Student life of University of South Carolina
| Race and ethnicity | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 75% | ||
| Black | 9% | ||
| Hispanic | 5% | ||
| Other | 5% | ||
| Asian | 4% | ||
| Foreign national | 2% | ||
| Economic diversity | |||
| Low-income | 18% | ||
| Affluent | 82% | ||
Demographics
Over 34,500 students attend the Columbia campus of the University of South Carolina, coming from all 46 South Carolina counties. In addition, students from all 50 states and more than 100 foreign countries are represented here. (Almost 16,000 students study at the regional campuses of the University of South Carolina System.)
Housing
University Housing provides over 6,200 on-campus housing units. Rent includes all utilities. Undergraduates may choose housing in a specific “living and learning community”. The concept is to create a better social and learning environment by housing students with similar academic or career interests together.
In the fall of 2004, the $29 million West Quad (now Green Quad) opened and became one of only four in the world to be certified by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. The 172,000-square-foot (16,000 m2) complex includes three four-story buildings.
Since campus academic enrollment exceeds the capacity of on-campus housing, the university is adding more residence halls, most of which will be suite-style. As a result, some students live in popular off-campus housing.
Student government
The university’s student government is composed of the executive, judicial, and legislative branches. A 50-member Student Senate is led by the student body speaker of the Senate. The Student Senate enacts referendums, resolutions, and bills to enhance the student body in non-academic fields, maintains a budget for student life projects, confirms nominations for cabinet positions, and makes recommendations for change within the university.
Their work is arranged according to the Student Government Constitution, a document written and adopted with the inception of student government and overseen by the President of the University of South Carolina and the university’s board of trustees.
Media
The Daily Gamecock is an editorially independent, daily student newspaper founded in 1908. It has a readership of more than 30,000 and is distributed across the University of South Carolina System.
The student run radio station, WUSC, began broadcasting on the AM dial in 1947. In January 1977 WUSC began broadcasting on the FM dial, and in 1982 the station found its current home at 90.5 FM. Since June 2006, WUSC is broadcasting in HD radio.
Students publish a literary magazine, Garnet & Black, which was formed in 1994 as a consolidation of the university’s former yearbook and its literary magazine. It is published four times a year and is free.
The University of South Carolina established its first television station in the Fall 2006, Student Government Television (SGTV). It was funded by Student Government until April 2007 when Student Government released SGTV to the Department of Student Media, which also operates The Daily Gamecock, Garnet & Black Magazine and WUSC-FM. It was then that the station changed its name to it current name, Student Gamecock Television (SGTV).
Fraternities and sororities
About 22% of undergraduate men and 34% of undergraduate women participate in fraternities and sororities.[54] These Greek letter organizations are governed by an internal body, the Greek Council. There are two separate councils, one for males and another for females. Many of the fraternities and sororities have large, mostly Greek Revival style mansions; Lining Lincoln Street, Gadsden Street, and Mark Buyck Way are the houses referred to as the Greek Village.
Recreation
Students tend to socialize off campus in Five Points and the Congaree Vista. Both of these areas are within walking distance of campus and offer restaurants, bars, cafés, and a variety of local entertainment.
Lake Murray and the three rivers (Saluda River, Broad River, and Congaree River) around Columbia offer students many recreational activities. The South Carolina coast—Charleston, SC, Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head—is only a 1.5- to 2-hour drive for additional recreational activities.