College Survival Guide/Social Life

Hazing
Some campus organizations will have an initiation. Some of these rituals are relatively harmless, such as a short chant or oath. However when these initiations include hazing, they have gone too far, and can harm yourself, the organization, and the rest of the campus community. For example if a group asks you to streak across campus, you may impress that specific group by doing that. However, to everyone else on campus, you'll be the person who publicly ran nude in front of students, visiting tour groups, professors, and administrative staff. Even if you somehow evade the campus police, someone is probably going post a video of it online that could haunt you professionally later. Serious private hazing is no better, and there is usually several deaths in the United States every year which can be attributed to hazing incidents.

Guide to drinking
In most college towns, drinking is a part of life, and often a major part of the local culture.

A good drink is meant to be savored with friends over a period of time. Know your limits, both physically and financially - there's nothing wrong with keeping it to a single drink for the night. Don't leave your drink unattended, and make sure Alcohol is ok to drink with any medications you might be on.

Casual drinking can be a nice way to spend time with friends, but drinking too much is bad for your academic career, and life in general. Poor quality sleep and hangovers can make classwork the next day difficult. Drinking a lot of alcohol frequently gets expensive fast, and getting your stomach pumped or dealing with liver damage isn't fun.

If you want to abstain from drinking or just don't feel like drinking on some nights, that is absolutely fine. Hanging out with inebriated friends, watching drunk antics while sober, and safely acting as their designated driver can be its own unique reward.

ABV
Keep in mind that some alcohol is much stronger than others: a glass of light beer and a glass of vodka are not equivalent. Alcohol by Volume is the measurement of how much alcohol is in a drink. In general, low ABV drinks are enjoyed by themselves, and high ABV drinks are served in smaller amounts, or diluted as part of a mix, such as in a cocktail.

Below is a quick guide to typical ABV. Each individual drink has its own value, and some drinks vary significantly.
 * Beer and cider is around 6% ABV or less.
 * Wine and mead is about 12% ABV.
 * Liqueurs range from 15% ABV to 50% ABV.
 * Whisky, Rum, Brandy, and Gin typically range 40% ABV - 60% ABV.
 * Vodka and Absinthe can range from 40% ABV to 90% ABV.