For those just joining the University of Wisconsin family and for those who may have forgotten, this is a campus devoted to two things: academics and revelry. We work hard and we play hard. There’s no way around it.

During the week, students attend class, migrate to the libraries in the evening to study and socialize, only to wake up the next day and repeat. Scholastics are an area of pride at UW and students must realize this university would not be as well regarded if not for a heavy emphasis on academics.

Thursday nights some students file into the bars, but the mass exodus starts Friday night. Saturday pre-game parties in preparation for Badger football games dominate mornings in the fall. Win or lose, the party flows into the evening, when students again congregate at local watering holes until bar-time.

Expectations to fulfill both facets of UW life might sound like a hard bargain, but the bookworm and party animal are normally rival creatures that find a special way to coexist on this little isthmus in the middle of reality.