Help me find a source for this quote!

January 20, 2007 10:03 AM

Where's does this quote about the University of Virginia really come from?

I go to UVA, and it seems every other facebook profile or AIM buddy info has this quote in it, usually sourced to the ESPN magazine:

"Just about every other school in Virginia likes to bash UVA kids for being 'pretentious' and 'snobs.' In other words, they get called out for thinking they're better than everyone else. Well, if you went to the school in Virginia with the most stringent admissions requirements, best overall athletic program, most beautiful campus and coeds, most successful and famous alumni, the most storied social scene, was founded by Thomas Jefferson, and all that happened to be in what was voted the #1 city to live in America, well you'd think you were the shit too."

Now this seems kinda off. I'm not sure why ESPN would make this kind of declaration. Also, it doesn't seem like a professionally edited publication would call UVA students "UVA kids" or have such an awkward run-on sentence in it.

I suspect that some student just made up the quote. Is there anyway to confirm my hunch?

posted by Bizurke to education (7 comments total)

It looks like it originates here (at the bottom).
posted by Partial Law at 10:15 AM on January 20, 2007

Partial Law's linked article adds the Washington & Lee qualifier:

Just about every other school in Virginia, save for W&L, likes to bash UVA kids for being "pretentious" and "snobs." In other words, we get called out for thinking we're better than everyone else. Well, if you went to the school in Virginia with the most stringent admissions requirements, best overall athletic program, most beautiful campus and coeds, most successful and famous alumni, the most storied social scene, was founded by Thomas Jefferson, and all that happened to be in what was voted the #1 city to live in America, you'd think you were the shit too.
posted by Frank Grimes at 11:20 AM on January 20, 2007

Being the school in VA with the most stringent admissions criteria is hardly a reason to shout.
posted by docpops at 12:02 PM on January 20, 2007

[I am a UVa alum - School of Medicine]
posted by docpops at 12:03 PM on January 20, 2007

Being the school in VA with the most stringent admissions criteria is hardly a reason to shout.

Nationally speaking, UVA has pretty stringent admissions standards.
posted by phrontist at 12:50 PM on January 20, 2007

If you're talking about academic and teaching quality, William and Mary is better.

Honestly, if your judging criteria include "most beautiful coeds", you're not really looking at the school qua school, are you?

In any case, as far as "most beautiful campus" goes, William and Mary wins again.

And say, didn't Thomas Jefferson himself *graduate* from W&M???
posted by mikeand1 at 9:26 PM on January 20, 2007

Thanks Partial Law. It looks like that probably is the source.

Also, thanks to everyone else for the completely irrelevant replies that don't help answer my question at all!
posted by Bizurke at 10:09 AM on January 21, 2007