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Inside Scoop

Quick Stats

School Slang
  • Blowout (Sometimes "LDOC"): The last day of classes each semester
  • The 'Burg: Williamsburg
  • The Caf: The Commons Dining Hall
  • CW: Colonial Williamsburg
  • Delly: The Williamsburg version of a bar scene
  • SC: The Sadler Center, formerly the University Center
  • The Sex Change: The W&M Students' X-Change, in the basement of the SC
  • Swemming: Working at the Swem Library for an extended period of time
  • T.W.A.M.P.: A "typical William and Mary person," someone who studies all the time and has no life; more of a joke than an insult
  • The Triathlon: An old (informal) campus tradition that involves jumping over the Governor's Palace wall, streaking the Sunken Gardens, and swimming to the Crim Dell Bridge and back
Things I Wish I Knew Before Coming To School
  • A masseuse comes to the Rec Center and gives massages for just $25 per half hour.
  • Bring a lot of quarters for laundry.
  • Don’t declare your major before you have to.
  • Don’t schedule 8 a.m. classes.
  • Get your doctor to write you a note saying you have allergies so you can get permission for a window air conditioning unit—your first two months will be that much better, and everyone will want to hang out in your room.
  • Going through formal recruitment for Greek life is a great bonding experience as a freshman.
  • Passing classes requires a whole lot of work and not much sleep.
  • Request a good dorm on the housing survey, and turn the survey in on time.
  • The Technology Support Center (TSC) is in Jones 208. Your laptop will malfunction.
  • Try everything, but learn how to say no to some things because there’s not enough time in a day to do it all here.
  • You can rent laptops, iPods, and camera equipment from the library—for free.
Tips to Succeed
  • Don’t freak out if you don’t get the classes you planned on during registration—no one does, and you may end up loving or majoring in a subject you never intended to take.
  • Don’t stress out—find ways to balance out the tough academic workload with relaxing activities.
  • Don’t take a huge course load—classes here are very demanding, and 14-15 credits is plenty.
  • Don’t write papers the night before they’re due.
  • Find a special place to study—whether it’s your room, that corner of Swem, or the patch of grass under a tree. Find a place where you can concentrate and get work done.
  • Find an extracurricular niche, and explore the campus and its numerous opportunities. Classes are important, but they aren’t everything.
  • Go to all of your classes every day and actually pay attention.
  • Go to your professor’s office hours and ask for help.
  • Use the Writing Resource Center (WRC).
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William & Mary Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Inside Scoop at College of William & Mary

pandah1

'15

History

5.0
A+

William and Mary: Where Fun Goes to THRIVE

William and Mary is unique in that it has the student spirit and school pride of a Big Ten university while maintaining the academic rigor of prestige of an Ivy League school. As a small school, William and Mary allows students to develop close relationships with professors and advisers. While Williamsburg is certainly a unique college town, endless opportunities for fun abound both on and off campus. Students work hard and play harder at William and Mary.

Jan 07, 2012

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Inside Scoop at College of William & Mary

emgilfil

'13

North American Studies

5.0
A+

Traditions and Tourists

Life at William and Mary thrives on traditions. With a school that has over 300 years of history, there are certain idiosyncrasies that all students take to heart. We don't study in the library we go Swemming and take Yule Log very seriously. Being in a tourist town makes for some interesting encounters with visitors which I greatly enjoy.

Jan 04, 2012

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Inside Scoop at College of William & Mary

dtchadwick

'15

International Business

5.0
A+

William and Mary Education

The campus is absolutely breath taking. The Crim Dell says it all. The classes are small, I'm in a 15 person class right now. On average about 40 students per class I would say. You work a lot, but at the same time you have a lot of free hours in the day to get it done. There are always things to do on the weekend, if you hear someone at William and Mary complain there's nothing to do, they're obviously not trying hard enough to find something. Every building, regardless of where you live, is within a 15 minute or less walking distance. Period. Great school and an even better education

Oct 24, 2011

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Page 1 of 5

Facts

Traditions
  • Blowout: The last day of classes, especially spring semester, culminates in a humongous, campus-wide alcohol fest. Students go to class drunk, go to parties drunk, and go to sleep drunk. In the spring, seniors go to their freshman dorms for a toast and then head to the Wren Building to ring the bell. For those who don’t wish to partake, watching inebriated friends and classmates is usually amusing. There are also school-sponsored carnival-type events. It’s the last chance to have fun before finals begin.
  • A Cappella: There are a zillion (or at least eleven) a cappella groups on campus. Some groups are coed, some are single-sex, and they offer a range of repertoires, from pop music to classical to Christian songs. They usually come around and perform for freshman dormitories, as well as at Homecoming. All of the groups showcase their talent during the annual William & Mary Sings. You might not like it when you first arrive, but all of the groups will do their best to make you love it before you leave.
  • Convocation: During Opening Convocation each year, the freshman class walks through the Wren Building from the campus side onto the Williamsburg side, where upperclassmen and faculty greet them. On graduation day, the class returns from the Williamsburg side to the campus side.
  • The King and Queen Ball: A formal dance is held outside every spring in the Sunken Gardens if the weather permits. It features a live band, a tipsy college president, and students from every class getting down with their bad selves in formal attire.
  • The Primal Scream: At the end of every semester, the president of the College stands with hundreds of students at the top of the Sunken Gardens, leading a long, loud scream to relieve stress. It can be heard from across campus.
  • The Raft Debate: Three faculty members—one from the humanities, one from the social sciences, and one from the natural sciences—all get together in an auditorium and defend in front of their students why they should be the only one to get off of the island they crashed on, based on their contributions to society.
  • The Triathalon: Students must streak the Sunken Gardens, swim in the Crim Dell, and jump the Governor’s Palace Wall—all in one night.
  • The Yule Log Ceremony : Students gather in the Wren Courtyard during fall semester exam period for the long-standing tradition. Among other things, the president reads "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" dressed in a Santa suit, and the vice president of Student Affairs recites “’Twas the Night Before Finals.” Students throw sprigs of holly into a fireplace in the Wren Building to symbolize the shedding of troubles from the passing year. Then, everyone enjoys hot cider and cookies.
Urban Legends
  • An escaped mental patient killed a W&M couple in the Governor’s Palace maze in the 1920s.
  • Secret societies use the College’s steam tunnels to move around parts of campus, and even to get into the crypt underneath the Wren Building.
  • The College has an unusually high suicide rate (which has been proven incorrect, so don't worry).
  • The Tucker ghost visits those students who choose to pull all-nighters in the classroom on the third floor.

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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 W&M

Name: Gabriela Rivera-Morales

Hometown: Vienna, VA

Major: English

Grad Year: 2012

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