WMstudent

Greeks Doing What They Can to Have Fun

Let me begin by saying I am not a crazy party animal and have no interest in going out and drinking every night of the week. However, I do like to hang out with friends, go to parties on the weekend, and have a good time, and doing so at William and Mary is difficult for many reasons. The administration at this school absolutely despises the majority of normal, social Greek organizations despite what those organizations may contribute to the school on a yearly basis. William and Mary's average Fraternity GPA is higher than the average of the general public, and I am 99% sure the hours of community service and money donated to the community by those in Greek organizations far exceed such contributions by non-Greek students. However, William and Mary seems to think that any type of partying--and ANYTHING alcohol-related--is a horrific attack upon the school's good name. At our school, if a student is found under the influence, it is common protocol to ask that student where they received the substance (generally alcohol). Based on their response, true or otherwise, the organization that receives the blame would be placed on probation at a MINIMUM. While this may not sound too absurd, school administrators put in unnecessary amounts of effort to blame organizations for as much as possible. The "Fraternity House Complex" at William and Mary used to house more than 10 fraternities not long ago, but due to stringent requirements and ridiculous school sanctions, only around half of those still house fraternities. In multiple circumstances, I have heard first-hand accounts of administrators--primarily, a Dean of Students--lying to students about required procedures with paperwork and/or having people sign forms under duress. Had I known any of this going into fraternity rush, I probably would not have been willing to join a Greek organization; however, had I not done so, I would CERTAINLY have transferred to another college or university after a long, boring year. Even being in a Greek organization does not guarantee fun weekends, let alone fun weeks. It does generally provide a close group of friends to live and hang out with, but unlike other schools, the money paid to an organization may very well not be worth the outcome, or lack thereof. Aside from athlete parties and parties hosted by academic clubs/organizations--these parties are weird...as are some of the club sport parties--fraternities are the ONLY parties on campus, and even off campus, few besides Greeks host any parties. Essentially, people who join Greek organizations do so to try and have a good time despite the regular population and the administration of the College. Because of the lack of attractive girls on campus and desire to impress the few that do study here, members of Greek organizations become desperate each year to find "cool" new members and, in doing so, often hastily pick people with whom they later do not get along. I gave a grade of C- for the Greek life at William and Mary because as compared to the rest of campus, these are the most social, fun, and overall normal people here, but because of the logistics of this extremely boring school and "city," they still do not "dominate the scene" whatsoever.

On-Campus Housing at W&M

As a freshman last year, I got very lucky and was able to live in Yates Hall. It was a fairly standard hall, housing just over 250 students with around 25 on each hallway. The rooms were a pretty good size and the quality of things there was pretty good. However, friends of mine from other dorm buildings did not have nearly the same experience. One hall is actually a converted mental hospital which has excessively cramped rooms and dingy facilities. Likewise, upperclassmen housing options are not very good when staying on campus. There is only one building of on-campus apartments, and that building isn't even on campus; it is closer to a 5 minute walk to even get on campus. To live in nicer upperclassmen dorms, one must pay even more money than the normal fee for on-campus housing. Because of limited housing, it is also unlikely--EXTREMELY unlikely for sophomores--that one might get the option to live in a nice upperclassmen dorm.

