Amherst College Top Questions

Many people here play sports, and a lot of the parties on campus are thrown by sports teams. The college throws "alcohol-free" parties every month or two; they're usually sweaty dance parties where people who've already gotten drunk congregate, but they can be a lot of fun. Most people have small groups of very close friends which are part of bigger social groups. Other than sports, a cappella singing is probably the activity that the most people are involved with.

Amherst shares the area with four other schools, all of which provide cross-registration to students. The free bus system that runs between the five colleges makes the area particularly connected and the social life very accessible. The college is full of fun stuff to do and see, from art exhibits to big name speakers and concerts to movies on the freshman quad! The area is beautiful, and Amherst has, by far, the best view of any school I have ever visited! Party scene is thriving, but not too big, plenty to do for folks who don't want to party, no frat scene, tons of new people coming through all the time, great dorms and dorm life, very non-exclusive social atmosphere.

Men's basketball is the biggest sport to watch I'm on the swim team, which takes up a lot of time, but is a fun group of guys. it can be a very insular and cliquey group, athough I've maneged to have my own friends from my freshman dorm in addition to my swim friends. many swimmers are ONLY friends with other swimmers, which I think is kind of sad. Some sporting events are popular, especialy among hte preppy crowd. Theater and dance events actually get VERY high attendance becuase they only happen rarely and are well advertised, as to A Cappella performances. The Zumbyes are an amazing a cappella group thats gets enormous attendance. I met my best friends from my freshman dorm, and we've all lived together since. Many of my good firends are in Student govt, but thats just cuase we all joined becuase the other ones are in student govt. Most people party big on Saturday night, and on either Thurs or Friday night. I have no idea what people do on Sat night that isn't drinking, maybe they play computer games with each other or watch a movie in each other's rooms.

The a capella groups are quite popular. The swim team, which i am on, is notorious for being wild and cultish. Some students leave their doors open. I lock mine now just because anyone can get into any building at any time and steal things. Athletic events are not as big as at big schools. Most people go to homecoming football games and playoff basketball games but not alot. Guest speakers are frequent but not well attended unless famous. My closest friends and roommates are my teammates on the swimming and water polo teams. At 2 am on a Tues nite, i'm watching tv in the common room with my roommates. People party Thursday, Friday and Sat nites, mostly, but the big nites are Thurs and Sat. Fraternities are underground. There are about 5 of 6 and they have big parties sometimes, but the school wants nothing ot do with it. Last weekend, I got back from Spring Break on Sunday and we had a huge party to celebrate the success of our swimmers who went to Nationals over break and to kick off the spring. On sat nite, i could go to a movie or play video games, but drinking and partying is mostly what i do on sat nites.

Athletes are generally most popular, but it is ok because the majority of students are involved in some sport whether club or varsity.

My closest friends are definitely the other members of the swim team, I found that I just have the most in common with them, we chose the school for the same reason. However, it is easy to have other friends too. I think a lot of the friends people make freshman year are based on living situations, but they gradually evolve as time passes. The partying at Amherst varies depending on what you want to do. There are definitely people who party 3 or more times a week, however, there are those that may only go out once, or not at all. One of Amherst's best traditions is the Luau TAP (The Amherst Party) which occurs in September. Essentially, it is a big outdoor party held on one of the quads, with a live band. There is a lot of dancing, and because it is still warm people can really enjoy being outside. it also gives students a chance to see a lot of different people because the majority of the student body definitely shows up to this party

Most popular organizations: Black Students Union, La Causa, The Indicator, The Zumbyes, The Bluestockings, Football, Men's Basketball, the Ultimate Frisbee teams, Women's Hockey, and Women's Rugby. The Amherst Student newspaper runs my life. As one of the Managing Editors, I spend about 30 hours a week at the office lay-outing my section, editing articles, and writing. Most students in the dorms don't leave their doors open for the simple fact that a mere doorstop would not be enough to hold out heavy doors open. No joke. Athletic events are pretty popular, particularly men's basketball. Guest Speakers will always get some crowd. Not too sure about theater because I don't attend most productions. Dating scene - non-existent. It's a hook-up culture. But there are quite a number of committed couples on campus, still. Met my closest friends in my dorm freshman year. 2 AM Tuesday - I'm at the newspaper office finishing up my section because printing on Wednesday. Traditions? What traditions? Oh, you mean the concert with the crappy artist. People TRY to party every weekend, but the party scene here is pretty weak. There are no official frats or sororities, but secret frats exist. Not that important at all if you don't belong to them. Last weekend I wrote a 15-page paper for my Sex, Gender, and the Family class. Nothing beats board games on a Saturday night. Trivial Pursuit rules! Off campus? When do I get off campus?

