Passionate but Apathetic

Introduction
The University of Richmond is small enough so that you know a lot of people, but big enough to meet new people often. Although, since it's on the outskirts of Richmond, the campus feels very isolated. If you don't have a car or someone who will let you borrow one, it is next to impossible to get off-campus.

One of the unique things about UR is the coordinate system. Men are a part of Richmond College, women Westhampton College. Traditionally, the two colleges were divided by the lake. The different sides of campus are still referred to by their respective colleges. Because of this tradition of separating the genders, co-ed housing is very limited. It was only in recent years that men and women started living on both sides of the lake.

Campus Life and Social Life
Students here work hard and party hard. The weekends are filled with parties, both in the University Forest Apartments (on-campus apartments for upperclassmen) and the frat lodges, located in one corner of the campus. People here can be awkward sometimes--someone you meet at a party on Saturday may or may not acknowledge you in the dining hall on Monday. For the most part however, people are pretty friendly. The dating scene is very strange. It consists of random hookups on the weekends and serious relationships. There's not much casual dating.

Greek life has a huge draw here; about 50% of students are involved. Everyone is involved with at least one club, sport, or activity. It's easy to get involved in too much and burn out by senior year. The more politically active groups tend to draw the same crowd, so many activists feel as though it's the same 10% of the student population doing the work. Because people are so involved in their own lives, there's not a high attendence to many events held by different groups. Advertisement
Academics
The most frustrating part of the UR curriculum is Core. It's a class every first-year has to take; if you took AP English Lit, you'll feel like you're taking the class over. Academics are challenging; I haven't heard of a truly easy class here. The workload can be a bit overwhelming at times; one of the main topics of conversation is how much work people have to do. While most people go out on weekends, the library is always filled with students working on papers and other work Friday and Saturday nights. Professors care about their students, however, and will help you out if you're struggling. There are very few TAs.

The Music Department is small, but has a lot of dedicated professors who will give you individualized attention. Anyone from the campus can get involved with any of the music ensembles. More vocalists than instrumentalists come to the department.

Student Body
Most students at UR are white, upper middle class kids from New England and the mid-atlantic. People here are generally passionate about something (including those who are passionate about partying). While racial and gay students are minorities, they tend to be loud and make their presence known.

In Closing...
Although the Modlin Center for the Arts provides many varied cultural events, attendence by the UR population is very low. Most people are content to drink on the weekends.

Another interesting group on campus is WILL, a feminist organization that requires its members to minor in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. It's a great way to meet other activist women, but can be frustrating. First-years tend to feel lost in the group, and the general membership can feel very detached. Those who feel the most active in WILL tend to be on the Executive Board.