Admissions

My first tip for a prospective student is to not enroll here with preconceived notions of college life. What you read about and see on TV or witness during other college visits is not what happens here. University of Puget Sound is a one of a kind place where everyone is accepted and embraced for exactly who they are. Every single student here is exceptionally smart and the academics are competitive, it is impossible to be the best so just be you.

your education is what you make it. the university will certainly lead you in the right direction, but ultimately, it is up to you to join a club, immerse yourself in tacoman culture, explore the surroundings and integrate into the community. looking back my only regret is not exploring tacoma more often and more intimately.

Come visit Puget Sound! You won't know what it will be like to be here until you are here.

If you're struggling, really go and talk to your professors. They will be there for you 100%. Puget Sound is really great about choosing their professors, they also do evaluations every few years to make sure the students are enjoying them.

if you really want to go to this school, apply for early decision. do this only if it's your first choice, but if you're at least decent student with some good credentials, you're almost certain to get in.
also be sure to visit campus if you can. this goes for any college, but it's always a good idea to take a tour so you can see more of the details of daily college life and of course ask questions to students.

Be outgoing! A great thing about UPS is the orientation program. They give you a full 10 days to great acquainted to the campus and living away from home. A tip for new students would be to use every one of these 10 days to help you! Use it to get yourself out there and meet people because friends will become your life at UPS. The hardest thing for me about college life was being so far away from my family and my home, it was such a drastic change in such a short amount of time. First semester was harder for me because I was afraid to get out there and meet new people. Second semester was so much better because I taught myself to be outgoing and friendly to everyone I met. That is my biggest tip to freshman: to not be afraid that you're going to be on your own, you have to learn to be both self-reliant and self-sufficient and to make a LOT of friends! They are the key to surviving the sad and stressful times, and are an essential part of college life.

make sure to keep your GPA up and study for the SAT hard.

Even though UPS is a small school, with a little effort you can participate in many great clubs and activities throughout the year.

I think the big thing for me was trying to figure out what kind of school I needed. Big school, small school, medium sized school in a traditional or nontraditional setting. University of Puget sound is a small school with a traditional setting. I would recommend a lot of research on these categories. Either way the college application process is hard and sometimes you just have to follow your gut instinct.

Find what you love, and plan to do it here. Even if it doesn't exist here yet, Puget Sound is very accommodating for those who want to start initiatives. The Admissions Department wants to see your passion, but be sure it's something you really love, because you'll want to take advantage of the accessibility to what you love here on campus!