Clemson University

Date: Nov 03 2010
Major: Mechanical Engineering (This Major's Salary over time)
Relatively speaking, Clemson is an strong academic institution to a certain degree. However, it is lacking in a variety of areas which are essential to growth and development in college.

Academics is Clemson's biggest strength. While it's not an Ivy League School, it offers a upstanding curriculum. That being said, it hinders both creativity and growth due to the underlying traditionalist values at this school. A strong point academically is the professors. If they speak English, they are generally very knowledgeable and helpful. However, the material is outdated and ineffective. Memorization and regurgitation dominate almost all of the learning process. Application seems to fall short as students spend most of their "study time" copying equations out of a book. While one may understand the material, they won't feel as though they have learned a great deal here. This could be why after 6 years only 77% of people who enrolled in 2003 have graduated. While the administration strives to create a respectable curriculum, they inhibit the growth and stimulation of intellectual creativity.

The campus itself entails many unique and desirable qualities, the majority of which were copied from Auburn. These include our mascot, stadium, and clock tower at Tillman Hall. As a top ranking public university, one would expect and adequate fitness center. That being said, Fike recreation center is a disappointment to say the least, and a sad excuse for a fitness center considering the large student body at Clemson. You are better off buying a gym membership off-campus. Housing requires choosing the lesser of two evils. You may either live on campus in a dump with bad food, of off campus in which case you can be up to a 20 minute drive from campus. The student housing is so spread out that no one ever has to interact with each other and so you'll probably end up just talking to only your roommates. Downtown is a pathetic excuse for a college town. There are several bars, all undeserving of the title, where you can go to drink alone with 100 other people who only talk to the people they came with. To be honest you are better of drinking in dorms or your apartment with your roommate than going out and trying to meet people. Everyone is so spread out and disconnected in Clemson that it is sickening. You have to drive or take a bus to get anywhere you want to go. The bus system is terrible and anyone riding it is probably not open to meeting people on the ride. Because of this, most students drive and parking is a nightmare. Most of the time you will have to drive to campus, then take a bus to class because you are parked so far away. Make sure you follow the parking regulations, parking enforcement is always driving around writing tickets, even in the middle of the night.

The police presence in Clemson is unheard of in "college towns." Since your in the middle of nowhere, the police have nothing better to do than actively search for underage drinking, and you won't get off with a warning. They have no compassion for any males partying underage. I guess they're pissed they couldn't get into college. The fact that there is a municipal court located in the football stadium should sum up how overbearing the police presence in Clemson is. Even parking police are jerks, they just didn't get a car.

The social scene, if you can call it that, is absolutely dominated by Greek life. If you aren't in one, good luck finding something. When meeting new people most conversations start with

What frat/sorority are you in?

Housing is so spread out that the only way to get to a party without risking a DUI is to be in a fraternity so you have pledges driving. Sorostitutes go crazy over losers with letters. The people involved in the system are so close minded and self absorbed with their image that they lose touch with reality. They are living in a delusional bubble in which they have created their own reality and they reign supreme. Most every Greek member thinks they are better than everyone else on campus.

Football is what Clemson is known for. Cheering thousands flocking to Death Valley to watch the Tigers play. but this is a far cry from reality. The upper decks are generally empty, and school spirit has become increasingly absent. Cops patrol the gates looking to hand out alcohol violations and the teams ability to buckle under pressure has come to be expected. Tailgating is lackluster, Greeks go to the quad and everyone just looks for a place to drink. The buses are always full and so many students walk over a mile to get to and from the stadium. Most students leave at halftime if they go into the game at all. Any attempt at coming together is snuffed out by administration. This was exemplified when a small group of students trying to organize a

Purple Out For Cancer Awareness

and the administration immediately responded with an e-mail to students and alumni stating everyone should wear orange just like every other game.

All in all, Clemson is an average academic school in the middle of no where. There is nothing to do here except pledge or get alcohol tickets. It is attended by close minded conservatives who think the Mason Dixon line is located in North Carolina and hate Yankees. I guess there is a reason 1 in 10 students leave after their freshmen year. I'm filling out my transfer application now.