I wear these to class, to work, and to hike in, and they are perfect.  Great alternative to ugly snow or rain boots when trudging through ice and snow.  I have even been snowshoeing in 3-4 ft deep snow for 4 hours and my socks only got a tiny bit wet.  The taller shaft of the boot does need to be broken in somewhat in my opinion, but its well-worth it.  Just a word to the wise - these are real boots, so they're not something that's easy to slip on and off.