UW-Madison fell from the top 10 party schools in the country this year, according to an annual survey the Princeton Review, dropping from No. 8 to No. 12 in their party school ranking.
Suzanne Jones, an assistant dean of students, said any indication that there is less drinking on campus – either in reality or perception – demonstrates that some of the university's initiatives to curb drinking have been successful.
""We're interested in student wellness and student safety, and if we're having a positive impact on improving that, we're happy,"" Jones said. ""We don't take [the Princeton Review] so seriously that it means great, great, we're doing everything right. But it is one small indicator that maybe we're addressing the issue to the extent that students don't perceive that it's the biggest party school anymore.""
The university began a number of initiatives to educate students about the effects of alcohol abuse on individuals, the campus and the greater community. Those initiatives include presentations in the residence halls, known as ""Cop and Keg"" programs, in addition to providing other activities that allow students to get involved in the social scene without consuming alcohol.
""If we're going to address alcohol, we need to be active on all three fronts,"" said Tom Sieger, Prevention Director at University Health Services.
Over 122,000 students, representing 373 universities throughout the country, were asked to rate their schools on a variety of topics. Despite dropping in the party school rankings, Wisconsin is ranked No. 15 in the ""lots of beer"" category and No. 4 for ""lots of hard alcohol."" The University of Georgia was listed as the top party school on the Princeton Review's list.
