than ten miles of trails, fishing, boating, disc golf, a water park for children. They are used as a gathering site for students to shoot films, exercise, or just relax.
• In the movie Where the Heart Is, the scene where Natalie Portman’s character approaches Forney while he’s at school was filmed right here on Baylor’s campus outside the English building.
• The Dr Pepper Museum stands as a monument to free-enterprise, and of course, Dr Pepper. The drink is Baylor’s, and Waco’s drink of choice, all the way to the school hosting “Dr Pepper Hour” every Tuesday where students get together to enjoy free Dr Pepper ice-cream floats. At the museum, you can still buy Dr Pepper in its original glass bottle.

Famous People from Waco:
Jennifer Love Hewitt and Steve Martin were both born in Waco.

Local Slang:
Baylor Bubble – The idealism and naivety Baylor fosters.
Coke – Any type of soda. (Typical conversation: “Want a coke?” “Yeah, grab me a Dr Pepper.”)
Cowboy Cadillac – An enormous truck decked out with all the bells and whistles.
MCC – McLennan Community College.
TSTC – Texas State Technical College.

Movie TheatersWhat's This?

Hollywood – Jewel 16
Hwy. 84 & Texas Central Pkwy.
Waco
(254) 399-9500

Starplex Super Saver 6
410 N. Valley Mills Dr.
Waco
(254) 772-1511

Starplex Waco Galaxy 16
333 S. Valley Mills Dr.
Waco
(254) 772-5333

Buy The Guidebook

Buy a hard copy of "Baylor University 2012: Off The Record"

Read more about the book . . .Add to Cart

Buy the eBook:

AmazonGoogleSmashwordsDownload the FREE Printable Summary (PDF)

Most Recent Student Author

College Prowler guides are in the hands of students throughout the entire process. Because you can't make student-written guides without the students, we have students at each campus who write, edit, and survey their peers for every guide that we publish. Thanks to our most recent student author at Baylor

Name: Teni Odunsi

Hometown: San Antonio, TX

Major: Environmental Studies

see all student author bios > Become a student author to help update the guide for this school

Find a college

Find a major

Scholarships

Reviews

Company

Buy College Prowler school guides in our bookstore Get the real scoop on what it's like on campus and see what school is the place for you!

How do we get our information? Find out here or report an error here. Please note that the information presented on this site is updated periodically, but may not be the
most recent information available for a particular school. For additional information we encourage you to visit school websites or contact the schools directly.