Why?  I am career-driven and very school-focused, but still social.  I enjoy getting done up and going out to clubs, going to movies with my friends, going to parties and socializing with both my friends and new people.  However, I do not drink or smoke at all.  While I don't mind those who do in any capacity, I personally don't.  That being said, a lot of people misconstrue my balance of studying and participating in normal college things as a “boring” lifestyle; I've had trouble making a “ton” of friends like I thought I would considering the size.  In fact, the school's size makes it even harder to find friends.  All of the friends I made live on my floor.  I am an out-of-state student who knew no one coming here, so that doesn't help.

HOWEVER, if you looove to party, you will love it here.  You have to really be outgoing, want to party and want to make friends.  It also helps to either be female, be in a frat, or just be willing to anything to get your fix.

I am not really going to generalize the people here other than by saying that the majority are actually really friendly here in Arizona, especially students.  Surprising, I know.  However, be wary of the numerous sluts and douchebags, as they're pretty rampant.  You probably know if you fit into these categories.

The city is decent.  I doubt you'll need a car during your first year.  However, the desert is not always very pretty, especially around here.  If you're looking for the classically beautiful desert, with buttes and cacti and what not, look in Tucson or elsewhere.  There are plenty of clubs in Scottsdale and Pheonix.  Many good restaurants around.

The on-campus food is actually pretty good, but if you're an extremely healthy eater, you might find yourself limited. 

Now onto the academics: most classes are HUGE, which is not good if you like being able to easily consult your teacher or ask questions to get a better understanding.  It's also not good if you just plain like focusing and not being distracted by a plethora of other idiots (yes, classes really do get into the 300-400 range).  Anything 100 and smaller works for me, though, and probably will be fine for you.  It depends on your preferences.

I had a few amazing teachers here, including Cornelia Wells, my advanced English teacher.  I had had some terrible ones that are condescending, rude, and unbelievably unhelpful.  It's hard to generalize the professors.  I recommend using ratemyprofessors.com before you pick your schedule - trust me, it's VERY accurate. 

The coursework is not bad if you went to a hard high school.  However, it's not always that easy.  In fact, it can be very difficult for some.  Many people I know dropped calculus in their first semester.

The facilities are not the most attractive, and some of the dorms are pretty bad.  However, places like Hassayampa are pretty nice. 

My dorm is always incredibly loud at all hours of the day, especially late at night.  Lots of drunkards.  Lots of people who DO NOT care about school.  Lots of arrests have been made.  The CAs are ASSHOLES.

The best thing about this school is probably the green rating.  However, since most people don't care about that, it is only worth mentioning as a last detail.

In conclusion, DO come here if you:

-hate cold weather

-like Phoenix, AZ and surrounding areas

-do not like to be focused on school, but are only going to college to go to college and prefer partying

-want to take an easier route than, say, the Ivies at the expense of getting an education that at times seems unfullfilling

-are not a huge fan of thinking out of the box

-LOVE PARTYING

-getting an extremely lucrative job doesn't mean the world to you: no offense, but nobody's gonna be “wowed” that you went to Arizona State, unless you excelled at W.P. Carey or Walter Cronkite, the latter of which is actually at the downtown campus, not at Tempe

DON'T go here if:

-you are unsocial

-you're social, but don't drink

-you are very noise-sensitive when sleeping or studying

-you hate Arizona and hot weather

-you are very driven to get the best pre-professional, undergraduate education possible.  Go to UPenn or another smaller liberal arts college for that.  W.P. Carey is good, but not the best by any means.