I loved the liberalness and it seemed like I would get along with all the people. The school had my type of learning style and all of the students were so engaged.

Open curriculum, diverse students, opportunities, political leaning (I came from a very conservative high school)

One of the stereotypes of Brown students says that everyone is a hipster, which is not necessarily true. Although there are some around campus, all different kinds of people attend Brown. Another stereotype is that students at Brown are incredibly happy, which is definitely true. Everyone is really nice and generally easy-going. There is a place for everyone at Brown because everyone is very accepting.

It seems like the two major stereotypes are: dumb jocks and pretentious hipsters, and while sadly there are many of both of these at the University, thankfully there are also a wide range of other students with varying interests within this spectrum (including slightly less stupid jocks and only somewhat snooty hipsters).

Typically at Brown, the two most popular types of activities are the arts and political activism. Brown has the most a capella groups per capita than any other University in the US, and it shares a very close relationship with the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), which gives students access to courses at the design school. There are also many dance groups on campus that are all student-run, and the new Granoff Center for the creative arts has opened the way for students interested in acting and performance to further cultivate their interests. With regard to political activism, there are frequent protests on the main green that make a student sometimes feel like they are at Berkeley in the 1960's. Greek life does not have a very strong presence on campus, with only eight fraternities and two sororities on campus.

I believe the official statistic is that less than 10% of Brown students end up in the Greek scene. I happen to be within that =10%. For me, going Greek was entirely unplanned, and my Greek life is very unconventional; I'm in a co-ed fraternity that exists only at Brown.

Brown is said to be the "hippie" child of the Ivies. The stereotype is that students are very liberal, like to protest, and only study what they feel like studying. Brown is probably the most relaxed and least competitive school of all the Ivies, but that doesn't mean that students don't put their noses to the grindstone and take their studies seriously. For the most part, Brown is quite liberal, but it is also equally diverse in nationality, religion, etc. In general, Brown students are open-minded and are willing to have their ideas challenged through conversation.

I couldn't be happier to be at Brown. At the same time, I understand that it might not be the perfect school for everyone. I'm really glad to have the opportunity to take classes outside of my concentration—I'm basically able to build my own "core" curriculum by taking classes from many departments (I've taken courses in over 10 departments in just 3 semesters, and I'm in good shape for my concentration). More importantly, I think Brown is a student-focused atmosphere: the university tends to treat students fairly and put undergrads first. Professors are actually available and pretty much all classes (except low-level math) are taught by professors. So overall, I love it here.

There is an assumption that most of the students at Brown are rich, hipsters, promiscuous, and arrogance, but this is not the truth. Yes, there are rich students, there are hipsters, there are students who are promiscuous and arrogance, and this is true at most East Coast, and especially the Ivy League, but it is incorrect to believe that this the image of the typical Brown students. I cannot give a typical description of what a Brown student looks like or do as we are not homogeneous in these categories. However, I would say that the large majority of the students at Brown shares the values of being self-motivated, open-minded, and critical (as in analytical) toward their experiences at Brown. And yes, Brown students tend to be very liberal in ideologies but they are tolerant and respectful towards others' ideologies. And unlike the lazy stereotype of the Brown student who takes every class "Pass/Fail", Brown students are quite responsible toward their education as they are given the opportunity (and burden) of creating their own educational experience.

We are extremely liberal for the most part, but beyond that none of the stereotypes are valid.

there is a wide range of types of people, including artsy, preppy, athletes, etc.

INCREDIBLE classes in politics (I recommend Wendy Schiller and Roger Cobb)! Great history and spanish classes as well, and, form what I hear, unbelievably thorough science and engineering programs. Mostly work with professors, not TAs, even as freshmen.

The best thing about Brown is that people are engaged with what they're learning- they can choose all the classes they take, and they seem genuinely excited and interested in most of them. I would change the dining hall food, it can be pretty bad. School is just right. I don't feel lost in a crowd, and there is a good balance of large 100+ classes and small 20 or less classes. People react differently when I say I go to Brown. A couple interviewers have seemed impressed by the fact, while others haven't even mentioned it. Most people in general seem impressed by the Brown name, although some haven't heard of it/ask where it is Providence is just the right size for a college. Students can definitely have an impact on campus, and in fact a major Top 40 radio station in Providence is run by Brown students. Thayer St (basically on campus) has a lot of stuff for college students, as does the mall and downtown. The only problem is that stores like grocery stores and Target are not close to campus. There is little school spirit. People are proud that they go to Brown, but they are not into school athletics at all.

On a Saturday night, if you're not drinking, you can party at Club Sci Li. V. exclusive.

These stereotypes do have a shred of truth to them, but for the most part, they are not true. I think it is much more casual socially than some of the other Ivy League schools, and we work as hard as ever, so definitely not just a rich kid's party school. And I think it is as liberal as you would expect any college campus to be (except for the strict and/or religious zealot ones), though I think it is awesome how much freedom the college allows us.

brown student body is very tolerant and diverse. all different socio-economic classes present and many races and countries represented. no student would feel out of place, there is something for everyone, literally, everyone. the atmosphere is casual, you can wear and do whatever you want. students are predominantly geared towards the left but there's definitely a right wing body.

most professors make the effort to get to know your name. my least favorite class was SO164: Social Exclusion. Brown students definitely have intellectual conversations outside of class and are competitive but no always with each other but themselves.

it is quite diverse in every aspect.

best thing- people. there are so many and they're all different. there's lots of real cultural diversity, primarily because of the amount of international students. school size is just right. when i tell people i go to brown, people in providence are impressed, people who are used to being around ivy league students are somewhat impressed, harvard people are not impressed, and other college students range from being indifferent to impressed. most of my time on campus is spent in the sciences library (sci li). it's a small city, so it's not really a college town. brown's admin. is great. they like to communicate with students a lot of their decisions and give us lots of options with our life here at brown. biggest recent contraversy? not sure... no outward school pride. i think most people are really glad about going here, though. we just don't tell others about it too much. the normal person at brown is VERY different from the normal american in prob. more ways than most colleges. reading Isaiah 53 in the Bible and seeing that it was all about Jesus even though it was in the Old Testament! i did that when i was a freshman at one of the college hill for Christ weekly meetings. the food's not that great and the staff isn't doing what people want them to.