Can I promote my product or service here?
The rules ban self promotion, advertising, and selling services, so you cannot promote your product directly.
Subreddit guides
r/college rules, stats, and what to post
A source-backed Rankhog guide to r/college: public rules, community context, posting fit, and startup-promotion risk before you publish.
By Anthony Riera, founder and operator of Rankhog.
Subreddit guides combine public Reddit source URLs, captured rules, visible verification dates, and Rankhog's account-safety workflow.
Current public stats
- Members
- 2,934,007
- Verified
- September 18, 2026
- Minimum karma
- 10
- Minimum account age
- 7 days
- Category
- Entrepreneur advice and questions
Rules can change, so Rankhog keeps verification dates and the original public Reddit sources visible.
Rule summary
- No Spam, Surveys, Requests for Participation, or Self-Promotion: Absolutely no surveys, polling, market research, requests for participation, advertising, crowdsourcing, petitions, referral links, selling services, blogs, startup posts, discord links, or asking for money/votes/views.
- No Admissions or Transfer Questions: Questions about applying to college, entrance exams, "chance me" threads, high school prep, or comparing schools are not allowed. Please post these in r/ApplyingToCollege, r/collegecompare, or r/CollegeTransfer.
- Be Respectful, Safe, & Sane: Civility: No racism, harassment, threats, trolling, insanity, or hateful content. Do not send unsolicited DMs. Mental Health: Posts regarding suicide or self-harm are prohibited. This is not a professional resource; please seek appropriate medical or psychiatric help.
- No Illegal or Unethical Behavior: Do not engage in or advocate for cheating, plagiarism, essay writing services, improper drug use, criminal behavior, unethical behavior, or copyright violations (e.g., textbook piracy).
- No Venting, Low-Quality, or Pointless Posts: No low-effort posts, memes, reaction gifs, 'arbitrary picture with a story', copypasta, or walls of unformatted text. Use punctuation/capitalization and readable formatting. Do not make posts that are generally pointless, requests for generic advice, grade begging, or venting. Titles: Your post title must clearly state the topic or question, or the thread will be removed.
- No Major or Career Specific Questions: If you have a major or career specific question, subreddits dedicated to that industry can provide much more relevant and focused guidance. Posts asking the community to choose your major, rank a list of majors for you, or determine your career path based on a short bio are prohibited. Choosing a major is a deeply personal decision that requires professional academic advising and self-reflection that Reddit cannot provide.
- Do Not Post About Disallowed Topics: This space is for discussing the college experience. It is not for a place for a specific university, course, book, major, or program. It is not the place to adjudicate grading or interpersonal disputes. Take homework help, tech support, laptop questions, product recommendations, grading complaints, dating/social advice, therapy sessions, and topics unrelated to college to more appropriate subreddits.
- Do Your Own Research First: Do not post easily searchable questions, questions with obvious solutions, questions regarding specific schedules, or GPA calculation questions. If the clear answer to your question is to ask your professor, to talk to your advisor/school, or to use basic common sense, do not post it here.
- Do Not Spread Misinformation: Do not post or advocate for factually incorrect or misleading information. Do not cite or link to propaganda.
- Account & Language Requirements: Minimums: Your account must be at least 1 week old with 10+ karma to participate. English Only: All posts and comments must be in English.
- Ban Evasion / Bot / AI: There is zero tolerance for AI responses/posts, bots, or creating alt accounts to evade bans. This will result in an immediate and permanent ban.
Works well
- A discussion about a broad trend in college life, like how students handle stress during finals week, with a clear and descriptive title.
- A question about navigating a common college situation, like talking to a roommate about boundaries, that is not a venting post or a request for therapy.
- A story about a positive or challenging moment in college that invites others to share their own experiences, written with proper punctuation and formatting.
Avoid
- Do not post surveys, polls, or market research.
- Do not post referral links or discord links.
- Do not ask for money, votes, or views.
- Do not post admissions, transfer, or chance me questions.
- Do not post memes, reaction gifs, or copypasta.
- Do not post walls of unformatted text or low effort content.
What r/college Is For
This community is for discussion related to college and collegiate life. The rules make clear that it is a space for the general college experience, not for specific universities, courses, books, majors, or programs. It is also not for admissions, transfer questions, homework help, tech support, or career specific guidance. People come here to talk about life as a college student in a broad sense.
Rules That Matter Before Posting
The rule called "No Spam, Surveys, Requests for Participation, or Self-Promotion" is the one that will determine whether anything you do survives here. It bans advertising, selling services, blogs, startup posts, referral links, discord links, and asking for money, votes, or views. The rule called "No Venting, Low-Quality, or Pointless Posts" also matters because it sets a quality bar for titles and formatting. The rule called "Account & Language Requirements" sets a minimum of one week of account age and ten karma. The rule called "Ban Evasion / Bot / AI" bans AI generated content entirely.
What To Post
A good post here is a genuine discussion about the broad college experience that does not ask for anything and does not promote anything. If you are a founder doing respectful Reddit marketing, your only real path is to participate as a community member first, sharing observations or stories about college life that start a conversation. Your post title must clearly state the topic or question. Your account must be at least one week old with ten or more karma before you post anything at all. Keep your post focused on general college life, not on a specific course, book, or program.
What To Avoid
Avoid anything that looks like promotion, including blogs, startup posts, and referral links. Avoid admissions questions, chance me threads, and high school prep. Avoid major or career specific questions. Avoid low effort posts, memes, and walls of unformatted text. Do not post about cheating, plagiarism, or textbook piracy. Do not post easily searchable questions or things your professor or advisor could answer. Do not use AI to generate posts or comments, and do not create alt accounts to evade bans.
Use Rankhog before posting in r/college
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Common questions about r/college
Can I post a survey or market research request?
No, the rules ban surveys, polling, market research, and requests for participation.
What are the account requirements to post?
Your account must be at least one week old with ten or more karma to participate.
Can I use AI to write my posts or comments?
There is zero tolerance for AI responses or posts, and doing so will result in an immediate and permanent ban.
What topics are allowed here?
The community is for general discussion related to college and collegiate life, so keep posts focused on that broad experience.
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