Liberal Communication!

Introduction
I came here for the internationally-renowned Communications school, tight-knit socially active environment, and liberal student body. The only big drawback is Ithaca's intense winter, but the spring and summer are so beautiful that they arguably make up for it. You will be welcomed here, regardless of your background, UNLESS that background is politically conservative. Then you will be scorned and shunned.

Campus Life and Social Life
I'm not a big party person, and I haven't felt overwhelmed by any sort of rocking social life here...it's pretty much optional. It's not one of those schools where you hit drunken-slash-hungover frat kids on your way anywhere, since there's no Greek Life here. This can also make it difficult to find parties...but if you're willing to search a little, you'll always find somewhere to go. Most people I know will hang out with their friends on weekends in a dorm room, drinking there. Maybe I just hang out with homebodies.

People aren't overly excited about football or any of the sports here. The only time people really get into it is during Cortaca, the annual football game that pits Ithaca against SUNY Cortland. In short, it's one giant excuse to get completely drunk for an ENTIRE weekend.

Clubs and groups are pretty active around campus: you'll always see flyers and people advertising for membership, meetings, and events. Whatever you're into, you'll find a niche here. Advertisement
Academics
By far the best programs at Ithaca are the Music and Communications schools, both of which are world-famous. I have a ton of Music-major friends, and they love their major, but do caution that it's a ton of hard work. I am a Communications major and I don't think I could have found a better school for this discipline. We have all the resources you could possibly need, and IC is rapidly rising in rank and respect within the Communications marketplace.

As for the rest of the programs at Ithaca, you can expect to find a well-rounded Liberal Arts education, but nothing dazzling. Ask around when you visit the school to make sure your fields of interest get enough attention (and enough top-notch professors) here.

Student Body
The stereotype of IC is HIPPIE...and there's truth in the stereotype. Most of the kids smoke weed on a semi-regular basis, or if not they at least accept it. It's an insanely liberal campus here. That said, it's not like everyone's in Birkenstocks strumming guitars and singing "We are the World." Think more like typical middle-class white college students congregating on the quad, sorta stoned, sorta reading, sorta listening to Phish.

In Closing...
Ithaca is great, but you have to be willing to seek out a social life, since it's not a fratty place where the parties come to you.