Rollins College: Party School or Pre-school?

Rollins College is probably best known for its reputation as a party school.  In 2002 it was ranked as Playboy’s #3 Party School in America.  In 2010 it made the list again at #7.  This is quite a feat, especially for such a small school, seeing as the list has only been published 5 times in the history of Playboy.

The question is, does the school deserve this reputation? A look inside says not really.

The school’s overall reputation is that it is a bunch of rich white kids who don’t want to work too hard, and like to use their daddy’s money to get by.  While the overall population of the school is in fact white and wealthy, the academics are challenging and the party scene is highly monitored.  In fact, one could even say the school is the opposite of what is expected when it comes to parties.

The school’s policies are so strict that parties are not allowed to be held on campus.  Campus security keeps a high level of monitoring on noise levels, and students can be punished if there are too many people in one room.  All fraternities and sororities are on campus, so they don’t get to hold parties either.  Most parties are held off-campus in downtown nightclubs where only the wealthier kids can afford the taxis and cover fees.  The school has even banned organizations such as sororities and fraternities from busing students to the clubs, which is actually a good idea when it comes to preventing drunk driving.

On top of that strict monitoring, students are also monitored when it comes to class attendance.  Unlike larger universities, Rollins holds attendance policies that require students to show up to every class because absences will cause their grades to drop severely. 

Freshman are required to take an RCC class which is designed to help them acclimate to college.  The classes include mandatory field trips outside of the classes scheduled times, and upperclassmen who serve as their “peer mentors.” They lead the freshman through activities during orientation, and have responsibilities to report any bad behavior to authorities. One student during freshman orientation claimed that she felt like she was “twelve years old and back in summer camp.”  Students also complained that the required activities (which counted as a grade) were planned last minute when other plans were already made.  The sole purpose of these activities? To prevent students from going to parties.

The school feels more like a high school boarding school with all of its strict policies and rules.  Many students wouldn’t be surprised if the college implemented a curfew next.  So how does the small school get its party reputation? Students don’t know.  One comments, “The school never really deserved it in the first place.”

So if you’re applying to Rollins in hopes of a fun social life and good parties, you might want to look elsewhere.