Facts about UF

Century Tower

In 1985, Florida became a member of the Association of American Universities, the prestigious higher-education organization comprised of the top 63 public and private institutions in North America.

UF's Honors Residential College at Hume Hall is the first honors residential college designed and constructed specifically for honors students in the United States.

The Gemini Observatory, the international consortium that oversees two telescopes in Chile and Hawaii announced it will provide UF researchers $3.1 million to design and build a bigger, more-powerful version of a UF-developed infrared spectrometer that has been in use for nearly three years. In 2000, UF became a partner in construction of the world's largest telescope, a $93 million facility built in Spain's Canary Islands.

A statewide diabetes screening program is being made possible through a $10 million commitment from the American Diabetes Association to fund the program to be based at the UF College of Medicine.

Alumni

In the past four decades, more presidents of the American Bar Association have come from the UF Levin College of Law than any other U.S. law school.

The 226,000 UF alumni live in all 50 states and 130 foreign countries.

Research

UF faculty attracted more than $458 million in research and training grants in 2002-03.

UF serves as the home of the world's largest citrus research center.

Technological Strength Ranking (MIT Technology Review, Fall 2000) ranked UF 18th in the nation among public and private universities.

NASA awarded a UF-led consortium of seven universities a $15 million grant to develop a reusable launch vehicle which would replace the space shuttle.

The UF Center of Excellence in Regenerative Health Biotechnology was one of three chosen by the state Board of Education to receive $10 million under the 2002 Florida Technology Development Act.

Several international programs recently funded: National Resource Center for Transnational Global Studies ($230,000), the Center for Latin American Studies (two grants totaling $1.4 million), Center for African Studies ($459,000 for the first year of a three-year grant), and the new Center for European Studies ($235,000 for the first year).

UF is 13th among all universities - public and private - in the number of U.S. Patents awarded in 2000.

UF consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in licensing.

Students

UF ranks second among public institutions in the U.S. for the number of National Merit Scholars enrolled and ranks fourth among all colleges and universities in the U.S. for the number of National Merit Scholars enrolled.

UF ranked first among public institutions in attracting National Achievement Scholars during 2002.

UF admitted 941 International Baccalaureate students for the 2002-03 academic year, more than any other university in the world.

UF had the fourth-largest student enrollment of all U.S. universities in 2002 with more than 48,000 students from all 50 states and 100 foreign countries.

UF ranked in the top 10 among AAU public universities for the number of Fulbright Awards in 2001.

UF ranked third in degrees awarded to African American students in 2000-01 and fifth among AAU public universities in the number of Ph.D.s awarded to Latino students.

UF's 2002 Incoming Class has an average 3.92 GPA and 1300 SAT score.

UF's freshmen retention rate of 93 percent is among the highest in the U.S.

Athletics

For the sixth time, UF swept the overall men's and women's Southeastern Conference All-Sports Trophy in 2002.

With its third-place finish in the 2001-02 Sears Directors' Cup rankings, Florida ranked among the nation's top 10 athletic departments for 19 straight years.

French Fries!

Some thoughts for the Gator Nation: 

You Might Be a Gator If:

1. You've ever lost a beach ball to a cop at a football game.

2. The colors garnet and gold make you nauseous.

3. The sight of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium or Century Tower makes your eyes well with tears.

4. You've ever failed a class and recieved an "E" grade because an "F" is too sacred.

5. You were accepted to both Florida AND Florida State.

6. You've written The Vatican to nominate Mr. Two Bits for sainthood.

7. You've ever detoured through Georgia simply to avoid Tallahassee.

8. You've ever gotten arrested/passed out/gotten sick at a football game.

9. Your car is blue with orange pinstripes.

10. Your children are named Albert and Alberta.

11. Your live mascot ate the other team's.

12. You own an orange wig and/or blue cowboy hat.

13. You think chest painting and face tattoos are perfectly acceptable, if not expected, behaviors.

14. You've ever yelled "BLUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUE!" at 40,000 people across a stadium.

15. You've ever streaked naked through Turlington Hall.

16. You think the Bowden family is inbred.

17. You boo people who can't stand the full 4 hours at a game.

18. You've ever done the Chop with middle finger extended.

19. You've been on ESPN Game Day wearing an orange and blue Dr. Suess hat before.

20. You rooted for Tennessee to beat FSU (please, no real Gator would root for Half Ass U over the SEC).

21. You've ever slept on concrete overnight in the stadium in 40-degree, rainy weather the night before an exam for Sugar Bowl tickets.

22. You dream of one day owning your own RV (festooned with orange and blue Christmas lights, numerous decals, flags and magnets).

23. You wouldn't think driving to Gainesville from California for a game is crazy.

24. The words "Let the Gator grrrrrrrrrowl" mean something to you.

25. You honestly don't remember who last year's Homecoming queen was but remember both comedians who were at Gator Growl.

26. You have ever held up keys at the beginning of the fourth quarter in hopes of wrapping up a game with over 60 points.

27. Thinking of 85,000 people swaying to "We Are The Boys" makes you nostalgic.

28. You've ever chanted "WE'RE NUMBER ONE!" and you really were in the final AP poll.

29. You come home from a game with no voice and sore shoulders from doing the Chomp.

30. You think Danny Wuerffel is a god.

31. Visor-throwing by Spurrier was expected if the player did indeed blow the play.

32. You'd swap your firstborn for good FSU/Tennessee/Georgia tickets.

33. The sight of I-75 Exit 75 was ever home to you.

34. The other team has ever had to call a timeout because you were so loud hey couldn't hear their own plays.

35. Your lifelong goal is to become a Bull Gator and own a Skybox with a wet bar.

36. You've ever gotten a sunburn at a game around your stick-on face tattoos.

37. You've ever come home deaf from a football game after screaming "It's GREAT to BE a FLORIDA GATOR!" in the breezeways.

38. Parking half a mile from class is unacceptable, but considered a great spot on a game day.

39. You tripped on the uneven bricks in front of Turlington Hall as a freshman.

40. You really believe that legend about the Century Tower bricks and female Florida grads.

41. You can maintain the wave two-way around the stadium for an entire quarter.

42. Your fans get louder if you are behind - They do not leave. *cough*fsu*cough*

43. Your seven favorite words of all time were "Wuerffel pass complete to Doering. Touchdown Florida."

44. You decide free food at the Plaza of the Americas is worth becoming a Hare Krishna for a semester.

45. "French fries" reminds you of the Marston Library and CSE, not of McDonald's.

46. You leave for class (two miles away) an hour early, to allow sufficient time for parking space stalking.

47. The Gator clothing section of The Hub has seen more of your financial aid check than Florida Book Store ever did.

48. You ever sat long enough in the Infirmary waiting room that your illness went away.

49. You love your school and your team more than life itself, and share this feeling with a couple hundred thousand other alumni. 

Printed with permission from Maria Evans