Barnard College Top Questions

In my experience, most of the people I have become close with have been people that I have met on or through my floor, although I've certainly become close with many friends from my classes. Generally over the weekend there are parties going on, but most of the larger parties are at Columbia. I generally go out with my friends into the city to have fun which will involve going out to bars/clubs every once in a while, so it pays to have a decent fake id. But there are plenty of places to go and things to do in the city that don't involve drinking, and I find that just going into a new part of town to walk around and explore is the funnest thing to do with other people. On campus, the more relaxed nights during the weekend generally involve studying, talking, or watching movies.

If I'm awake at 2am on a Tuesday night, I'm definately doing homework. I'm on the Varsity crew team so that means an early wakeup call every morning. However, no athletics stops me on a weekend night. Being that Columbia doesn't really take athletics seriously, neither do the athletes. None of the teams have serious dry seasons like most of the other ivies, so we take advantage of that and most athletes drink up heavily.

This is hard, and perhaps my one big issue with Barnard. As a school in the city, there isn't that much of a campus social life, and you sort of have to take things as they come. But a social life is easy to forge, just don't expect to spend your Saturday nights in dorm parties.

There are plenty of groups, clubs, etc. to choose from - I'm involved in several dance-related groups. There's tons going on every weekend (and weekday) with respect to theater, music, dance, lectures, etc., and being in New York, there's literally a never-ending supply of things to see and do. By far the best tradition at Barnard (and probably one of the top three reasons I love Barnard) is Midnight Breakfast. The night before finals begin, the deans, administrators, and alumna get together to serve the students breakfast in the middle of the night. There's always an awesome theme, lots of music, fake tattoos, banana splits, and Anna Quindlen serves you bacon!

If I'm awake at 2 am on a tuesday, I am probably in the library, a study lounge, or my suite, studying. And there are a lot of people around me most probably, also studying. I like that about barnard, the strong academic motivation, but it's not overkill, because you can always find people to do stuff with.

Barnard has some lovely traditions. We tie-dye out on the lawn and the deans serve ice cream (the name of the event changes from year to year but it always happens), we have midnight breakfast once a semester, our friends perform at all sorts of dance venues, we have class dinners for the entire class (something you can do at a small college) and the entire school turns onto the lawn for class and socializing once the weather is nice. We work hard and party hard, for the most part. Saturday nights can involve the theater, the movies, an on-campus performance by a theater or comedy troupe, going to clubs and restaurants in the village and meatpacking district.

I'm in the Alpha Delta Phi Literary Society and it has saved my life at college. I absolutely love it and spend most of my time at the house. Greek life is important here, but I think the percentage of students actually involved in a Fraternity or Sorority is pretty low. There are lots of guest speakers, events, panels, etc. and the speaker list is generally impressive. So far... the dating scene sucks. I mean, it's a women's college, but I haven't met any especially appealing Columbia males either. If I'm awake at 2am on a Tuesday, which I usually am, I'm probably procrastinating. Or doing work. Everyone's party schedule is different. Some students party a lot, others never leave the library. I usually spend the whole night out at least once a week; I roll in between 6am and 8am. Then I might go out one or two more times that week. But I study a lot less than most people, I think. There is so much to do off-campus! You're in New York City!

There is a diversity of student activities at Barnard, but the temptations of the city steals the college activity board's thunder. There is definitely something for everyone on campus, but New York City proves too tempting for most to stick around long enough to find an on campus passion. As for your social life .. you can try to have one, but at Barnard, it more about getting ahead and getting the good grade than it is about getting drunk and going to parties to have fun.

