UCF 101

Introduction
As a high school student make sure to get a full view of the University. If at all possible visit more days than just the UCF Open House. Or if that's not possible just do some exploring on your own while at the school. Walk around campus and try to observe students. If possible listen to their conversations. I fell in love with UCF based on the Open House that I attended and don't know if I would have if I had just come and explored on my own.

If you're very into sports and want a school that is full of school spirit then you would be better off going somewhere else. I'm from Texas where everyone lives and breathes sports and school spirit so I was surprised at the lack of school spirit. I was led to believe that it was much more impressive than it actually is. However, if you are interested in joining a fraternity or sorority then UCF is a great choice. The Greek Life on campus is absolutely amazing. I feel like people that aren't in fraternities or sororities really miss out on being able to meet other people and make a lot of friends. The school is so big that you have to join an organization to allow you to meet other people. Otherwise you will find yourself wandering around aimlessly.

Campus Life and Social Life
The social scene really is what you make of it at UCF. There are TONS of local bars around campus that are easy to get to (and quite frankly don't care about age). There is also downtown Orlando and places like Universal CityWalk and Disney Pleasure Island in pretty close driving distance so there's always something to do. Many people also throw house parties in the local neighborhoods and apartment complexes.

Weekends at UCF tend to be pretty dead. UCF is somewhat still considered a commuter campus, so many students go home on the weekends. The social life tends to be during the week so plan your schedules accordingly. Some of the biggest nights to go out are Mondays and Wednesdays so having early Tuesday and Thursday morning classes aren't the best idea.

If you want to get involved on Campus there are MANY ways to do this. Almost every major offers clubs and organizations to join. Also, there is the Student Government that makes many of the decisions. A wise choice would be to join a Greek organization because that will open up many doors to other organizations. If you want to help with Campus activities there's the Campus Activities Board that helps in planning events on campus. For sports there are some club teams like Rugby and Crew as well as the Varsity sports to play. Academics
UCF isn't exactly known for being a hard school. Although it's getting tougher, but most people that attend UCF come here because they didn't get into UF, FSU or UM. I came from out of state and had people shocked that I would come all the way to UCF. The Hospitality department is okay. The campus for Hospitality is located 30 minutes away from the main campus which makes for many annoying things. There are dorms over there now but I suggest making sure that Hospitality is the major for you before moving over there. The professors of Hospitality are probably a little too cocky about the school as well. The professors think the Rosen College is the best hospitality school in the nation when quite honestly it needs a lot of work to be the best. If you want to go into Hotels and Restaurants then definitely come to UCF for hospitality. If you want to do other aspects, then maybe look into going somwhere else.

Student Body
A typical student at UCF is a boy or girl from South Florida wearing designer clothing. The students come primarily from Ft. Lauderdale, Boca Raton and Palm Beach. The girls almost all carry Coach or Louis Vuitton purses. It's not uncommon for the guys to be decked out in AF or AE clothing head to toe. It's a very preppy school with a lot of snobby people. They are not all snobs but sit in the student union one day if you have the chance and just watch the people. I believe that you will see what I mean!

In Closing...
In closing, just make sure you do your research on any school that you like. Don't rely on one day of seeing the campus to make your decision. If you like a school then plan to go back and see it another day. Every school has it's good and bad aspects but make sure you know what they are before you actually decided to attend.