Student Body at W&M

At William and Mary, there are an obscene amount of weird, nerdy students who are overly invested in their studies and nothing else. As seen in a recent youtube sensation (also posted on Barstoolu), at least 100 students were outside of the campus library on Sunday simply waiting for it to open so that they could run inside and...study. Many students brought sleeping bags, coffee makers, and other items that would be necessary for living in a library. During exam weeks, many students even wash dishes and brush their teeth in the library bathrooms. Approximately 25% of the student body is involved in Greek Life, which is absolutely essential if one wants to have a semi-normal college experience while attending William and Mary. Unfortunately, even when in one of the "more popular" Greek organizations, there is very little going on during any given weekend. Aside from the varsity athletes--who, understandably, interact very little with others on campus--the Greeks are the closest you can get to "normal" here. However, many of the fraternities are creepy and/or weird. Even for members of the more normal ones, finding girls to have some sort of a relationship with is very difficult. Many girls quickly realize the lack of "options" at William and Mary and maintain relationships with guys from their hometowns. Likewise, since most normal girls are in sororities, if a guy happens to have a problem with one girl, other girls in that sorority hear her side of whatever may have happened, limiting the guy's options in the entire sorority. It is also interesting that, outside of girls in sororities, I could probably count the truly attractive girls--that are not athletes--one 1 or 2 hands. Even in sororities, girls are not very attractive, and 95% of girls think they are more attractive than they are. Most girls who come to W&M have never drank before college, but once they begin doing so while they are here, they become more and more cocky, thinking they are all of a sudden the hottest thing in the world. This school is small compared to many, but at the same time, we have one of the ugliest student bodies in the country. Additionally, as William and Mary is a highly ranked, difficult school, students are often very conceited and arrogant about their intelligence. Despite the fact that job placement and career salaries are not necessarily any higher when graduating from here, other students thumb their noses at very respectable institutions such as Virginia Tech and James Madison. While there are some normal students and many nice, friendly people, the combination of the student body and aspects of the university as a whole prohibit what would seemingly be a "normal" college experience.

Financial Aid

Unfortunately I do not know enough to give an answer here--my parents handle the payment for William and Mary.

Food in Williamsburg

Unfortunately, the "city" of Williamsburg is not a thriving metropolis, but there are some options nearby--all of which are way better than eating on campus. One of the best options is Chipotle, but they do not have any student discounts despite the proximity to campus. They used to take W&M "Express" money, but this year they have stopped doing so. Qdoba, similar to Chipotle, is closer to campus and does offer great discounts, however people tend to prefer Chipotle and sometimes ignore the discounts. Unfortunately, outside of these 2 restaurants, there are few viable, cheap options nearby with almost none in walking distance. Thankfully, since other options are limited, WaWa is open 24 hours a day, and it is a very popular spot for students.

Things That Don't Exist at William and Mary

Thanks to the combination of the students and administration at W&M and the lifeless town of Williamsburg, there is little to do on any given weekend here. There are only 3 "delis"--bars--in the part of Williamsburg near campus, and all of them are very strict about who they let in. Unlike other college towns, they do not offer many good deals for students or anyone else. If clubs even exist in Williamsburg, students do not know about them nor do they attend them. Parties on campus are hosted by either fraternities, varsity athletes, or occasionally by random clubs and organizations. However, since we are at W&M, the parties hosted by such clubs tend to be boring if not weird. For example, parties are sometimes hosted by the Fencing Team or the International Relations Club. Parties hosted by varsity athletes can be fun, but few other than athletes attend; they are not usually exclusive as far as who is let in, but they tend to be further from campus and non-athletes rarely go. Fraternity parties are generally the most fun, but even those hardly compare to parties at many other schools. Because of W&M's absurdly strict administration and police, parties are shut down often and organizations are punished quickly thereafter. William and Mary wastes its time enforcing punishment for underage drinking even though such activity will take place regardless. Because bigger parties tend to get shut down, students are forced to party--and drink--in smaller get-togethers. Students also tend to drink more than they otherwise would because there is not as much socializing taking place.

Drugs and Alcohol at William and Mary

The drug scene at William and Mary is not very big, but at the same time it is bigger than some people might think. However, alcohol is a separate issue; LOTS of people drink, and per person I would think much more alcohol is consumed than at other schools or than expected. Because there is almost nothing going on here at night, some people tend to become intoxicated to make their time here more enjoyable. Some find that it is the only way they can thoroughly enjoy themselves at William and Mary. Since normal, sober activities that might be common or available at other schools are probably not as common in Williamsburg, let alone on campus, alcohol is quite popular--even for people not attending a "party." Lots of people like to drink a lot, get very drunk, and just...hang out.