Barnard students definitely subsribe to the belief that "busyness is happiness." Most everyone here is juggling at least her courseload, a job, and a club, and that's at the very least. People just want to do everything! Surprisingly, the women here are really on top of their stuff- they get their work done, go to their activities, and have social lives, and even sometimes get sleep (sleep is usually the first thing to go among these things). Write a book if you get through four years here without pulling an all-nighter - I'll buy it! I'll pay you a million dollars for it! I've had great experiences getting involved in performance groups on campus. My freshman year I was in an a cappella group, and first semester of my sophomore year I was in the CU Musical Theatre Society's production of Into the Woods. Columbia theatre is a ton of fun with many traditions of student run/created productions. I meet most of my friends through my activities, where I live, and my classes- I know how shocking that must sound! I think it's important to always branch out and try new things in college- your spare time is so precious, and you have to really discriminate who and what you give it to. It's not like high school where you had to feel married to a club for four years- you can dabble around in a lot of different things and everyone will still love you. As for dating, a legitimate concern for prospective students who don't aspire to be nuns: the opportunities are there, even though it's a women's college. All the clubs and activities are mixed with Columbia, so there are always strapping young men around (and by strapping young men I mean, well, at least a pre-screened dating pool... at least you know they're smart!) Do not blame the school for your love life- or do, if it's convenient and your mom is continually reminding you that she met your father in college. It completely depends on your personality. If you liked dating boys in high school and are comfortable with yourself, that won't suddenly change when you get to Barnard. However, if you find yourself tempted to block out relationships and their complications, it is all too easy to do that here. This can be good and bad, depending on your state of mind. But if you want to meet someone, it's not that different from being at a co-ed school- the first thing you have to do is leave your room. And finally, the weekends. I want to start this by saying I only wanted to go to college in a city, because I was absolutely positively certain I did not want to be in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do but get drunk (beer guts don't become me). So, problem solved, I'm in New York. There are always a million things to do, for free or for a lot of money. You can go downtown and get student rush tickets to a Broadway show, hit up a museum (for free with your student ID), attend one of the many special events in the city- read Time Out New York to see what's going on! There are always events on campus on the weekends- parties, performances, you name it- so if community is what you crave, fear not. The nice thing about Barnard is that while you are allowed to have parties in off-campus suites (not really in the quad, but you wouldn't want to in your little room), most of the parties are at Columbia, so you can go have your fun and then return to the quiet sanctity of your room.

There are so many student groups on campus – but the most popular include the comedy and a cappella groups. CU Bhangra, however, is probably the most-loved group by the campus. While this Indian dance group might seem a random choice to outsiders, it makes sense that on a campus where everyone works really hard, almost unceasingly, people would enjoy watching a group of their peers having a ball jumping around and making crazy faces – all in perfect unison – on stage. Community Impact, Columbia’s umbrella volunteer/community service organization, is also quite popular with several different tutoring, mentoring, and other community service groups such as Habitat for Humanity. Lots of people are involved in the Columbia Daily Spectator, the Columbia University daily newspaper, as well. After freshman year, students generally do not leave their doors open. However, in the corridor-style living areas, people are quite friendly to neighbors who they may not have previously known. Athletic events – although men’s basketball sometimes draws a decent turnout, Columbia sports are largely understood as a joke. The dating scene is tough going, especially if you’re a heterosexual girl – there are just too many of us. Many Barnard students seem to be in long-distance relationships. My closest friends are the people who I lived with my first year, which I think is pretty common for everyone. Either because we love free stuff or we just love to eat, the most popular Barnard traditions revolve around food. Every fall, the McAc committee holds Big Sub, an event where they line up tables stretching from the north to the south end of campus (about 4 city blocks) with sub sandwiches. My first year, an upperclassman (woman) practically shoved me out of the way so she could grab about 2 feet of sub to take back (presumably) to her suite. However, this year the scene was not quite as aggressive. The other favorite Barnard event is Midnight Breakfast, where all the head honchos of the administration, including the president, deans, trustees and other faculty members serve students a smorgasbord of pancakes, eggs, waffles, ice cream, bagels, doughnuts – basically everything you could ever want – at midnight the night before the first final exam each semester. Barnard students also take part in Columbia traditions such as Orgo Night – also the night before the first final exam – when the Columbia marching band marches through campus playing tunes and puts on a special routine in the Butler Library. As far as things to do to have fun, you’re in New York City. There’s always plenty to do, you just have to go out and find it.