It's kind of like high school

Introduction
I chose this school because it has a great campus including an arboretum. The people are friendly, the classes are small and it was relatively far from my home. I tend to adjust well to my surroundings so I had no trouble fitting in. However, some good friends of mine who have transferred said that they hated the school due to its lack of diversity (not in reference to ethnicity) and acceptance. I think for the most part, the people who didn't like it here either didn't try hard enough to get to know people or were just completely negative about being around the blond, barbie doll girls. Although I admit that most girls on campus are skinny minis, I think that coming in with a negative attitude will not work either. It's hard not to judge others on campus but you really have to get to know them because most people are great.

I didn't know anyone coming from my high school or otherwise coming into Conn. I actually like this a lot because I diversified my friends and they're all great. I suggest meeting new people whenever possible because you're definitely missing out if you don't.

I did consider transferring after my semester abroad but I realized that Conn is like every other school out there and I might not have as great a time elsewhere.

Campus Life and Social Life
There's a lot of partying on campus, but the amount which you party depends on the people you chill with. For example, the sailors tend to drink almost every night of the week, especially during the season. The campus has it's own bar so that students don't drink and drive off campus. Of age students go to the campus bar almost every night (except Sun. and Mon when the bar's closed).

Not a lot of people leave campus for partying. There's housing off the main campus but still belonging to the school so parties there are fun. If people go off campus it's usually to Boston, NYC or Providence. Otherwise people go skiing in VT a lot or just to travel but for the most part you're not missing out if you're not part of these crowds because there's always a party or two on campus. There are only one or two weekends that are really dead but the school will still sponsor some type of event.

There are lots of clubs on campus: music, activism, diversity...you name it and there's a club for it. Even if you can't find you want, you can create one. My friend created the Grillenyos Club last year. It's only purpose is for a group of people to grill on Sundays after a long night of drinking. The school sponsors it.

There is a good deal of drug use on campus but not in a bad way. It's the same as any other college in terms of drug and alcohol use. The good thing about the people here is that you are never pressured to do anything you don't want to do. My roommate freshman year was always afraid to go to a party because she thought that people would try to make her drink or smoke. That was definitely a bad judgement because she only made two friends the entire year, both of which lived in our dorm of 50 students.

The social scene also changes depending on which part of campus you're on. Marshall is the party dorm of North campus. I lived there sophmore year and the first floor was always boozing, second floor was pretty mellow, and the third floor always reeked of pot. Freeman and JA are party dorms of the South. Every weekend there is sure to be a party on one of their floors. KB and Windham are the rowdy dorms on Central campus. Windham is usually known for its kegs. Abbey house and Earth house also sponsor some fun events as well.

Most people participate in some sort of physical activity during the school year. A lot of people are on the actual teams but there are others who go out for club teams. Then there are those that just go on the green or into the arbo and throw around a frisbee for fun (there is also a club team). The only problem is that the athletic center is kind of far from the main campus. You have to walk down a hill to get to it. The worst part is walking back up. Advertisement
Academics
Academically, Conn is not too hard. It depends on how hard you want to try. For two years, I didn't try hard. I usually did my work at the last minute and still managed to get on the Dean's list. During the last two years I've actually put thought into my classes and I've definitely benefitted from doing so. Although my grades stayed the same, I realized that I actually deserved what I got and that I learned from my classes.

I like the economics department a lot. They have some great professors but most of them are just visiting professors which means that they're not likely to stay. Pack and Jensen are GREAT professors in economics, teaching macroeconomics and economic development, respectively. The gov department is supposed to have some great professors although I've only taken classes from a few. Dawson is great for enviromental politics and Tian is great for international relations based studies.

The workload is fine. I think anything having to do with science has more work than the rest. The best thing about Conn is the finals system. Basically, you get a week to complete your finals. Since most finals are self-scheduled, you can take the exam whenever you want or if you have a paper, you can turn it in at any time before the deadline. For the self-scheduled exam, there are three academic buildings set aside for different tests. Find out which building your exam is to take place, plan a time to take the exam and then do it. Every day has three or four different exam periods which each last about three hours.

There are no TA's at Conn.

I do wish I had broaden the range of courses I took because I definately didn't take Conn's liberal arts status to its full potential.

Student Body
Most of the students come from the New England area, particularly right outside of Boston, other parts of MA, NY/NYC, Maine, Jersey, VT, NH, PA. There are also lots of students from the East coast and Mid-west. Not a lot from the South but there are the occassional ones. There are a surprising number of international students particularly from Turkey and Southeast Asia.

The majority of the population can be described as follows: popped-collar, Vera Bradley bags, pink checkered shorts, bad tans, superficial. It kind of sucks because they all feed off eachother. It's kind of a vicious cycle. HOWEVER, there are those students who are hard workers and just like to chill. It's hard to find them because they tend to find their niche and stick with it but once you do, they're the best people you'll ever meet. I suggest going on the COOP program right before freshman year because that's where I've met some of my best friends.

The great thing about the school is that most students are extremely accomplished even before they matriculate. Some students worked on cancer research in high school, began youth counseling organizations at the age of 15, traveled the world, etc. These people definitely don't stand out from the crowd normally but if you get to know them they have great stories.

The only problem with Conn is that most of the students belong to the same socio-economic background. Many have trust funds and others come from families that own brand name companies. The kids that I know don't tend to brag about their wealth but there are some who definitely flaunt it.

In Closing...
Visit before you decide to go anywhere, not just Conn. I suggest coming on a Thursday or Saturday night so you can check out the party scene because that is a big part of college life. If you know someone who goes to school here and know that they are like you, stay with them to see what kind of groups they hang with. If not, then ask them if they know anyone who's willing to host you that has your same personality.

If you're a party person, ask to be placed in Marshall or JA. If you're more quiet, there are specialty housing for drug-free or quiet dorms.