According to enrollment statistics 38 percent of Auburn students come from out of state.
However, there is a small percentage of students, often referred to as Auburnites, who you won't find at the Atlanta airport trying to get home on breaks.
Instead they'll be right here on the Plains that they have called home their entire lives.
The U.S. News and World Report ranked Auburn, as one of the best places to live in the U.S. for its "Southern charm and collegiate vigor."
Abria Grimmet, freshman in undeclared sciences and math, said someone she knows inspired her to go to Auburn.
"Growing up in a college town allowed me to meet a diverse population of people," Grimmet said. "My lifelong love for Auburn probably started with Project Uplift. By having a close relationship with someone who attended Auburn allowed me to obtain a stronger passion for the college and hopes that I would have the same experiences as my big sister."
The residents of Auburn include the children of professors and have had their first glimpses of college long before their college years.
According to Chandler Mulvaney, junior in agricultural communications, there was no better place to gain this insight.
"Ever since I was a young boy, I would go into work once or twice a week with my dad and spend the day shadowing him and look up to all the students in his classes, thinking and dreaming about my time as a college student," Mulvaney said. "Not only was it attending my dad's classes, but it was going to Auburn football games, playing baseball in the Auburn community during the spring and fall and just spending time on ag hill made my love for Auburn continue to grow throughout the years and allowed me to appreciate all of Auburn's storied traditions so much more."
Both Mulvaney and Grimmet said their independence has not been adversely affected by their decision to stay close to home for college.
"My parents have always trusted me to make the right decisions so my independence came more from age than my college experience," Grimmet said.
From hiking a trail in Chewacla State Park to rolling the trees at Toomer's, Auburn provides numerous recreational activities and traditions that attract out of state students.
Devon Brake, freshman in special education, is from out of state.
"I felt at home with the Auburn Family," Brake said. "Personally I wanted to go far away for college, but if I had grown up in Auburn I would assume that I would go to the University because I would be a born Auburn fan and future student."
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