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Deciding to come to the University of Georgia has been the best decision of my life thus far - I've never met ANYONE who dislikes the school when they visit. The spirit and energy of all the students is something to be envied, especially come football season. There is nothing like a football saturday in the SEC! While every school has its problems, dissenting opinions between administration, Athens community, and the student body being one here, it is impossible to say that the negatives outweigh the positives. UGA manages to be a challenging school while simultaneously letting its students really experience college outside the classroom. You will never have a day with nothing to do, whether you be lounging on North Campus, shopping downtown, or running up and down Milledge. It's hard to even say what my favorite part about the University is - when you love something so much, words never seem good enough!
Sara Junior
Football is HUGE here, Saturdays are devoted to football in the fall. Academics are strict here as well, there's an entrance exam to get into the business school rather than just having a minimum gpa. The Meal Plan is great. It's won numerous awards and offers an extensive variety from salads to philly cheese steaks. School size is just right. Probably the biggest school in Georgia, and doesn't feel too large. Going to UGA is something to brag about definitely. You have high academic AND social standards. Most of your time on campus will probably be spent in the middle of the campus near the Tate student Center or Student Learning Center. Those are some new buildings where some of the general classes are being taught at. There is a LOT of school pride here and it feels great to let it all out on football weekends. Best College Town in the US. It was actually ranked by a well known magazine as #3, but I believe it is unmatched.
Anil Junior
UGA is a huge school with a small campus feel to it. While there are endless possibilities to meet new people, just walking around campus you begin to notice that you know more people at UGA than you might have realized. It's pretty easy to run into someone you know, yet if you don't want to see those people, they can easily be avoided on the huge campus. If I had to change anything, I would make more buses available on campus. When you wait at a bus stop with time to spare, and you're still late for your class because the buses are running late, that is a major problem. SGA is currently working on improving the bus system. Being from Atlanta, a lot of people are not surprised that I go to UGA. There is a huge percentage of students from the Metro Atlanta area. Most of my time is spent on South Campus, the science major's home. North Campus is arts & social sciences. Athens is absolutely a college town. I would venture a guess that the population of Athens-Clarke county is about 75% UGA students, or at least it feels that way. UGA's administration could stand for some improvement but they do have their strengths. The biggest recent controvery would have to be the sexual harassment issue that has been all over the Red & Black, UGA's newspaper. It's a big deal to hear that a professor who has been here for 20 years is being charged with sexual harassment of students, including girls he was an academic advisor to. In terms of school pride, it's not called the BULLDAWG NATION for nothing. I will never forget the 2007 football game against Auburn, The Blackout, that was by far the best football game I've ever been to.
Erin Sophomore
The best thing about UGA is the city, the football, and the campus! In my opinion, the school is the perfect size, but I was looking for a large school. There are over 30,000 students that attend UGA. The one thing I would change is the minority population - there are not a lot of minority students attending the school and I think that keeps students from inter-mingling with students are different from themselves. I would also change homecoming - it's really not that big of a deal at UGA. When I tell people that I go to UGA, their responses differ depending on where I am. Within Georgia, UGA has a great reputation. In recent years, the requirements for acceptance have drastically risen - many alumni agree they would never have gotten in if they were students now. With the HOPE scholarship for in-state students, Georgia has kept some of the best and brightest in the state and UGA is their best option. Elsewhere in the South, UGA has a great reputation - often for its football. Elsewhere in the U.S., the university doesn't have much of a name for itself, but I think that is going to change with the entrance requirements increasing and the fact that we were the only public institution to have two Rhodes scholars this year. I spend most of my time on the central and north part of campus. This area has the Student Learning Center (a new building with study rooms, classrooms, a coffee shop, and computer labs). Next door is the Tate Student Center where a lot of organizations' activities take place as well as the campus movie theater. Tate 2 is currently under construction and the students can't WAIT to see the completed project. In addition, the center of campus has the football stadium. North campus is the most beautiful part of campus and houses the law school, main library, business school, and numerous other colleges. Definitely college town! There are over 30,000 students in Athens attending UGA. In addition, we have the greatest college music scene in the country!! UGA's administration works hard and does great things for UGA, but they have an air of superiority and do not seem to have casual relationships with students. They really should come down off of their pedestal and mingle with the students. In addition, the Student Government Association doesn't accomplish much, so students often feel entirely separated from the campus administration. The biggest controversy on campus is currently a list of sexual harassment charges against a professor in one of the colleges. In addition, the basketball team has had three or four players dismissed from the team leading to the review of the men's coach. Also, a year or two ago, a freshman died in a dorm from alcohol and cocaine; this led to strict changes in residence hall rules as well as the idea of probation after each alcohol offense and expulsion after the second. There is so much campus pride it's ridiculous. It is most often shown through our football team, but you will always see students in UGA gear, they all have UGA stickers on their cars, some have state UGA license plates, and they all hate schools that wear orange :) The most unusual thing about UGA is the music scene - there are so many great bands to have come out of Athens and that tradition continues today. Whether it's Tasty World, The Georgia Theater, or 40 Watt - a student can always find a group to go listen to! The one experience I will always remember was my senior year trip to St. Simons, GA with some friends for a 5-day vacation over Fall Break. Our fall break coincides with the Georgia vs. Florida football game in Jacksonville and there is a huge beach party and student population that is in St. Simons. Then, everyone takes buses or drives to Jacksonville for the game on Saturday. It's just one big party for the week - AND we won this year!! Go Dawgs!!
Elizabeth Senior
The best thing about UGA is its variety of people...there are people from all walks of life around the campus, and it's interesting to get to know them all. I think that all of the drinking regulations around campus and the presence of what seems like a veritable army of UGA Police driving unnecessarily large vehicles are counter-productive and produce an unease and distrust between the students and the police that are there to protect them. A third of the UGA Police could be let go, and their salaries and gas money could pay for more pedestrian-friendly crosswalks and intersections (I know about 5 people who have gotten heavily fined for jaywalking, which i think is absolutely ridiculous). I like the size of the school because I like to constantly meet new and interesting people. People don't know exactly how to react when I tell them about UGA because my experience here has been different from the average student. I started on the Myers Quad and I have hung out with mostly international and honors students. People are surprised to hear about that side of the University.
Jonathan Junior
The best thing about UGA is the college town feel. It's an amazing town where the locals are so welcoming to the students (usually), and it's no surprise a lot of people never WANT to leave. I think it's weird when people NEVER leave though. I love the fact that I meet new people every day, but there is never a single day I don't know anybody. So I'd say the school size is just right. People are usually impressed I go to UGA, or they're not a fan because they go to or went to some other SEC school. I love spending time in the SLC or at the Tate Center because those two buildings are just so social. UGA administration is pretty helpful most of the time; they're just slow with telling us information quickly. Everybody here BLEEDS red & black, and it is absolutely fantastic. UGA has a gorgeous north campus with old buildings and fountains. I'll always remember learning how to bark for the first football game. GO DAWGS!
Wendy Junior
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