The University of Vermont

Alumnus Male -- Class 2000

I did it. I powered through four years of college at UVM.
Honestly, I should have dropped out after my second year. Next to no one is interested in academics, which is fine, but as a collaborative learner, this was difficult. However, most of my professors were great. Not only helpful, but honest.

Also, the amount of people at UVM who think they're not racist, or not sexist, or not homophobic, or transphobic, etc, but actually are all of those things, is incredible. It's all fuckin' rich, white kids and I don't think I fully understood what that meant when I first got there.

I stayed because I believed a lot of what we say about the mythical powers of a degree, and by the time I realized it was bullshit, I was too far in and coasted my way out.

Burlington is a great little city. I eventually felt more like a Burlingtonite than a student once I had a full-time job downtown. There are a bunch of articles about how great Burlington is as a college town and how welcoming it is to the fact that there is such a huge student population. This is not true. Most people love the summer because all of the students are gone. There is a giant sigh of relief and the crowd on Church St is completely different.

If you're interested in learning, just move to Burlington and get a library card. Once you need some help, just contact some professors, and I'm sure they'll be willing to help.Fuck paying for college. I learned a lot, and at the time I needed some direction, but now I'm a Barista (and I love it) and have $55,000 of debt. If you've read this, and are having any doubts, I really suggest deferring, but moving to Burlington and seeing if you really, REALLY want to go there.

Alumnus Male -- Class 2000

You're a white, upper middle class person from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, or Vermont. During your years in high school you decided you didn't get to be outdoorsy enough, or you weren't around enough people that liked to smoke weed, so you thought UVM would be a great place to be a laid back toker during this new pop culture of weed smoking.

Some come to UVM as the 2010's version of the hipster - a lot different from the more anti-consumer hipsters of the 2000's. These new hipsters are actually a parallel to those; they all buy name brand gear and clothes (Supreme hats, Nixon watches, Snowboard brands, Go Pro Cameras, etc) and emphasize a sense of white privilege while spending their parent's money on nonstop weed. This white privilege is made even more ironic in that weed rap is the preferred choice of music. Lots of 2Chainz, Currency, whoever is in the scene of de-intellectualization.

The kids who aren't a part of this phenomenon are almost washed out. They don't know who to be, what to talk about, and there's an overwhelming sense in all of them to stay positive. Everyone is paying so much for their college experience, and yet everyone feels extremely different from one another. This is the problem is a post-hippie community, there is no community anymore and everyone tries to fit in a niche. The problem is, this new generation of computer zombies and party-hordes is highly fragmented. I can assure to you that the social environment is extremely hard to navigate and the norms (talking about what you did last weekend, easy going positive topics) are distancing.

Unless you are a highly developed extraverted person, don't expect to come here and have it happen for you. We are living in a fragmented time, and UVM is a living emblem of generational problems. Visit this campus on a normal day and observe people talking and try to see if they really enjoy the conversation. And also look at the people who aren't talking. There's a lot to be said under the surface and it's all hidden. So by all means, come to UVM if you think basement parties every weekend never get old, if you don't care about building intimate friendships, if you constantly ignore the big picture and look at the details to stay positive. They say this school is down to earth, and that's literally the vantage point everyone has. Future robots.

2nd Year Male -- Class 2015

Campus Aesthetics: A-, Social Life: F