sports teams comprise the social scene but dont exclude non-athletes. dating here is hard because its so small, but many people find great relationships here. amherst definitely has a work hard-play hard attitude. Wednesdays are at bars in town, Thursdays a sports team throws a dorm party, Saturdays dorms throw parties and the Social Council sponsors a theme party.

I mostly know about the teams, the football, hockey, lacrosse and basketball teams are all popular. other groups that are big include GSA, BSU, and Asian club. I'm a basketball player and i loved this past season. I am also doing track for the first time this year and throwing discus and shot put after one of my floor mates convinced me to do it. a lot of people on my floor leave their doors open. we've been a very close floor from the first day and we all bought door stops together. i don't see it as much on other floors. athletic events are reasonably popular, especially when a team is doing well. there are a lot of guest speakers and the ones i've been to have been good. i don't hear much about the theater happening here. i went to one play put on by a company outside the school for a class. the dating scene is almost non-existent. basically, if you repeatedly hook up with someone you may eventually start dating. if, like me, you don't want to do that, you feel stuck. i met my closest friends because they're my floor mates. if i'm awake at 2 am on a tuesday it won't be for long but i'm finishing up any work i have to do. there are a several parties thrown by the social council that happen every year and they're pretty fun. people party quite often, you could probably find at least a small party/groups of students drinking, etc, every night of the week. frats aren't supposed to exist, but there are underground frats that basically serve to throw parties. i've never been to one and i find them annoying. i did nothing last weekend b/c we just got back from spring break, but i usually go out to a party on campus on saturday nights, and for the past four months, i've either had a game or practice, and i always have a lot of work. on some saturdays i just hang out with friends and watch movies or play (non-drinking) games, which i think is really fun. i go out to eat in restuarants in town and shop.

The sports teams at Amherst throw a lot of the parties and provide a large portion of the social scene. Parties occur mainly at one of two locations: the socials and the triangle. Small parties can be found on any night of the week, but the biggest nights are Wednesday (senior bar night), Thursday (especially popular with freshman and sports teams), and Saturday (campus wide free for all). Each month there are TAPs (The Amherst Party) which are thrown by the social council and involve a DJ or band and are normally a giant, sweaty mess of students dancing and socializing. They're tons of fun and always themed to spice up life for little while. The best by far is the first one thrown, Luau, outside in the middle of the social quad. Nothing like coming back to school and having the opportunity to reunite with your friends and meet new people while wearing a grass skirt and coconut shells when it's only about 50 degrees outside. Gotta love the northeast! People complain that the party scene gets old, but if you're inventive and willing to create some of your own atmosphere there's always something fun to do. Fraternities are all underground and don't really dominate the party scene at all. They throw a couple big parties a year but overall are a minimal part of the campus scene. If I'm awake at 2 am on a Tuesday I'm either partying because in-season athletes often party on Tuesdays (far enough away from Friday game-day) or I'm awake writing a paper/studying or I'm in the middle of some deep conversation (whether it be about boys, friends, or the upcoming election).

I leave my door open every time that i am inside which is a nice way to socialize with other people. Sporting events are well attended by the students and are generally alot of fun, people care about the sports teams. I would say there are usually pretty big parties going on 2-4 nights a week, it really depends on how that particular week is.

Our colleges emphasizes community engagement because it feels that receiving opportunity means that we should give back to the community. This is really amazing because our students do not just study, but do things such as make blankets for the poor and raise money for battered women's shelters. However, I have to say that our college is in the heart of the suburbs. Boston is an hour away. Hence, if you're from the city, you'll find that the people here are friendly and warm but there aren't many shops and as many street lights as more urban places. Usually, there isn't that much to do off-campus. So my friends and I hang out in our dorms, talk, and eat good food from the restaurants in town.

