About American Colleges?

Understand that you're asking for generalities here so it's hard to answer you definitively. Some American students study hard and some don't. At nearly every school (even those that are technically "dry," or alcohol-free, campuses), there's a certain amount of "boola-boola" that goes on. Frats and sororities abound and there's usual no shortage of booze. The smart students know how to balance play and work. Those who don't typically fare poorly. Malcolm X is correct in that there are many distractions in college. This, however, isn't necessarily a bad thing in all cases. Colleges have an academic services wing and a student services wing for a reason -- college is more than academics (and this is being said by someone who comes from the academic side of the house). It's not all work or all partying. Opportunities to hear significant speakers, attending theatrical and musical offerings, applying what's learned in the clroom in the outside world (as in my campus' Holocaust remembrance and human rights group), and growing socially are all important qualities for students of any nationality. At least to this teacher...