Most of the men's teams are the more popular ones, especially men's basketball and soccer. I'm on the women's soccer team, and it has been a great experience. Having 20 people that you know right off the bat really helps with adjusting to college and it is nice to have a safety net of friends as well. Some students leave their rooms unlocked, others don't. Stuff honestly won't get taken, but some people just wish to have some additional security. Athletic events are very popular, and support, especially during the NESCAC tournament and NCAA's is really good, no matter the sport. The attendance for guest speakers depends on the topic and the date. I met my closest friends through a variety of ways: two live on my floor, one plays soccer with me, and the other two i met through the girl i play soccer with. There is stuff going on from Wednesday night to Sunday night, if you want to. The biggest night is Saturday, because that is when most athletes can party outside of the 48 hour rule.

I met my closest friends because they lived on my floor in my freshman dorm. We became an incredibly close knit group - we even made shirts for our group. On a 2am on Tuesday if I'm awake I'm doing reading or writing an essay. But during freshman year, there was a good chance that I was engaged in an argument over some intellectual question in our common room. People party every weekend - there is a lot more partying than I expected here although it's possible not to party. Last weekend, I went to a party on Friday night where a student band was playing. I danced for a while, didn't drink and then headed home through softly falling snow - quite nice, indeed. On Saturday night, I watched a movie and hung out with my friends.

there's a lot of drinking, and a fair amount of drug use on campus, but i think that's true of most schools. in the time that i've been there, construction on campus has been kind of disruptive, and it will continue to be so for another few years at least.

My favorite aspect of extra-curriculars is that they are not all-consuming. You can be a multi-sport athlete, which is unusual for a school with such a strong athletic program, or you can be involved in sports and other activities.

People generally stay on campus during the weekends unless you want to hop onto one of the other five college campuses. It's nice to be in a small school but have a huge population of college kids just next door (the bus ride is free, too.) Everything's open here - people who have never ridden a horse become stars on the equestrian team. Try out for a play or an improv group (Gads!) if you've never done theater before. It's a small school, so everyone needs people for their groups and you'd be surprised how good you might be. Bored? Go into town and walk around on the commons, go down to the bird sanctuary and stargaze with someone else. Just look for a light on in a window, find the room, knock, and bring them along with you. Amherst has made me a lot more open to different things. People come in here wide-eyed and scared, but they need to jump into things the minute they get here. Don't worry about pre-med or pre-law taking up your time; have fun while you're at it. Go to KBToys down the road and buy a laser tag set. Go to the roller rink down the street, just don't stay in your room.

Amherst is one of the Five Colleges -- where you can take classes at the other schools, etc. This aspect of the school is more hype than reality, but there is definitely interaction between various campus groups (LGBT, Political/Activism) Campus groups often sponsor various events: from lectures to panels to parties. There is always something going on. There are no official frats, but there are a few off-campus ones. The social scene has become pretty dominated by alcohol at times, but there are always other options. The campus is small, so you are always running into people you know at parties, in the cafeteria, or the campus center.

A multitude of clubs exist on campus that fit a variety of interests. Some of the most popular include Educate!, an African education initiative started by Amherst students, the various affinity groups, athletic teams, singing groups, and student government. It is no surprise that Amherst is known as "The Singing College." There's an acapella group for almost every musical taste in addition to formal choral groups. I have enjoyed my tenure in the all-male Glee Club. After freshman year most people keep their doors unlocked since the dorms themselves require keycard access. There is certainly a sense of community in some of the more social dorms, while others are basically apartment buildings. In these dorms most nights are rather quiet. In the more social dorms, Wednesday through Sunday can expect one or more room groups to be throwing a party. One of the coolest things about Amherst is that one rarely has to pay money to party on campus. I have never heard of paying $5 or anything. Certain teams and groups of friends usually host. The older classes generally treat for the younger classes. I think this has been going on for a long time. Fraternities are off-campus, but still have some of the school's most reputable members a part of them.

Partying can happen any day of the week here, but the style and atmosphere is what makes the difference. Different types of people party differently based on interests. Some parties have live bands for kids who like that type of concert feel when they go out. Other parties seem more like bars with music in the background as kids hang out or play drinking games. The club atmosphere is also available with hip-hop/rap and people looking to dance all night. Much like any city, they type of party/place you go to just depends on your perception of what a "good" night out is.